Aldi poised to sell wine in China

The discounter has been rumoured to be mulling a launch in mainline China since 2014, when it was reported by the Guardian, however a report in German trade publication Lebensmittel Zeitung announcing the online-only move last week has been confirmed to the Australian media by Aldi.

The Aldi spokesman said the discounter had been researching the market and undertaking feasibility studies for several years and was now ready to launch an e-commerce site in mainland China during the early part of 2017.

“In the second quarter of 2017, Aldi will commence selling a carefully selected range of everyday grocery items to Chinese consumers,” a spokesman was reported as saying.

The statement noted that Aldi had enjoyed a strong and long lasting relationships with many of its Australian suppliers since its first stores opened in 2001 and the Australian business had grown rapidly and would benefit from continued investment to expand. “Our growth across the country has provided increased business for these suppliers, allowing them to invest this back into their own operations and contributing to their success. We look forward to further expanding these relationships as we develop further opportunities in Asia,” it said. “We know there is a strong demand among Chinese consumers for Australian manufactured products and our goal is to provide a competitively priced alternative for shoppers seeking quality groceries. We believe our unique offer of high-quality Australian products at unbeatable prices will be an attractive proposition for Chinese consumers.”

The move will use Aldi’s Australian retail business to supply China, and will concentrate on wine, and ambient groceries.

There is huge demand for wine in China, and Australia has enjoyed a boom in sales to Chinese consumers. Last year, China overtook the US as Australia’s most valuable market, rising 51% to AUS$474 million during 2015, while last month, the China Association for Imports & Export of Wines & Spirits released figures showing the country imported more than 354 million litres of wines between January and September 2016 – an increase of 19.06% on the same period last year.

Aldi launched its first UK e-commerce operation in January this year focusing on wine sales, and sold more 3,000 cases on its first day. The team said the it had continued to be  extremely popular, growing sales in key areas of the South of the UK and London, where there are currently fewer stores.