Aldi could be considering online grocery launch

Aldi is rolling out a £1.3 billion digitalisation initiative across its vast international store estate as it continues to push into the online grocery space.

Aldi Süd, which has around 10,000 stores in 20 countries including the UK and the US, is rolling out a globally standardised IT system across its store network.

According to Lebensmittel Zeitung, Aldi’s major investment is set to lay the groundwork for an effective ecommerce operation.

Part of its new “global transformation” project would be the creation of a uniform infrastructure for customer communication, covering internet channels and physical stores alike.

This reportedly includes a globally standardised template for ecommerce, which Aldi only offers in a strictly limited capacity in the UK, despite huge demand for the service.

While Aldi UK and Aldi US have long been calling for the wider brand to introduce an online grocery option to meet this demand, managers at Aldi’s headquarters have fought back stating that online delivery could only be realised at a loss.

However, with the two national Aldi branches introducing click & collect options and delivery via third party companies like Deliveroo and Instacart, the discounter could now be reconsidering its position.

Aldi Süd told Lebensmittel Zeitung that the aim in ecommerce us “suitable and market-driven solutions for all countries of the Aldi Süd Group in order to be able to flexibly serve the omni-channel requirements from our markets”.

The grocer is also understood to be considering the rollout of a loyalty app to rival the recently launched “Lidl Plus” app.

Source: Charged Retail