German low-cost supermarket Aldi is set to open ten new stores across France in the coming weeks.
With food prices continuing to increase in March, it hopes to provide an alternative for French consumers.
The chain already has 1,300 stores in France but wants to expand to 1,900 by the end of the decade. By contrast, Lidl has more than 1,500 stores in France, Carrefour 3,440 and Intermarché 1,800.
Where are France’s new Aldi stores?
Here is the list of locations and opening dates:
Kembs (Haut-Rhin), April 5
Ronchamp (Haute-Saône), April 19
Balan (Ardennes), April 19
Quesnoy (Nord), April 26
Tourcoing (Nord), May 17
Mantes-la-Ville (Yvelines), May 17
Beaurainville (Pas-de-Calais), May 24
Saint-Amour (Jura), June 7
Saint-Pierre-d'Oléron (Charente-Maritime), June 7
Sevran (Seine-Saint-Denis), June 28
Read also: Discount ‘almost all at €1’ store to open in France
Prices ‘37% lower’
Aldi’s new shops will vary in size from 800m² to 1,500m², selling the full range of Aldi products, including own-brand food items and those in the ubiquitous ‘middle aisle’, stacked with everything from paddling pools to panini machines.
Its stature as a budget supermarket is well-known, with the chain employing a number of practices to keep costs low.
Amongst these is the store’s use of own-brand products – around 90% of food sold is Aldi’s brands – helping the store to compete as one of the cheapest, regardless of the nation of the store.
Consumer news site LSA estimates that shopping at Aldi is around 37% lower than in traditional French supermarkets, with the chain benefiting from an influx of shoppers as inflation continues to impact buying habits of customers.
French supermarkets have implemented measures to limit inflation on popular products, but for many, this is still not enough to combat increasing food prices, which have risen 15.8% in the last 12 months according to French statistics agency Insee.
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