After venturing into ecommerce with an online wine store earlier this year, Aldi is expanding its offering with garden tools, electrical goods and cycling gear.
The German discounter may seem like a latecomer to online grocery shopping, with several of its rivals already relying on ecommerce for a large chunk of their profits. Indeed, in September last year, Chief Executive Officer of Aldi Matthew Barnes confirmed that a website offering Aldi‘s entire selection was not on the company radar, and this was reiterated only recently.
Despite this, according to Aldi the first website “is performing very well”, with around 1m users a week. Now the chain will be launching its “Specialbuys” range, with two deals twice a week. Those currently on offer include a handheld Dyson vacuum cleaner and an Ambiano blender.
According to Aldi, a good proportion of its online users are based in the South of England, particularly in London; strange given that the majority of both Aldi and fellow discounter Lidl‘s estates are located in the north of England. Both chains have revealed plans to expand into more affluent areas.
As this foray into e-retail, Aldi and Lidl continue to eat away at the market shares of the Big Four. The latest Kantar figures revealed a continually promising marketplace for the discounters, whilst older and larger rivals struggle to maintain their profits.
