ALDI History | ALDI US (2024)

FAQs

What is the history of Aldi's in the US? ›

In 1961, the Albrecht Family founded the world's first discount grocery store in Germany. 16 years later in 1976, we opened our first ALDI store in Iowa. Today, with our ALDI headquarters in Batavia, Illinois, we have grown to more than 2,000 stores across 36 states with over 25,000 employees.

The brothers split the company in 1960, over a dispute about whether they should sell cigarettes. Karl believed they would attract shoplifters while his brother, Theo, did not. This led to Theo running Aldi Nord, and Karl running Aldi Süd. At the time, they jointly owned 300 shops.

Aldi's Use of Store Analytics. Aldi's success is not just a result of its business model but also its use of store analytics. The company collects data on customer behavior, preferences, and trends to make informed decisions. This allows Aldi to tailor its product offerings and store layouts to meet customer demand.

Trader Joe's founder Joe Coulombe sold his business to Theo Albrecht in 1979, officially making the Albrecht family the proud owners of both prosperous markets — specifically, the Aldi Nord branch, since the company is split into two.

After WWII, Anna Albrecht gave her small store in Germany to her two sons. They turned it into a chain, split it into two companies, and named it Aldi, short for Albrecht Diskont. Aldi now has more than 12,000 stores and is growing rapidly in the US. Here's how it got there.

Much like you might expect with siblings, the two brothers decided to split their companies in two in 1961 after they allegedly had a dispute over whether they should sell cigarettes (seriously!).

In 2010, his father Theo Albrecht died, leaving the ownership of the German supermarket chain Aldi Nord and US supermarket chain Trader Joe's to his two sons, Theo Jr.

Kidnapping. In 1971, Albrecht was kidnapped. A ransom of seven million German marks (approximately US$2 million at the time) was paid for his release. He was held at gunpoint by Heinz-Joachim Ollenburg, a lawyer, and his accomplice Paul Kron.

The store's founders, the brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht were estimated to be worth a total of 38.8 billion dollars in 2014. However, despite this fortune, this global grocery store had very humble beginnings. Aldi was first founded in 1913 by Anna Albrecht as a small grocery store in Essen.

Aldi's 'aisle of shame' is a middle row of goodies that have nothing to do with groceries. Shoppers are huge fans of it. Aldi Finds aisle, or what its superfans call the "Aisle of shame."

Where does most of ALDI's food come from? ›

Within the United States, Aldi sources its products both domestically and from abroad. Aldi's products are made in China, the United Kingdom, and Germany, among others. However, it should be fairly easy to determine which products are made in the United States and which are imported internationally.

Regardless, the prices don't lie. Aldi is considerably cheaper than Walmart in almost every instance (or they were about the same).

Private brands and minimal staff add up to big savings

The thing that likely makes the biggest difference in avoiding higher grocery prices is that the chain sells very few brand name items. In fact, 90% of Aldi's products are private-label and much cheaper than the big brands.

It was founded by Anna Albrecht and her sons Karl and Theo, who expanded a small store into a chain of self-service, great value stores where people could pay for goods on account. As their business expanded across Germany, they settled on the name Aldi – short for Albrecht and Discount.

Trader Joe's was purchased in 1979 by a German conglomerate, is entirely managed in the US, and has never been resold.

It was founded by Anna Albrecht and her sons Karl and Theo, who expanded a small store into a chain of self-service, great value stores where people could pay for goods on account. As their business expanded across Germany, they settled on the name Aldi – short for Albrecht and Discount.

It turns out one state in particular boasts the most Aldi stores: Florida. It currently has 220 Aldi locations (the Orlando area alone has 13 stores).

Owned by a German company called Albrecht Discounts, ALDI is a discount grocery chain that started in Germany in 1948. Decidedly no frills, the company stocks virtually all house-brand products, all offered at very low prices thanks to exclusive deals with their suppliers, many of which are big-name producers.