Aldi International, the discount grocer based in Germany, is upping its game in Connecticut.
The company recently opened its sixth Connecticut store on the Silas Deane Highway in Rocky Hill, and it plans to open additional locations in Hartford, Newington and Vernon in the fall.
The company, which has almost 900 stores in 28 states and hundreds more in other countries, declined to comment on the addresses of future locations, saying specifics would come in the next few months.
Despite growing demand for a grocery store in downtown Hartford, it’s not likely Aldi will be serving that market.
Based on a list of criteria posted on the company’s Web site, Aldi looks for buildings with “16,000 square feet and a minimum of 85 dedicated parking spaces.” Also, lease rates in the downtown area could be a deterrent.
Selective Sites
“We’re very particular about our locations,” the site says, “because we choose them based on factors that will translate into savings on our customers’ grocery receipt.”
Aldi also operates stores in Bristol, New Britain, Torrington, Wallingford and Waterbury.
Rising food costs and a tanking economy could make this an ideal time to bring new discount options to the local food market. Food price inflation in 2007 saw the largest increase since 1990, according to a Bureau of Labor Statistics report cited in an Aldi press release.
“Aldi has a very efficient business model,” said Aldi spokesperson Martha Swaney. “If we are continuing to do well, we will expand in certain areas as we see it’s appropriate.”
The company claims its customers can get prices up to 50 percent lower than the competition, thanks to the store’s strategy of streamlining efficiency and limiting selection without requiring customers to buy in bulk. “At Aldi, you pay for food — not frills,” the Web site claims.
Single-Brand Offerings
The company says its quest for optimum efficiency generates the deepest possible discounts for its customers. The store stocks only about 1,300 of the most frequently purchased groceries and household items, with only one brand option for each item.
The company said it offsets a lack of choice with high quality standards to ensure its single-brand offerings are equal to if not greater than the competition.
Aldi shuns baggers or cart fetchers. Instead, customers put down a 25-cent deposit for cart use, which they get back when they return the cart. The store also encourages customers to bring their own bags. If they don’t, paper or plastic ones are available for 5 cents each.
Aldi only accepts cash, food stamps and debit cards, avoiding the credit card and check options that tend to cost the store more.
The company was founded in 1948 as “Albrecht Discount” by Karl and Theo Albrecht, who Forbes magazine recently listed as the wealthiest men in Germany. Karl Albrecht was ranked as the tenth wealthiest man in the world with a personal fortune of $27 billion.
