German grocery chain Lidl halts plans to open local store, looking at sites across the state

The grocery store chain, which first opened stores in the U.S. last year, submitted a land development application to the Beavercreek Planning Commission in October. Lidl asked to the table application request at the planning commission meetings in November and December, and then withdrew the application.

“Lidl withdrew their application a couple of weeks ago and we weren’t provided a reason as to why. Our only contact for the project is no longer employed by Lidl,” a planning official told this news organization.

» MUST-READ BUSINESS NEWS: German grocery retailer Lidl looks to expand in Ohio

Lidl was orginally seeking to a build a grocery store on a lot on the southwest corner of N. Fairfield Road and Lakeview Drive. More than four acres of land were planning to be developed.

The proposed site of the Lidl grocery store is near the ALDI grocery store, which opened at 2451 Lakeview Drive in Beavercreek in December 2016. The ALDI spans 18,500 square feet, and offers discounted prices on grocery items.

Lidl, which is known for its discounted prices on food products, opened its first round of stores in 2017 in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. Lidl is also known for its private labels and innovative store layouts — and it even sells “fashionable but casual” clothing.

In recent months, the chain has halted construction on some projects around the U.S. In December, it stopped construction on its second New Jersey store due to "budgetary constraints," according to NJ.com. The News Leader reported that Lidl was backing out of a planned store in Staunton, Va., because the company was no longer interested in building in smaller markets.

This news organization has reached out to a Lidl spokesman.

» INITIAL REPORT: German grocery retailer Lidl looks to expand in Ohio

A spokesman told the Dayton Daily News in July that the grocery chain is “actively looking at sites across the state.” Lidl is looking for possible new store sites in Texas, Ohio, Virginia, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey and Delaware, according to Lidl’s website. Lidl plans to create more than 5,000 jobs in the U.S. in the next year, and will open up to 100 stores on the East Coast by summer 2018.

Lidl first opened in 1973, about 25 miles south of Frankfurt, Germany. The chain didn’t start expanding outside of Germany until the 1990s, and now Lidl operates more than 10,000 stores in 27 countries.

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