Thus, the company will make a total investment of €500 million in Portugal by 2035, with plans to reach 200 supermarkets by 2030 and 250 by 2035.
In the last five years, the Aldi supermarket chain has doubled the number of stores in Portugal, amounting to an investment of €100 million, accompanied by a doubling of the number of workers, now numbering 2,500.
Initially, the store established a presence in the Algarve in 2006, and from 2021 it expanded to other national territories, namely the Central and Northern regions.
Bureaucracy and construction quality
In an interview with the newspaper Expresso, João Braz Teixeira also revealed that licensing processes in Portugal are among the obstacles to investment.
According to the manager, a supermarket can be built in six months, but bureaucratic processes can take up to five years, as approval is required from various entities.
Even so, João Braz Teixeira believes that despite the difficulties, Portugal maintains high standards of construction quality when compared to other European countries where the Aldi supermarket group operates.
Logistical Changes
To boost network expansion, the company invested in a logistics platform in Moita that serves stores in the South and Central regions of Portugal. For the Northern region, a temporary distribution centre was opened in Valongo, which will serve the company until the logistics platform in Santo Tirso opens, expected in 2030.
New store model
Due to its expansion into denser areas, Aldi has developed the “urban city” concept, with smaller supermarkets, up to 600 m2 in size.
The model has already been tested in seven stores in Lisbon, with plans to open 13 more stores with this concept in the coming years.
Aldi supermarkets are present in 17 of the 18 districts of mainland Portugal, with entry planned into the Bragança district in 2027.