Aldi currently has over 400 stores in the UK and plans to increase this number threefold; Buying Director Tony Baines says the group will continue to build a store a week until it achieves 10% grocery market share – bold claims and impressive confidence, but is it justified?

Since its introduction to the UK in 1990, Aldi’s reputation has been quite up and down. I remember the days of being in school and wishing hard that no one ever found out my parents shopped in Aldi! It was generally seen as the place where impoverished people shopped...and you know kids, God forbid your bread isn’t Kingsmill, your trainers aren’t Nike and your bag isn’t Adidas! But this reputation hasn’t harmed the deep discount retailer; its been growing profitably for over 50 years and Karl and Theo are in the top 20 of the Forbes Billionaire rich list!

Turnover last year was up 12%, and footfall to its UK stores increased 25% in just 3 months this year (March – May)! So aside from playground jokes, the reality is that Aldi represents great value for money and will become more and more popular as the credit crunch goes on. With 6 varieties of fruit and vegetables priced at 69p each week, more awards than you can shake a stick at and weekly special buys selling like hot cakes, all competitors can do is read it and weep.