Aldi Dreams Big With U.S. Expansion

The German discount supermarket has plans to open close to 900 stores in the country over the next five years.

June 13, 2017

BATAVIA, Ill. – Aldi, a German discount grocery chain, has unveiled plans to open close to 900 stores in the United States over the next five years as part of a $5 billion expansion plan, the Wall Street Journal reports. The chain will also remodel hundreds of its current U.S. locations.

Those plans will likely push Aldi into the third-largest food retailer by store count in the United States, smack behind Walmart and Kroger. With the additional new stores, Aldi will have 2,500 U.S. units by 2022. Another German discount supermarket chain, Lidl, will open the first 10 American stores this week as part of its own expansion plan.

Discount chains are predicted to grow up to 10% annually through 2020—a rate that’s five times that of traditional supermarkets, according to Bain & Co. “It should absolutely be more than scary to traditional grocers and retailers,” said Mikey Vu, a Bain partner.

Aldi has had U.S. locations since 1976, but has mainly targeted lower-income shoppers with its discounted items. In recent years, the chain has worked to improve stores and products, and has attracted a bigger mix of customers, Vu said.

Europeans have long been willing to purchase private-label products, which has led to the success of Aldi and Lidl overseas. But Americans are beginning to embrace store brands, which might mean Aldi or Lidl would pick up additional customers. “[Millennials] are value-oriented and don’t hold the same stigmas about private-label items that older generations do,” said Mike Paglia, director at Kantar Retail.

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