Urban myth claims that the German discounter rivals Aldi and Lidl were founded by two brothers. That isn't true. Both grocery store empires were founded by different families. Instead, it's actually Aldi's massive global empire that was split into two, with half owned by one brother and half by another.
Aldi and Lidl take the concept of the distinctive mark for their own branding and make small adaptations to it which allows them to avoid most of the cost and effort it takes to design a brand and build a reputation but still obtain the benefits that an established brand that is recognised by shoppers would receive.
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.
Aldi shocked the grocery store marketplace a couple weeks ago when it announced it had acquired 400 Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarkets stores. In a separate deal, the pharmacies at the Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarkets were handed over to Walgreens and CVS.
What share of the market is owned by Lidl and Aldi?
German discounters Aldi and Lidl now account for 17.8% of the total retail market share in the UK, new data has revealed. According to the latest figures from retail analysts Kantar, Aldi's market share jumped to 10.1% in the last month, while Lidl's increased to 7.7%.
Lidl is part of the Schwarz Group, the fifth-largest retailer in the world with sales of €104.3 billion (2018). The first Lidl discount store was opened in 1973, copying the Aldi concept.
Aldi (stylised as ALDI) is the common company brand name of two German multinational family-owned discount supermarket chains operating over 12,000 stores in 19 countries. The chain was founded by brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht in 1946, when they took over their mother's store in Essen.
Theodor Paul Albrecht (German: [ˈalbʁɛçt]; 28 March 1922 – 24 July 2010) was a German entrepreneur. He established the discount supermarket chain Aldi with his brother Karl Albrecht. In 2010, Theo was ranked by Forbes as the 31st richest person in the world, with a net worth of $16.7 billion.
Theo and Karl Albrecht died in 2010 and 2014, respectively, leaving behind a fortune worth an estimated $38.8 billion. But even after the Albrecht brothers became very rich men, they reportedly eschewed any showy spending of their massive wealth and remaining frugal to the core.
Urban myth claims that the German discounter rivals Aldi and Lidl were founded by two brothers. That isn't true. Both grocery store empires were founded by different families.
According to brand research data from consultancy Mintel, Aldi outperforms Lidl in terms of being a “favourite retailer, offering an excellent experience and being a recommended retailer”. Aldi has certainly invested in its store experience, with its new generation stores a far cry from the utilitarian stores of old.
Despite its popularity, the Albrecht brothers chose to divide the company after a dispute over whether to sell cigarettes. The brothers wisely chose to continue operating the two separate companies under the same brand name — Aldi.
Aldi's performance cements its position as the UK's fourth-largest supermarket chain, with the discounter holding 10.2% of the market, ahead of fifth-placed Morrisons (8.8%) share. Lidl holds a share of 7.7%, making it the UK's sixth-largest grocer by market share.
With a more stable and predictable under-lying demand pattern, this removes the need for costly buffers against uncertainty across the supply chain. They work closely with suppliers to minimise supply chain cost, so they are able to offer a genuinely low price to consumers.
There are some items that seem to be the same, but just different packaging. Aldi's prices appear to be slightly less expensive, and they have a better selection of “special buys” and seasonal items. Very often you can find some quality non-food items for the home.
They split in 1960 in a dispute over whether to sell cigarettes, drawing a line through Germany that created Aldi Nord and Aldi Sued. The two branches now have more than 10,000 stores combined, both in Germany and in international markets like the UK.
As Eat This, Not That explains, California-based Trader Joe's and its 557 U.S. stores (per ScrapeHero) are a subsidiary of German chain Aldi Nord, the sibling company of Aldi Süd, which Americans know simply as Aldi, the home of such fan-favorite house brands as Mama Cozzi's pizzas, Clancy's snacks, and Winking Owl ...
In 1973, the first modern Lidl location opened in Ludwigshafen, Germany. With only three employees and around 500 products, this tiny store was the humble beginning of our global expansion. We started opening stores outside of Germany in the 1990s, and within a few years, we were all over Europe!
Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. The Schwarz Group is a German multinational retailer that operates stores under the Lidl and Kaufland brands. It is the largest European retailer and the fourth-largest retailer in the world by revenue.
Some experts believe that one reson for Lidl's failure was that their stores carried mostly their own brands, with which Norwegian customers were not familiar, and when they did not find their own favourites, they turned away.
