Aldi plans to open 16 new stores in UK - is your town on the list?

6 October 2022, 16:22

An exterior view of an Aldi grocery store
Aldi plans to open 16 more stores in Britain by the end of the year. Picture: Getty

By StephenRigley

Aldi is planning to open 16 more stores in Britain by the end of the year in a significant expansion, after becoming Britain's fourth-largest supermarket.

The German discount retailer has published a list of towns and cities across the country where it wants to open new stores.

The list includes big cities such as Birmingham, Bath and Leicester, as well as smaller towns like Cheshunt and Warrington.

The company - which already has over 970 stores in Britain - said it is searching for freehold town-centre or edge-of-centre sites suitable for property development.

Each site will need to house a 20,000 square foot store with around 100 parking spaces.

The opening of 16 new stores will also create 6,000 new jobs as the company continues to expand.

The announcement comes after data from Kantar showed Aldi attracted 1.5 million extra customers to its stores over the past 12 weeks and sales grew at 18.7%, overtaking Morrisons with a market share of 9.3%.

Shopping basket in Aldi store
Aldi attracted 1.5 million extra customers to its stores over the past 12 weeks. Picture: Getty

Some of the areas Aldi is targeting across the country include:

  • South East – Caversham, Farnham, Maidenhead and Worthing
  • South West – Bath, Teignmouth and Penzance
  • West Midlands – Birmingham, Coventry and Warwick
  • East Midlands – Chesterfield, Leicester and Derby
  • East of England – Cheshunt, Brentwood and Rayleigh
  • North West – Warrington, West Didsbury and Formby
  • North East – Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland
  • Yorkshire – Harrogate, Otley and York
  • Scotland – Cathcart, Bonnyrigg and Ladysmill
  • Wales – Barry and Chepstow
Shoppers in Aldi supermarket
Aldi said it will keep grocery prices as low as possible. Picture: Getty

Giles Hurley, Chief Executive Officer for Aldi UK and Ireland, said: "The cost-of-living crisis is worsening, and it's being felt by millions of households across the UK.

"It's in times like these when our customers rely on us the most, which is why we're focusing on continuing to deliver our longstanding price promise by offering the lowest possible prices in Britain, every single day.

"Independent research shows our discount is as compelling as ever and that's why more and more people are switching to Aldi.

"We will do whatever it takes to maintain our discount to the traditional full price supermarkets and keep grocery prices as low as possible for the millions of customers that shop with Aldi."

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Research by Which? named Aldi the country's cheapest supermarket for the fourth month in a row.

A survey carried out by the consumer group found that shoppers who get their groceries at the discounter can save £23.79 compared to Waitrose, for the same number of items.

Julie Ashfield, Managing Director of Buying at Aldi, said: "The upcoming months remain uncertain for so many across the UK, and we want to help make this difficult time a little easier for our valued customers.

"We are committed to providing our customers with the very best quality at prices that don't break the bank, and we're thrilled to be yet again recognised as the UK's cheapest supermarket by Which?."

Aldi store
More people are switching to Aldi due to the cost of living crisis, the supermarket's CEO said. Picture: Getty

It comes after Aldi opened a new eco concept store in Royal Leamington Spa on September 29.

The supermarket, built with sustainable materials, was designed to reduce carbon emissions and make it easier for shoppers to recycle.

The new supermarket features a 'hard to recycle' unit and energy saving initiatives.

The company's CEO said: "Now more than ever, we must do our bit for the environment and this store offers us the ability to easily explore new in-store initiatives and low carbon store designs.

"We are committed to reducing our environmental impact in any way we can and are continuing to explore new initiatives all the time.

"What's even better is that many of the changes made to this store, whether it be the energy-saving initiatives or our latest packaging-free trial, could allow us to put even more money back into the pockets of our customers.

"We're focusing on continuing to deliver our longstanding price promise by offering the lowest possible prices in Britain, every single day."