On March 21, ALDI opened two stores in Zhenjiang, Jiangsu (Wanda Plaza and Phoenix Plaza), and one new store in Minhang, Shanghai, bringing its total store count in China to over 100. Five days after reaching this milestone, ALDI held its first China partner conference in Suzhou, where CEO Chen Jia announced plans to add more than 50 new stores in 2026. This number stands out in the current supermarket landscape. Where will these 50 new stores open, and how? The direction for 2026 is now largely clear. Continue to densify existing markets. Shanghai remains the core base and continues to expand. As of April, Jiangsu had 28 stores, including 11 in Suzhou and 10 in Wuxi (with two stores opening simultaneously on April 25). On this foundation, new stores will open in Wuxi, Nanjing, and Zhenjiang, further densifying the southern Jiangsu network. At the same time, push into new markets. In Zhejiang, the first store will be in Linping, Hangzhou, expected to open with the mall at the end of December. In Anhui, the provincial capital Hefei is the first choice, with plans to also expand to Wuhu. If both provinces succeed, ALDI will achieve full coverage of the Yangtze River Delta region (Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui). With these two parallel tracks—continuing to build density in proven markets while establishing presence in new ones—we believe ALDI's pace in 2026 will be more complex than in any previous year. Of course, the site selection logic remains unchanged. 90% of ALDI stores are located in community or convenience business districts, with the "5-minute living circle" as the basic principle, tied to residents' daily frequency of meals. This site selection standard has been proven in Shanghai and Jiangsu, and the same approach will be used in Zhejiang and Anhui. But knowing where to open is not enough. Why does ALDI dare to expand against the industry's contraction? The answer lies in its journey in China. From 1 billion to 2 billion yuan in just one year In 2019, ALDI opened its first offline stores in Shanghai, initially positioned as "mid-to-high-end premium supermarkets," but foot traffic and sales fell short of expectations. After four years of adjustment and exploration, at the end of 2023, ALDI launched a brand transformation, establishing "Good Quality, Low Price" as its core positioning, shifting from imported premium supermarkets to hard-discount community supermarkets, jokingly called the "poor man's supermarket" by consumers. In 2023, ALDI's 50 stores generated 1 billion yuan in sales. After the transformation, in 2024, 55 stores doubled sales to 2 billion yuan, with average annual sales per store of 36 million yuan—a direct effect. With only 5 new stores, revenue doubled, indicating that growth came from same-store sales improvement, not just new openings. In 2024, ALDI achieved 100% growth and climbed the China Chain Store & Franchise Association's "Top 100 Supermarkets" list from 82nd to 61st place. In October 2025, Chen Jia, with a background at Walmart and Metro, was promoted to CEO of China. Before that, as managing director, she had already led ALDI's strategy to expand beyond Shanghai: in April, the first stores opened in Suzhou and Wuxi, marking ALDI's first move outside Shanghai; in May, the first store in Kunshan opened, with first-day sales of 1.1 million yuan, setting a new China record; in July, three stores opened in Suzhou and Wuxi; in September, the first store in Changzhou; in January 2026, four stores opened simultaneously in Nanjing. In less than 10 months, Jiangsu reached 22 stores. By March 2026, when ALDI reached 100 stores, Shanghai had 74 and Jiangsu had 26. The model has been proven, and replication has been validated. So the core question is: what is the essence of this model? The core lies in private brands Whether a supermarket dares to open new stores quickly depends on whether its supply chain can keep up, prices remain stable, and brand influence is strong. ALDI's answer to this question lies in its private brands. Currently, ALDI China sells 14 private brand series, with private brands accounting for over 90% of sales. This figure far exceeds competitors—for example, Hema's private brand share is about 60%. A 90% private brand share means ALDI has much greater control over its supply chain than traditional supermarkets that mainly sell branded products. For example, a 9.9 yuan/1L bottle of Guyuerenjia premium soy sauce is produced by Haitian, but it's the result of ALDI directly negotiating with the factory, directly intervening in production standards, and directly controlling costs, eliminating brand premiums and intermediate