The Washington Post – Aldi plans to add 800 stores over the next four years. Dollar General expects to add that many just this year. And their main rivals have ambitions of their own.
Together, these discount grocers and value retailers are sprinting to meet consumers where they are: hunting for cheaper grocery options.
Prices in the grocery category have surged 25% over the past four years, outpacing the overall inflation rate of 20% during the same period.
That opens the door for discount and value-driven retailers, said John Clear, senior director in the consumer retail group at consulting firm Alvarez & Marsal.
Discount chain Aldi, for instance, could “double down and continue to be pretty aggressive because they’re the perfect retailer for this environment,” Clear said.
Reese Samuel, a 22-year-old swim coach in D.C., said he and his roommate buy most of their groceries from a recently opened Lidl to maintain a high-protein diet on a budget.
“We eat a lot, so getting a lot of food at a low price is essential,” he said, standing outside the store in Washington’s Columbia Heights neighborhood.
Dollar General, Dollar Tree, Aldi and Lidl expanded their store footprint collectively by almost 17% from 2019 through the end of 2023, according to analytics company GlobalData. Dollar General alone has store locations within five miles of approximately 75% of the U.S. population, executives told investors last week.
For Aldi and Lidl, it’s paying off: Financially strained consumers are more willing to break with habits to save a few dollars on essentials, industry experts say.
“As inflation has became front-and-center when people were shopping, consumers have become very deal focused,” said R.J. Hottovy, head of analytical research at Placer.ai. “These value-focused concepts are the ones that people have flocked to, and now they’re starting to come back more often.”
Aldi, one of the fastest-growing grocers in the United States, announced an ambitious four-year expansion plan this month that includes new openings and store conversions from its recent acquisition of Southern supermarket chains Winn-Dixie and Harvey … READ MORE
