Aldi plans 40 new UK stores in £900m investment programme

Aldi backs UK store growth as sales reach £19bn

Aldi plans to open 40 UK stores next year under a £900m investment programme, BBC Business reports. The German-owned supermarket chain is committing to a larger physical footprint while its chief executive, Giles Hurley, challenges the value of some competitors’ loyalty discounts.

The expansion announcement accompanied a 5% increase in Aldi’s sales to £19bn for 2025 compared with 2024. Operating profit edged down over the same period, according to BBC Business. Aldi attributed the decline to higher employee pay and spending on infrastructure and prices, putting the cost of supporting growth alongside the benefit of increased sales.

Aldi also said it had spent £340m on price reductions this year, BBC Business reported. That spending gives a financial measure of the retailer’s effort to compete on shelf prices rather than discounts reserved for loyalty members.

Loyalty pricing divides Britain’s supermarket market

Aldi is the only major supermarket chain without a loyalty scheme, according to BBC Business. Millions of shoppers use such programmes elsewhere, making the distinction a significant part of how Aldi competes with other large grocery retailers in the UK.

The UK competition watchdog examined supermarket loyalty pricing in 2024 and found that shoppers received genuine savings in almost every case, BBC Business reported. That conclusion is important context for Hurley’s criticism: his allegations about some promotions are not a regulatory finding that loyalty pricing generally misleads customers.

Competition between discount chains and established supermarkets also has a European dimension. Market Entry Wire has separately covered reports that Lidl’s owner is preparing a Czech and Slovak Tesco bid, another potential move in the contest for grocery customers beyond Britain.

Hurley questions discounts as consultant challenges Aldi’s position

Hurley argued that some competitors set excessively high starting prices before offering reductions that still leave shoppers with an uncompetitive deal, BBC Business reported. He accepted that promotions can be useful when the savings are credible, but said misleading reductions make household budgeting harder. BBC Business noted that he has criticised discount schemes before.

Hurley also said Aldi continued to attract new shoppers despite intense competition. He claimed it was the only retailer where a weekly grocery basket cost less this summer than the previous summer, according to BBC Business. This was Aldi’s position rather than an independently established price comparison in the supplied reporting.

Retail consultant Ged Futter, a former Asda buyer, offered a different explanation for the intervention. Speaking to BBC Business, he described Hurley’s criticism as an attempt to divert attention from pressure on Aldi’s UK business. Futter said the chain’s rapid rise had slowed about two years earlier and that its growth now trailed the main supermarket group.

British supplier agreements sit alongside the store rollout

Beyond the planned openings, Aldi intends to extend long-term agreements with British suppliers, BBC Business reported. For domestic producers, those arrangements are a separate opportunity from the retailer’s property expansion: the stated plan covers sourcing relationships as well as additional places to sell groceries.

Hurley linked the supplier strategy to weaknesses in food supply chains exposed by recent droughts and international events. According to BBC Business, he argued that increasing domestic production should become a national strategic priority to limit the UK’s exposure to disruptions that can drive up food prices.

For businesses planning a UK grocery launch, the sourcing commitment makes supplier access an important question alongside store coverage. A growing retail network does not, by itself, establish a route onto shelves; Aldi’s stated emphasis on longer-term British relationships points to the need to assess sourcing priorities before treating expansion announcements as immediate listing opportunities.