(Reuters) - Aldi, Britain's fifth-largest supermarket group, will create an additional 1,200 jobs this year in the United Kingdom, which will boost its total new jobs in the UK to 4,000 for the year, the company said on Wednesday.
Aldi, which has more than 890 stores and employs around 35,000 people across the UK, said in an emailed statement that it is opening new stores Sandhurst, Bristol and Edinburgh.
The additional jobs are a rare occurrence in the sector, which has otherwise been hit hard by the coronavirus outbreak due to government restrictions on movement as well as consumer fears about large public gatherings.
Unlike the country's big four grocers - industry leader Tesco (L:TSCO), Sainsbury 's (L:SBRY), Asda (N:WMT) and Morrisons (L:MRW) - Aldi and rival Lidl GB are continuing to open new stores, driving market share gains.
By 2025, Aldi aims to have 1,200 stores in the United Kingdom.
German-owned discount supermarket Lidl said earlier this month that it plans to open over 25 new stores in the next six months, creating 1,000 jobs.
