Portugal 
Italy 
Greece 
Lidl Invested €110M Opening 29 Stores in Spain in 2017
11 January 2018 – Expansión
Lidl opened 29 new supermarkets in Spain in 2017, an expansion of the commercial network that involved investment of €110 million for the construction and fitting out of its new stores. Note, that figure excludes the disbursements made to lease or buy the land on which the premises were built.
The store openings were primarily carried out in areas where the German chain did not yet have a presence, although “some establishments were opened to replace others that already existed and that were either too small or that had been replaced by another store in a better location”. The new Lidl stores are the largest that the company has ever opened; they have an average retail space of around 1,400 m2.
The company has placed its focus on this expansion plan to enhance the space it dedicates to fresh produce, which now accounts for a third of its offer and which has become the main tool that the traditional distribution groups are using to deal with the threat from the purely online distribution groups.
Andalucía leads the ranking
By geographical region, the 29 inaugurations that Lidl undertook in 2017 were concentrated in Andalucía (6), the Community of Valencia and Cataluña (5 in both) and the Balearic Islands, Canary Islands and Madrid (3 in each). Above all, the chain bet on growing in coastal towns with significant tourist traffic. Nevertheless, Lidl also explored new locations, opening its first store in a shopping centre (in Islazul, Madrid).
The German firm has 540 stores and ten logistics platforms in Spain. Lidl closed its 2017 tax year in February. In 2016, it recorded turnover of €3.335 billion in the national market, up by 9.4%.
Original story: Expansión (by Victor M. Osorio)
Translation: Carmel Drake