» EXCLUSIVE: German grocery retailer Lidl to expand to Beavercreek
The grocery chain has expressed interest in expanding across Ohio, as it competes with other companies like ALDI and Kroger. Here’s what you need to know about Lidl:
1. COMING TO THE U.S. The popular discount grocery chain is rapidly opening stores, with its U.S. headquarters situated in Arlington, Va. The chain is known for its discounted prices on food products, its private labels and innovative store layouts — and it even sells "fashionable but casual" clothing.
2. LOCAL EXPANSION 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. A spokesman told the Dayton Daily News in July that the grocery chain is "actively looking at sites across the state."
» INITIAL REPORT: German grocery retailer Lidl looks to expand in Ohio
3. STORES ACROSS EUROPE Lidl operates more than 10,000 stores in Europe, and started in 1973 in Ludwigshafen, Germany — just 25 miles south of Frankfurt. In the 1990s, the chain started expanding outside of Germany.
4. PRODUCTS Lidl carries mostly its own labels — about 90 percent of its products are private label and the stores partner with local and regional farms and suppliers for fresh products. Lidl also describes its stores as carrying "more than just food." Lidl carries everything from Halloween costumes and clothes to wine, cleaning products, frozen foods, organic products and pet accessories.
5. BRING YOUR OWN BAG The stores eliminate unnecessary costs with its "bring your own bag" policy. "Not only does it mean we don't build the cost of bags into our prices, this policy also saves you time at the register and is a greener solution," according to Lidl's website.
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