Aldi reveals plans to open 100 new stores across the UK - here’s where they could go

Since the recession of the late noughties and early 2010s, Aldi has become a major player on the UK supermarket scene.

And this fact has been reflected in the German discounter’s expansion of its retail estate.

In October 2013 Aldi opened its 500th UK supermarket. Eight years on and it has more than 920, with plans to boost that number to 1,200 by 2025.

As part of this target, Aldi has said it will open 100 new shops by 2023 as part of a £1.3bn investment - an average of one new store a week.

But why is it planning to build so many new supermarkets - and where could they be located?

Here’s what you need to know.

Why is Aldi expanding?

According to statistics from Aldi, more than 60% of UK households have shopped in its stores over the past 12 months.

While that doesn’t necessarily mean all of these shoppers are frequent Aldi shoppers, it demonstrates the reach the supermarket has.

And the discounter wants to boost this figure even further so it can have access to more of the UK’s consumers.

“Our focus is on expanding our store estate, making sure Aldi is accessible to as many of these new shoppers across the country as possible,” said its communications director Richard Thornton.

Where will these new stores be located?

Here is a full list of towns, cities and regions where Aldi plans to build its new stores:

South East – Bicester, Guildford, Milton Keynes

South West – Cheltenham, Penzance and Plymouth

West Midlands – Birmingham, Black Country and Coventry

East Midlands – Alvaston, Northampton and Wellingborough

East of England – Basildon, Brentwood and Hitchin

North West – Runcorn, Stockport and Macclesfield

North East – Stockton, South Shields and Malton

Yorkshire – South Bradford, Meadowhall and York

Scotland – Cathcart, Dumbarton and Peebles

Wales – Aberdare, Barry and Lampeter

Are these new stores 100% confirmed?

At the moment, Aldi said these locations are merely where they intend to open stores.

The discounter explained it is on the lookout for free-hold town or city centre or edge-of-town centre sites that could fit a 20,000 square foot (medium-sized) store and around 100 parking spaces.