An increasing store count will continue to drive sales growth for Aldi in the coming years, according to a forecast by Kantar Consulting.
Kantar reported that Aldi had nearly $31 billion in U.S. sales in 2018 and a sales compound annual growth rate of 9% for 2013-2018. Kantar expects a sales CAGR of 10% for 2018-2023.
“Overall the discounter channel will be driving growth for all of U.S. retail,” said Elley Symmes, a senior analyst for Kantar. “Going forward, the growth will be driven by online and by discounters, and Aldi is really a force of that. They continue to add new stores, so a lot of their growth is coming from organic store expansion.”
She noted that few other retailers, especially in the supermarket channel, have been adding large numbers of new stores.
“And then (another factor is) their store remodels and the way that they’re really elevating themselves and their positioning in the market,” Symmes said. “They’re communicating to shoppers that they don’t have to make tradeoffs, that they can get really high quality food for a good price, it’s not one or the other. Positioning themselves in that way has allowed them to cast a wider net, and I think they’re no longer this kind of dingy discounter retailer that maybe 30 years ago they were seen as.”
These days, shoppers are perceiving Aldi more along the lines of how they perceive Trader Joe’s or the Whole Foods 365 banner, Symmes said.
Get perspective on other retailers at the following links: