Aldi has surged in the US as high inflation pushes shoppers toward discount retailers. Limited-edition product drops like wine advent calendars and novelty snacks create long lines and ticketing at stores, transforming releases into events. Influencer communities such as Oh Hey Aldi (173,000 Instagram followers) and Aldi Nerd (1.4 million Facebook members) amplify interest and sales. Since 2014 Aldi doubled its US presence to over 2,500 stores across 40 states and plans accelerated expansion—225 openings in 2025 and 800 by 2028 to exceed 3,200 outlets. Between 2019 and 2024 food prices rose nearly 24 percent; Aldi footfall jumped over 51 percent.
"There'll be such a line that they give out tickets," she says. "We're in the Midwest, and it's pretty cold in the fall, but people still turn out."
"In our modern supermarket era, I haven't seen anything like this," says James Cook, senior director of US retail research at JLL.
Dave Rinaldo, Aldi's US chief operating officer, adds: "We literally can't open the stores fast enough."
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