Grocery to open next month

ALDI chain boasts big savings

By James Heffernan — jheffernan@nvdaily.com

WINCHESTER — Coming this fall to Kernstown: dinner and a movie. But in the meantime, how about a home-cooked meal on the cheap?

Discount grocer ALDI is set to open its doors at 221 Kernstown Commons Blvd. on June 4. It is the Illinois-based company’s first store in the Winchester area, and part of its expansion plans targeting Virginia and Maryland.

ALDI prides itself on keeping its costs down and passing on the savings to consumers, in part by carrying only about 1,400 of the most frequently purchased grocery and household items under its own ALDI Select brand. A typical supermarket has around 30,000 items on its shelves, many of them national labels.

The company boasts it can save shoppers an average of $115 per month.

“As thousands of loyal ALDI shoppers know, ALDI is the place for high quality fresh produce and grocery items at a fraction of the cost compared to traditional supermarkets,” Jeff Baehr, vice president of ALDI’s Frederick, Md., division, says in a press release. “We’re happy to bring these benefits to Winchester and provide our customers the convenience of a nearby store.”

The grocer’s other cost-saving measures include having customers bring in or purchase recyclable bags — then package the groceries themselves — and requiring a quarter deposit to retrieve a shopping cart. The customer gets the quarter back at the end of their shopping trip.

ALDI also saves consumers money by limiting its store hours to prime shopping times — typically 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

Founded in Germany, ALDI entered the U.S. market in 1976 with a handful of stores in southeastern Iowa. Now, the company has over 1,000 U.S. stores, from Kansas to the East Coast, with plans to open approximately 75 new locations this year.

ALDI will join Alamo Drafthouse Cinema as co-anchors of Phase II of Kernstown Commons. The Austin, Texas-based chain, which combines the movie theater experience with a full-service restaurant, is scheduled to open in October.

The theater’s walls recently began going up, and a preview party featuring food samples, prizes and product giveaways was held May 13.

The 10-screen Alamo will show first-run features and independent films in auditoriums with stadium seating, digital projection and state-of-the-art sound, complemented by a full menu of appetizers, burgers, sandwiches, salads, milkshakes, popcorn, homemade pizza and more than 20 varieties of beer on tap. It also offers themed “feast” events that pair a particular film with a menu — think Italian cuisine during a showing of “The Godfather” — as well as pre-show entertainment and local film festivals.

The Winchester location will be Alamo’s ninth drafthouse cinema, and its first outside the state of Texas.