Aldi, the UK’s fourth-largest supermarket, celebrated the opening of its 1,000th UK store in Woking last year.
The budget brand is now on track to open a further 500 stores as part of its long-term plan, with 35 of them confirmed to start trading this year.
A staggering £550million has been invested in this year’s expansion, which is set to create hundreds of new jobs.
Jonathan Neale, Managing Director of National Real Estate at Aldi UK, said: “After attracting more new customers than any other supermarket in the last 12 months, we’re more determined than ever to expand our presence across the country.
“We want to make high-quality food accessible to all, and shoppers know they’ll always get more for their money when shopping at Aldi.”
Aldi operates supermarkets and smaller “local” stores, which were first trialled in Balham, London in 2019.
The budget chain will focus on expanding its offering of larger sites this year with two new stores ready to open within the month.
Shoppers in Preston will welcome see the Preston Docks site open its doors for the first time on April 25.
A second site in Derby’s Meteor Centre will also be ready for business in April.
Aldi stores opening
The retailer has confirmed the locations of six new stores that will welcome customers in the coming months. These include:
- Portway, Preston
- Meteor Retail Park, Derby
- Castle Gresley, Derbyshire
- Swinfen Vale, Bardon
- High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
- Stoke Gifford, Bristol
According to Aldi, each new store opening will create around 40 new jobs on average, boosting employment opportunities within local areas.
It’s not just Aldi shoppers that will benefit from the changes. Employees will be able to take advantage of higher pay from June 1, 2024.
The supermarket giant revealed that Sore Assistants at Aldi will receive a starting pay of £12.40 per hour, and those based within the M25 will receive £13.65 per hour.
Each new store opening will create around 40 new jobs on average, boosting employment opportunities within local areas.
