Discount Retail Chain Aldi Nord's (German family owned) CEO, Torsten Hufnagel, wants to reach 6,000 European establishments in the next three years. Spain, France and Poland, the most likely destinations for the bulk of investment.
German discounter Aldi Nord thinks big. After the "biggest restructuring in the company's history", as described by its CEO Torsten Hufnagel in April, the brand is now embarking on a project to open 700 new stores in Europe over the next three years.
New structure
Aldi Nord has made headlines twice over the past two weeks in Germany. In mid-September, the company created a separate company for its operations outside Germany, and on Monday said goodbye to the last member of the founding family, the Albrechts, as a result of a reshuffle of the board of directors.
However, the new structure lays the foundation for a larger goal. Managing Director Torsten Hufanagel wants to reach 6,000 stores in Europe by 2026, which means opening 700 new stores within three years.
The countries best positioned to lead the bulk of the new openings are Spain, France and Poland, according to sources in the Lebensmittel Zeitung newspaper.
More investment in logistics, lower prices
Hufnagel's project is not only ambitious. It is also unexpected. It should be remembered that Aldi has gone through serious economic difficulties during the inflationary period, to the point of taking exceptional measures such as the exit of Denmark, which reduced its number of stores in Europe to 5,300. It also abandoned its online store project in Spain and the rest of Europe.
How will you finance the new expansion operation? According to a report by LZ, the funds will come from the Albrecht family. In addition, the German brand wants to make large investments in logistics to achieve new economies of scale. His obsession is to reduce unit prices, invest the extra profits in lower prices and continue to expand the brand.
"It's about paying dividends to our consumers," say company sources according to the newspaper Retail Detail.
Comments