Amid Inflation, Aldi Sees Growth in Texas
German-founded discount grocer Aldi has shared new details about the company’s success in Texas, the nation’s second-most populous state.
The company said that in 2022, nearly 400,000 Texans across Dallas and Houston tried Aldi for the first time. According to the Southwest Consumer Price Index Indicators, February year-over-year food-at-home prices in Dallas increased on-par with the national average of 10.2%, while in Houston, prices increased 13%, leading more shoppers to look for more affordable grocery solutions.
Aldi touted its Atlantic Salmon as one of the top-selling items in the two markets, selling 10% and 16.8% more fresh fish products than it did last year in Dallas and Houston, respectively. Aldi sold more than 5.3 million avocados across Dallas and Houston last year.
“The influx of new shoppers over the past year shows what we knew to be true. People don’t want to spend more on groceries than they have to,” said Karla Waddleton, Aldi Rosenberg divisional vice president. “That’s why we provide customers with the best products at the lowest possible prices, every day, and we’re on a mission to help Americans realize just how much they can save shopping at their local Aldi.”
To learn more about Aldi’s growth in the Lone Star state, Store Brands spoke with Scott Huska, Denton divisional vice president at Aldi.
Store Brands: What markets in the state does Aldi currently serve, and what areas in the state might the company be looking to expand in?
Scott Huska: Aldi currently serves 126 stores in the state, with major markets in Dallas and Houston. While we don’t have plans to add any new Texas stores this year, we are continuously looking at opportunities to grow our presence in Texas, and look forward to providing fresh, award-winning groceries and products at affordable prices to even more Texans in the years to come.
SB: Does the strategy in Texas differ from other states?
SH: From our unique business model rooted in simplicity to our efficient store layouts, everything about Aldi is designed to provide Texans with the best grocery shopping experience. Shoppers can get what they need quickly, saving them both time and money. Compared to some of our competitors in Texas, our stores intentionally have a smaller footprint making them easier to navigate when trying to find products quickly.
Additionally, we take the guesswork out of product selection by only carrying a curated range of the most popular products we know will resonate with our Texas shoppers. We do stock our stores with about 5-10% unique regional products such as Dr. Pepper and Blue Bell ice cream, making it a one stop grocery trip for our shoppers.
SB: Is the retailer slated to expand any of its private brands in the near future?
SH: 90% of Aldi stores are stocked with Aldi private label brands that cut out the inefficiencies of national brand products. Aldi is also known for our “Finds” aisle–a unique Aldi experience where shoppers can find 100 new and unexpected items that we bring into our stores every week. We also use this section to test new items before potentially rolling them out as part of the everyday selection.