Aldi Süd is testing a food delivery service in the Ruhr region

MÜLHEIM/RUHR (dpa-AFX) – Aldi Süd discount company is taking another step on the path to becoming a food delivery service. On Tuesday, the retail giant gave the go-ahead for a trial run of its food delivery service, in which Aldi customers in the Ruhr region can order fresh products such as fruits, vegetables, bread, cheese or milk online for the first time. Aldi Süd announced on Tuesday that from now on, customers in Mülheim an der Ruhr, Duisburg and Oberhausen can register for the delivery service. The Handelsblatt newspaper had previously reported the news.

Aldi Sud added that a test using a “click and collect” model is also planned in the future, whereby customers order goods online and then pick them up in the store themselves.

So far, the discount company has only offered non-food items, from vacuum cleaners to knife blocks, in its German online shop, avoiding the complicated and difficult handling of fresh foods. However, there have been experiences with food deliveries in foreign subsidiaries in the USA, Great Britain and Switzerland.

The discount holder confirmed that it was a domestic and time-limited test. “Currently, it is not planned to be implemented nationwide,” she added. Because online food business in Germany is “not currently a profitable business model” due to the high costs of personnel and logistics.

Aldi-Süd’s concept is similar to its rival Picnic. This means that delivery should be based on the milkman principle, with delivery vehicles driving fixed routes within the delivery area. For customers, this restricts freedom of choice at the time of delivery, but increased route aggregation reduces delivery costs.

According to Aldi, the minimum order value for deliveries is €20. The purchase value is up to 50 euros, and a service fee of 4.50 euros is added. On top of that, fees are waived.