Aldi has opened its new store on Brassington Avenue in Sutton Coldfield town centre, on land that had been vacant for decades. The German discount retailer's new shop is double the size of its former Parade location, stocks around 2,700 items, and opened at 8am on Thursday, October 8, with Paralympian rugby star Nick Cummins helping store manager Mark O'Brien cut the ribbon alongside children from Town House Primary School.
A queue of around 30 people waited outside before the doors opened, and each customer received a complimentary bag of fresh fruit and vegetables. School staff, parents, and Aldi employees were also present for the opening.
Double the size with full range
The new store is a significant upgrade from the now-closed Parade shop, which had been limited in what it could sell. According to store manager Mark O'Brien, the new location stocks the chain's full range of approximately 2,700 items, up from around 2,200 at the old store. The wider aisles and additional space allow for more efficient restocking, with O'Brien noting that the previous smaller store made it difficult to work in the Aldi way.
Outside, the new store features a seated area, a dedicated car park, a cycle store, and a realigned footpath alongside Brassington Avenue, allowing pedestrians to avoid the Gracechurch Shopping Centre ramp. The project took more than five years to complete, with planning complications arising over a culvert, an underground stream.
Special Buys rush and staffing
On opening day, there was an immediate rush on the middle aisle Special Buys section, with Aldi launching a new wooden toy range to coincide with the store opening. Customers were seen loading trolleys with the toys, despite a two-toy limit per customer.
All 28 staff members from the old Parade store have moved to the new location. Aldi is taking a wait-and-see approach regarding additional hiring, according to O'Brien, who previously managed the Parade shop from 2016 after serving as assistant manager there. He left a 17-year career in the Parachute Regiment to join Aldi.
Parking and customer experience
The new store has a dedicated car park with a 90-minute limit. Parking Eye will issue tickets to customers who exceed that time. O'Brien said he believes many customers have been put off from Sutton town centre due to parking restrictions, and he hopes the new store will provide a calmer and more relaxing shopping environment with more space and wider aisles.
O'Brien, who commutes from Stafford and originally hails from north Wales, drew parallels between his military career and his role at Aldi, particularly the camaraderie. He said: "I love it. It is a high-pressure working environment with a team of 28 who all work together as one team to try and give customers the best experience at the store." He added: "The camaraderie is what I loved in the army. And we get that with Aldi as well."
The new Aldi store is open from 8am to 10pm, Monday to Saturday, and from 10am to 4pm on Sunday. Saturdays are expected to be the busiest day, which will provide the first real test for the new store's operations.
