UK discounter Aldi has reported an annual sales increase of £2 billion to £15.5 billion when compared to 2021 sales of £13.6 billion, a new record for the supermarket.
According to data from Kantar, Aldi attracted around one million more customers to its stores over the past year, attributing the "shift in attitude" to the rising living costs. The company added that a "new generation of savvy shoppers have turned their back on traditional, full price supermarkets."
The business reported sales growth of 17.1% and a market share of 10.1%. Last year's operating profit grew to £178.7 million (£60.2 million in 2021), representing a margin of 1.2%. In the 12 months to December 2022, annual sales increased from £13.6 billion in 2021, rising almost £2 billion to reach £15.5 billion.
With over 1,000 UK stores, Aldi has stated that it plans to open in 18 new locations before 2024, while committing to opening another 500 stores nationwide.
"There are still communities across the UK that don't have easy access to quality, low price groceries and that's something we want to address through our expansion."
Giles Hurley, Aldi UK and Ireland CEO.
Giles Hurley, chief executive officer for Aldi UK and Ireland, said: “Although inflation is easing, households are still under real pressure from higher living costs. As a result, Britain is shopping very differently to how it did 18 months ago – fewer trips, more own label products, and switching supermarkets in search of better value.
“What we’re seeing is a new generation of savvy shoppers who’ve turned their back on traditional, full-price supermarkets in favour of transparent, low prices, which is what we’re famous for. That’s why we’re still welcoming more and more customers through our doors – people who come to us for our low prices but stay for the award-winning quality of our exclusive brands.
Hurley said: “There are still communities across the UK that don’t have easy access to quality, low price groceries and that’s something we want to address through our expansion, with plans to increase our investment even further over the next two years to £1.4 billion in new and improved stores and distribution centres, creating thousands of jobs for our colleagues and more opportunities for our 5,000 British suppliers.”
The planned stores will create an additional 6,000 new jobs on top of the 6,000 roles created last year.
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