“Aldi Süd Tests Fresh Grocery Delivery Service with a Limited Online Shop”

There was a time when Aldi was just a classic food discounter. Shopping in the local branches was what was the measure of all things at Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd. The company only started its own online shop in 2019 – at that time still separated between north and south. The success of Lidl with its web offer was probably decisive for this decision. In 2021, the two separately operating web shops were merged into a common internet shop that can be used nationwide. You can’t order groceries there until today. But that could change in the future. Because in Mülheim an der Ruhr, where Aldi Süd has its headquarters, the discounter is now testing a delivery service for fresh groceries. That reports that “Handelsblatt”.

Aldi delivery service: shop 1,300 food products online

According to reports, it will start at the beginning of June. However, in a first step only for selected employees of Aldi Süd itself. They should test the newly created delivery platform “My Aldi” and be able to access a range of 1,300 products. The ordered goods are to be delivered with electric cars. The next step is to set up a “Click & Collect” service, which could be used in many places during the corona pandemic. Customers can then put together their purchases from home on their laptop or mobile phone. Once the order has been received at the local branch, the retailer’s employees assemble the purchase there and can then be picked up by the customer and paid for in the branch.

When asked by the “Handelsblatt”, an Aldi spokeswoman said that there are currently no plans to implement the delivery service across the board. One of the reasons for this is that in times of high inflation, delivery fees in particular when buying groceries are an understandable hurdle for many people. Without delivery fees, however, the Aldi delivery service cannot be financed either. At least not without increasing the prices of the products to be purchased. And such an approach does not appear to be a realistic, customer-centric scenario for the company at this time.

Aldi meets well-prepared competition

Should Aldi decide to start a delivery service for fresh groceries in other cities, the regional competition would already be great. Because not only rewe already offers food delivery in some regions. Edeka is also doing this: through a stake in the Dutch start-up Picnic. And for delivery startups like Gorillas and Considerable A nationwide launch of an Aldi delivery service would be a slap in the face. They are already fighting for survival in many places and another major competitor as a competitor could lead to an end faster than some customers may currently think realistic.