distribution to achieve the same quality as big brands at a lower price. Additionally, over the past year, ALDI has significantly increased its private brand activities. Categories are expanding. When the "Super Value" series was launched at the end of 2023, it had nearly 100 SKUs. By the end of 2024, that number had exceeded 500, several times more. At the end of 2025, ALDI launched several new private brand series: the "Gourmet" series focusing on quality ingredients, the "Good Life" series focusing on healthy eating, and the "Organic" series certified by EU organic standards, priced at only 60% of imported organic brands. This month, to mark the first anniversary of entering Jiangsu and surpassing 100 stores nationwide, ALDI launched over 200 low-price good products, highlighting local seasonal dishes from Jiangsu, time-honored brand flavors, 9.9 yuan internet-famous snacks, innovative flavors, and co-branded healthy drinks, with 90% being private brands. Prices are being lowered. In 2024, ALDI proposed new low prices. In March last year, over 200 daily necessities and new products were reduced in price. At the end of August, another 50 high-frequency repurchase items were selected for price cuts. By 2025, over 700 products had seen long-term price reductions, with more than 600 SKUs priced at 9.9 yuan or below—including 9.9 yuan shower gel, 9.9 yuan 500ml strong-flavored liquor, 9.9 yuan 5kg rice, and 5.9 yuan toothpaste—accounting for one-third of total SKUs, with the highest annual reduction reaching 45%. The way prices are reduced is also changing. It's not simply about lowering factory prices, but getting involved in the production process. For a bottle of mineral water, the selling price is reduced by lowering the bottle weight and packaging costs. For the popular Yangzhou buns, increased sales volume drives the same category, thereby spreading logistics costs and lowering pricing. Of course, this path of intervening in production to reduce costs also benefits from the deep, stable, and long-term relationships ALDI has built with suppliers over time. Scale is also enhancing bargaining power. With 55 stores and 2 billion yuan in sales in 2023, ALDI already had considerable leverage in private brand procurement. As stores surpass 100, this leverage continues to grow. The flywheel is turning, and the direction is positive. But expanding to new cities inevitably complicates some issues. Final Thoughts The plan for 50 stores has a positive side: more stores bring greater purchasing volume, greater volume lowers costs, lower costs support lower prices, and lower prices drive more store traffic—a virtuous cycle. On the other hand, there are operational challenges that any retail company faces during expansion. ALDI's product structure in Shanghai and Jiangsu is currently basically the same. But after entering Zhejiang and Anhui, where dietary preferences and consumption habits are mature and different, if product selection is adjusted for regional differences, SKU expansion will dilute the scale effect of centralized procurement. At the same time, the quality control pressure from rapid expansion has already emerged. Since July 2025, there have been 221 complaints related to ALDI on the Heimao complaint platform, with over 40% occurring in 2025, and new stores in Suzhou and Wuxi have also been involved. ALDI's model with 90% private brands means that brand credibility is highly tied to store credibility—if one store has a quality issue, it damages not just that store's reputation. This risk only becomes more difficult as the number of stores increases. In 2024, ALDI doubled sales through same-store growth, validating the model's feasibility. In 2025, opening 30 new stores in one year validated replicability. So, in 2026, opening 50 more stores will test whether this model can maintain its core promise after scaling: Good Quality, Low Price. Behind this is a systematic project of supply chain control. It has taken ALDI China seven years to get to where it is today. From directly negotiating with factories, intervening in production standards, and controlling cost structures, to building deep and stable long-term relationships with suppliers—every step involves real methodology and real pitfalls. On June 4-5, 2026, in Hangzhou, we will hold a China Private Brand Industry Chain Conference—where top retail decision-makers will share the complete supply chain logic behind private brands, factories will showcase real production capacity and R&D capabilities, and supply and demand sides will connect on-site. If you are already working on private brands or considering it, this conference is worth attending.