‘The worst storm in retail history’ is heading straight for Walmart, Kroger, and Whole Foods
Hayley Peterson
BusinessInsider.com
Sept.11, 2015
Two highly competitive German grocery stores, Aldi and Lidl, are plotting to take over the US — and that’s terrible news for Walmart, Kroger, and Whole Foods.
Aldi and Lidl have upended the UK grocery market over the past several years by sending the nation’s largest supermarkets into a crippling price war that has dented profits, triggered layoffs, and sent the companies’ share prices tumbling, The Wall Street Journal reports.
The CEO of Asda, the UK’s second-largest grocery chain, has called the new competitive environment created by Aldi and Lidl “the worst storm in retail history.”
“When we set the plan, I don’t think anyone anticipated the market being in meltdown,” Asda CEO Andy Clarke said last month after the Walmart-owned Asda reported its worst ever quarterly sales drop.
Now Aldi and Lidl are targeting the US, where they hope to eat away at the market share belonging to discount chains, traditional grocers, and even high-end stores like Whole Foods.
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