Aldi names 24 new UK stores opening before Christmas

Aldi has published the list of 24 new UK stores it plans to open before Christmas, plus three relocations, in the 10 weeks to the end of 2026. The announcement follows annual results showing turnover up 5% to a record £19 billion, and sits within a stated plan to grow the estate to 1,500 stores.

On 2 October 2026, Aldi UK named the towns due to receive a new store by the end of the year. The discounter currently trades from 1,092 stores. Four days earlier, its annual results for the 12 months to 31 December 2025 reported turnover of £19 billion for the UK and Ireland group, up 5%, with operating profit flat at £432.9 million (2024: £435.5 million) and an operating margin of 2.3%. Aldi cites Kantar Worldpanel data putting its share of the UK grocery market at 10.6% in the period to 6 September 2026.

The 24 towns on the pre-Christmas list

Of the 24 new stores, 22 are in England, one is in Wales (Newport, South Wales) and one is in Scotland (Dumbarton, West Dunbartonshire). None is in Northern Ireland. London and Greater London account for four openings, and Greater Manchester, the West Midlands and Kent for two each. The full list published by the company:

• London and the South East: Orpington, Stepney Green, Hanworth, Willesden, Ashford, Chatham, Basildon, Epsom, Waterlooville, Newport (Isle of Wight)
• South West: Bishop’s Cleeve, Wimborne, Wellington
• Midlands: Matlock, Stourport-on-Severn, Longbridge, Lower Gornal
• North of England: Malton, Driffield, Orrell, Hattersley, Egremont
• Wales and Scotland: Newport (South Wales), Dumbarton

Stores in Sudbury, Sutton Coldfield and Wigan are also due to move to new premises before the end of the year. That makes 27 projects in total, which the company describes as “nearly 30”; its results release four days earlier had put the figure at 30.

Prices, suppliers and a £900 million budget for 2027

The openings come with a wider package. Aldi says it has spent £340 million this year cutting prices on more than 1,000 products, and has committed to sourcing at least 50% of its range through long-term supplier agreements by 2027. For next year, it plans a record £900 million of investment, covering 40 new stores and further work on its distribution network. The company has twice raised store assistant pay in 2026, to a minimum of £13.50 an hour nationally and £14.88 inside the M25, against a National Living Wage of £12.71 for workers aged 21 and over since April 2026.

Giles Hurley, chief executive of Aldi UK and Ireland, said: “We’re working hard to make good food more affordable for every family.”

A 1,500-store target and what it means for local trade

Aldi has previously stated an ambition to reach 1,500 UK stores, targeting communities it describes as lacking local grocery choice or competition. Several towns on this year’s list, such as Malton, Driffield, Egremont and Wellington, are market towns rather than city suburbs.

A new discount supermarket changes the competitive set for convenience stores, symbol group retailers and the food and drink networks recruiting in the UK nearby, which typically trade on proximity, opening hours and top-up shopping rather than on the weekly basket.

Christmas trading and the Deliveroo launch

The 10-week opening window runs into peak trading, and Aldi says it will keep cutting prices across its range in the run-up to Christmas. On 24 September 2026, the company also announced a partnership with Deliveroo to offer on-demand grocery delivery, with riders picking orders directly from stores, the same platform route used by much of the fast food sector’s UK networks.

Aldi says no other discount supermarket in the UK offers a rapid delivery service. The announcement did not publish opening dates for each of the 24 sites, and it has not yet named the full 2027 list of 40 stores.