The German retailer Lidl recently announced that its entry into the U.S. market would be postponed until 2018; a fact which it later confirmed to the newspaper Heilbronner Stimme. Last year, the company had stated that the first 100 Lidl stores were to open their doors in 2015 on the U.S. East Coast.
CEO Klaus Gehrig said that the expansion into the U.S. market is "in progress", but 2018 is the target date for the opening of the first stores. Although not yet active in the U.S. market, the retailer already carried out a feasibility study in Arlington.
Lidl refused to comment on the reasons for the delay. The German media and analysts speculate that it may have something to do with the departure of the president of the Schwarz Group.
That the U.S. market is not the easiest market to enter is clear from the attempt of the British retailer Tesco. The chain withdrew last year from the United States after a failed attempt to enter the discount market.
On the other hand, Aldi crossed the ocean in 1976 and currently already has nearly 1,300 branches in the Midwest and the East Coast. Aldi recently announced the opening of 650 new stores over the next five years.
