Aldi Nord plans to open as many as 600 stores in Poland over the next five years, according to Wojciech Łubieński, who heads up the discounter's operations in the country.
Within ten years, the group is aiming to have a thousand outlets in Poland, according to reports, having already opened several dozen outlets over the past couple of years.
Capital expenditure on network development in Poland increased by 50% last year, money.pl reported. Currently, the group operates 233 stores in Poland, employing approximately 4,000 people.
The discounter is targeting openings in both large and small cities over the coming months, including Rawicz, Świdnik, Lublin, Kraków, Sosnowiec, Białystok, Żyrardów, Suwałki and Poznań.
'Clearly Defined' Ambitions
"Our ambitions are quite clearly defined – within the next five years we want to have 500-600 stores," money.pl quoted Łubieński as saying.
"This will provide us with the appropriate scale, enable further development with profitability, taking into account the amortisation of certain investments and the expansion of the logistics network."
Logistics Expansion
Aldi recently opened its second logistics warehouse in Poland, in Lisi Ogon, near Bydgoszcz, with the discounter planning a further two distribution centres in the near future.
"The expansion of logistics is a key element of Aldi's strategy, taking into account distribution costs and expansion plans," Łubieński added.
"With our scale, until recently the cost of transport did not matter much, but now that has changed. All the more so when we are dealing with such a large increase in energy prices."
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