Portsmouth discount supermarket reopens with new look and 8 new members of staff

Aldi, in Gamble Road, Buckland, closed its doors on December 31 to undergo a renovation as part of a national £500m stores improvement scheme.

Staff welcomed customers back on Thursday.

Store manager Dan Le-Bas said: ‘It was lovely to welcome back some familiar faces into store as well as new customers.

'I look forward to meeting more of the community in the coming weeks, and supplying them with the everyday amazing products we have available.

‘Hopefully the new-look store will make shopping at Aldi Portsmouth that bit easier and more comfortable.

‘I’d also like to thank our customers for following the social distancing guidelines we have in place to ensure the health and safety of both our customers and colleagues.’

The shop, which has 990 sq m of retail space, has brought in wider aisles.

The new-look store also offers increased space dedicated to fresh British meat and fish, as well as Lacura health and beauty products, beers, wines and spirits, Mamia babycare products, and a Food to Go section, offering a choice of fresh salads, sandwiches and sushi.

The store employs 28 people, and the refurbishment created an additional eight jobs.

The chain had its busiest ever Christmas, with sales up 10.6 per cent compared with the same trading period a year ago.

It said that a demand for premium products, and strong growth in its wines and offers, helped drive its figures.

Thousands of customers also ordered their groceries online through its click-and-collect service and on-demand delivery partnership with Deliveroo.

Aldi has said it would spend an additional £3.5bn a year with British suppliers by 2025 as part of its expansion plans.

The supermarket, which has more than 900 stores, plans to open on average a new store every week over the coming years as it targets 1,200 stores by 2025.

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Chief executive officer Giles Hurley said: ‘We are expecting significant sales growth this year as we open new stores and bring Aldi to more locations across the UK. With the vast majority of our grocery products now coming from British suppliers, our growth will lead to additional jobs and investment in our UK supply chain.'

This Christmas Aldi also supported charities throughout the UK by donating 500,000 meals to people in need on both Christmas and New Year’s Eve.

The supermarket paired up its stores with local charities, community groups and food banks to make the most of unsold fresh and chilled food after stores closed for the festive period.

Aldi also donated £1 to the Neighbourly Foundation for every one of its fresh whole turkeys and fresh turkey crowns sold.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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