Aldi to invest £900m in new stores after record turnover
Aldi is set to spend £900m opening new stores next year, as the discount grocer warned the Iran war and droughts were pushing up the “pressures” facing households.
The UK’s fourth-biggest supermarket said it is seeing record sales growth because of its “relentless focus” on low prices, amid fears that the cost of food could surge in coming months.
Aldi grew its turnover by five per cent to a record £19bn in 2025, which the grocer attributed to its £340m investment in cutting prices across products like butter, meat and frozen fish.
The grocer has 1,092 stores in the UK but has plans to expand to as many as 1,500. Aldi said on Monday it will spend £900m next year building 40 new stores and revamping its warehouse network.
Aldi chief executive Giles Hurley said soaring shipping costs caused by the Iran war – along with recent droughts and fears of a “super” El-Nino weather pattern – are causing more shoppers to worry about the cost of food.
Food inflation held steady at 1.3 per cent in August but industry forecasts suggest this could surge to 6.4 per cent by July next year, putting further pressure on households.
Aldi wins cheapest supermarket
“The cost of food remains one of the biggest pressures on households across the country. Recent droughts at home and events overseas have highlighted just how fragile our food system is and why food security must be a long-term national priority,” Hurley said.
“We’re working hard to make good food more affordable for every family – cutting prices on everyday essentials, signing long-term supplier agreements to help increase home-grown production, and continuing to bring affordable groceries to even more communities through our store opening programme.
“This is why more customers are buying more products at Aldi – our relentless focus on simple, everyday low prices and award-winning quality.”
The supermarket’s operating profit remained broadly flat at £433m, compared to £435.5m the year before.
The company’s gross margin slipped from 2.4 to 2.3 per cent, owing to investments in price, infrastructure and worker pay.
Aldi said it has hiked the hourly wage of its shop-floor workers twice this year, to £13.50 in the UK and £14.88 in London.
The supermarket holds a 10.6 per cent share of the UK’s grocery market, though the latest industry figures suggest this has shrunk from 10.8 per cent a year ago.
The recent dominance of Aldi and fellow German discounter Lidl has put pressure on British supermarkets like Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Asda, who have all sought to compete with Aldi price-match ranges.
Aldi has been the cheapest supermarket in the UK for the past five years, according to consumer organisation Which?.