There are few brands people love as much as Aldi, the Germangrocer that asks you to rent your cart for a quarter. This incentivizes customers to return them, meaning staff doesn’t have to, contributing to the chain’s low overhead and famously low prices.
Aldi has expanded to 2.5k+ US stores and is now making another change: it will consolidate its ~90 in-house brands down to 26, with most falling under “The Aldi Brand,” per CNN, leaving just a few of the more recognizable names, like Simply Nature.
The Aldi Brand will feature the label “An Aldi Original” on the packaging.
Why this makes sense
According to Scott Patton, Aldi’s chief commercial officer, people already refer to pretty much every item they buy at Aldi as Aldi , "so we made it a little bit easier for customers to talk about them.”
And people do love to talk about them. There are numerous online Aldi fan pages, including “Aisle of Shame” Facebook groups where people dish on the best finds in the store’s popular discount aisle.
Also, private label brands are having a moment.
Private label…
… refers to brands that retailers produce through third-party manufacturers. For example, Kirkland Signature is Costco’s brand, while Target’s include Threshold for home decor and Good & Gather for groceries.
Consumers are increasingly choosing private label brands. They're tightening their belts, sure, but private label brands are also now seen as equal to name brands:
- Customers spent $271B on private label products in 2024, outpacing national brands, per Grocery Dive.
- Since 2021, private label brands have increased by 2%, while national brands have dropped 7%.
Aldi is a champion of private label brands — accounting for 90% of its offerings — and its fans. It recently introduced the Aldi Quarter Club, a competition for fans to show the depth of their loyalty in exchange for a year of free groceries, invitations to members-only events, and branded merch.
TBH, the Aldi varsity jacket 25 lucky winners will receive is kinda sweet.
Ecommerce And Retail
