German retailer Aldi began the process of recruiting the local management team. This is the first step that marks the retailer's intention to enter the Romanian market, according to several sources in the market cited by local Ziarul Financiar.

However, the official entry could take place in 3-5 years or even later. By comparison, the German retailer Lidl started the recruitments in 2002, and then began buying land. The group officially entered Romania in 2011 when it opened the first stores from scratch and took over the Plus Discount network.

Aldi is looking into the local market in a period when discount stores are gaining ground. The discount segment reached a market share of 11% at the end of last year, up from 8% in 2012. The two discount networks Lidl and Penny Market had annual businesses of almost EUR 2 billion last year.

In the case of Aldi, there are two scenarios. The retailer could follow the Lidl model, namely an acquisition and then expansion. In the second scenario, the German retailer starts all stores from scratch.

Aldi was founded by the two brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht in 1946.

editor@romania-insider.com

(photo source: ALDI USA on Facebook)