PEORIA, AZ — Aldi, the discount grocery chain, opened its latest grocery store in Peoria on Tuesday, its third grocery store in the Valley.
The Peoria store is located at 24665 N. Lake Pleasant Parkway, near Happy Valley Road and Lake Pleasant Parkway. Hours are 9 a.m. - 9 p.m.
Aldi recently opened two stores in Chandler and Goodyear, part of its long-awaited expansion to Arizona.
A fourth location is also under construction in Gilbert; however, an opening date has not yet been announced. Aldi initially said that store was expected to open by the end of the year.
In an updated email to ABC15 on Thursday, Aldi said the opening of the Gilbert store has been pushed to 2021. Aldi did not provide a more specific timeline.
RELATED: Photos of new Aldi location in Chandler
“Since opening our first two Phoenix-area ALDI stores in Chandler and Goodyear last month, we have been thrilled with shopper’s positive response and are excited to bring Peoria residents the best groceries at the lowest possible prices,” said Tom Cindel, group director of operations and logistics at Aldi, in a written statement.
For those new to Aldi, the grocery chain is popular in the East Coast and Midwest.
Its stores are smaller than other grocery stores, comparable to the size of a Walmart Neighborhood Market.
Aldi carries a lot of the grocery essentials, such as fresh fruits and vegetables, meats, milk, eggs, and cheese, along with pastas, sauces, cookies, and snacks.
Most of its products are sold under private labels, however, Aldi does carry some name-brand products, including Coke and Gatorade.
Some of the biggest differences are shoppers have to bring or buy their own bags, bag their own groceries, and have a $0.25-cent deposit to rent a grocery cart (it's returned when you return the cart).
Those measures help keep their overhead costs low, which allows them to pass along the savings to its customers.
Aldi does have plans to open more stores in the Valley, Cindel previously confirmed that more stores were in the works, but the grocery chain has not officially announced any additional locations.
Despite that, Aldi has filed documents, such as applications and building plans, in a number of cities, including Buckeye, Gilbert, Mesa, Phoenix, Queen Creek, Scottsdale, and Tempe.
Editor's note: Story has been updated to include additional information on the expected opening of the Gilbert location.
