Discount grocery chain Aldi had ***** stores in the United States in 2011. By April 2025, the number of Aldi stores in the country had grown to ***** locations, marking a clear growth in the brand’s rise to discount store prominence. Discount store market The discount market was once prominent in the United States, with dollar stores, and discount department stores dominating sales. European discount supermarkets like Lidl and especially Aldi have risen in popularity in the last decade, winning a share of the discount retailer market. ALDI Aldi is a German multinational owned discount supermarket founded in 1946, opening its first store in the United States in 1976. Globally, Aldi is one of the leading discount grocery retailers, and although it still has great competitors like Walmart and Dollar General, Aldi has risen to prominence in the past decade, with consistent sales growth and brand popularity.

In 2021, Aldi Group's net sales amounted to just under *** billion U.S. dollars, a **** percent growth compared to the previous year. This was the highest increase observed in the reported period, due to the spike in low-cost grocery demand during the COVID-19 pandemic. The net sales of Aldi Group were forecast to reach approximately ***** billion U.S. dollars in 2026, with an average annual growth rate of *** percent between 2022 and 2026.

In 2025, the leading grocery stores in the United States held close to two thirds of the total industry market share. Walmart held the top position with **** percent, followed by Kroger at just under **** percent. Kroger Co. As one of the leading supermarket chains, Kroger has been become a favorite among consumers. Founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883, the company opened its first store in Cincinnati, Ohio and now operates more than ***** grocery retail stores in the United States. Grocery shopping behavior Among the diverse options for food acquisition, supermarkets and superstores are the preferred for consumers. Even though online grocery shopping is on the rise, it is still not up to par with warehouse clubs or discount stores. When it comes to frequency, grocery shopping trips have decreased since the early 2000s, perhaps to adapt to economic pressures like inflation, which has drastically changed the way consumers shop.

Kroger was the leading supermarket in the United States in 2023, by a wide margin. It had nearly double the retail sales of the next chain, Albertsons. Founded in 1883 in Cincinnati, Ohio (where it is still headquartered), by Bernard Kroger, The Kroger Co. has become the largest supermarket chain in the United States and one of the largest overall retailers, behind the retailing giant, Walmart. Far-reaching impact It’s hard to pin down one aspect that explains Kroger’s revenue lead over its competitors, but surely reach is one such aspect. In 2024, nearly ********* of U.S. consumers shopped at Kroger on a regular basis and with ***** U.S. stores in 2023 the company ranked second in the list of supermarkets with most locations in the country, surpassed only by Aldi. Varied businesses Another aspect that may contribute to Kroger’s success is the fact that it is more than just a grocery store. In 2023, the company had revenues of over ** billion dollars from filling prescriptions in its pharmacies. Some of Kroger’s locations also include fuel stations. Revenue from its fuel segment exceeded **** billion dollars in the same year.

In 2025, the number of Tesco’s stores operating worldwide amounted to 5,040, excluding franchise stores. The multinational-operating grocery and general merchandise retailer Tesco PLC was founded in 1919 by Jack Cohen (1898-1979). The product portfolio includes food and beverages, clothing, home appliances, and even financial services. Tesco is the leading supermarket brand in the United Kingdom (UK), consistently ranking highest in terms of grocery market share. The company is headquartered in Hertfordshire, United Kingdom, and employs roughly 341,000 people worldwide. Tesco stores in the UK A little more than 4,300 of the total stores are situated in the UK, where Tesco provides six different store formats to their customers, which varied in size and range of products. Tesco Superstores, for example, are standard large supermarkets that sell mostly food products and a much smaller range of non-food products in comparison to Extra stores. The UK grocery market Most of Tesco’s annual revenue was generated from its key market: The United Kingdom. Additionally, the company sold products in stores located in other European and Asian countries. Based on market share, Tesco’s largest rivals in the grocery store business included Asda and Sainsbury’s. Business figures showed that discount stores were gaining more and more market share as customer spending moved from traditional retailers to discounters, such as Lidl or Aldi.

The gourmet supermarket Whole Foods Market had net sales amounting to just over ** billion U.S. dollars in 2017, up from **** billion U.S. dollars in the previous year. Whole Foods Market Key Figures Whole Foods Market has expanded rapidly in the last decade, growing from *** locations in 2008 to nearly 500 locations in 2017. That was the same year in which Whole Foods was acquired by the e-commerce giant Amazon for **** billion U.S. dollars. Whole Foods Market and Consumers Compared to larger food retailers like Walmart and Aldi, relatively few Americans have shopped at a Whole Foods Market in the past six months; only * percent according to a 2017 survey. When it comes to overall customer satisfaction, Whole Foods Market scored ** points out of 100, above the U.S. average for supermarkets but below other prominent retailers such as Costco, Trader Joe’s and Sam’s Club.