German discounter arriving earlier than expected

ARLINGTON, Va. — The German discount grocer Lidl says it will make its U.S. debut this summer, opening 20 stores in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. The retailer says it plans to have as many as 100 stores in the country within a year.

Lidl arrival in the American market is ahead of schedule. The company, which has established a regional headquarters in Arlington, Va., and is recruiting staff, had been expected to commence its retail operations here later this year or early in 2018.

Lidl, which is part of the privately owned Schwarz Group, runs more than 10,000 stores in 27 countries in Europe. In many ways the retailer is similar to Aldi, another German food retailer that woos consumers with extremely low prices. Some industry observers believe Lidl may prove even more appealing to American consumers, because it supplements its private label offerings with some name brand merchandise, and has added fresh produce and in-store bakeries to its stores.

Aldi, which made its U.S. debut in 1976, now operates about 1,600 stores in 35 states and is expanding aggressively, with plans to have nearly 2,000 U.S. stores by the end of 2018. Aldi recently announced a $1.6 billion capital improvements plan that calls for the remodeling and expansion of more than 1,300 of its U.S. stores by 2020.