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Budget supermarket Aldi has opened a new £64m distribution centre in Sawley, Derbyshire.
The site, which spans over 600,000 sq ft, is Aldi’s 11th UK distribution centre and will serve the supermarket’s growing customer base across the east midlands.
The facility is part of Aldi’s planned £1bn investment in 2019 and 2020 in new stores, store upgrades and improving its distribution capabilities. The site will also act as a new hub for the region, employing more than 400 people and serving over 80 stores.
The supermarket, which now operates more than 850 stores across the UK, said it attracted one million new customers last year.
Giles Hurley, CEO of Aldi UK and IRL, said: “Our new Sawley distribution centre significantly increases our capacity and allows us to open even more stores across the east midlands to cater for the growing number of shoppers switching to Aldi.
“Although some of our newest and most popular stores are situated in the east midlands, there are still many towns and cities where we have a limited presence or none at all. This is something that we are looking to address in the coming years.”
It comes after Aldi saw sales soar over the festive period, with sales topping £1bn for the first time. In the four weeks ended 24 December, total sales increased 7.9% year-on-year.
The grocer said the “record” results were driven by a strong growth in beer, wine and spirit sales, as well as a “surge” in demand for its premium Specially Selected products and fresh meat.
