Germany’s Aldi Nord To Shorten Opening Hours To Cut Energy Bill

Aldi Nord is the first food retailer in Germany to adjust opening hours at numerous stores and thereby play an active part in saving energy, the company said on Twitter.

The company, which covers northern Germany, said stores would close at 20:00 CET from 1 November, adding the changed opening hours would initially apply to the 2022/2023 winter season.

The company, which is active in nine European countries and operates more than 2,220 stores in Germany, did not specify how many of its outlets would be affected. Data on its website show stores usually close between 2000-2200 CET.

Retailers across Europe have sought ways to cut energy bills, hit by soaring costs in the wake of Russia’s war on Ukraine which has caused gas supplies from Moscow to Europe to come to a near halt.

In July of this year, Aldi Nord announced new climate goals and shared a detailed overview of its sustainability initiatives in its recently published 2021 Sustainability Report.

The group has made progress in the area of climate protection by exceeding its planned greenhouse emission reduction target, achieving reductions of 50%, above its original target of 40%.

Last month, it announced plans to open new stores and focus more on central, easily accessible locations in Germany, including city centres and district centres.

ESM