Hundreds line up for opening of first Aldi in Fairfield today

Grocery discount chain Aldi opened its first location in Fairfield on Jan. 17.

Starting at 8:30 a.m. the store held a ribbon-cutting ceremony with gift cards for the first 100 customers and a complimentary eco-friendly bag distribution. Shoppers can also sample Aldi-exclusive brand foods and enter a contest for a chance to win a year’s supply of Aldi produce.

About 200 people were in line when the celebration began.

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The new 22,000-square-foot store at 5065 Pleasant Ave. aims to deliver a modern and convenient shopping experience with a focus on fresh items, including robust produce, dairy and bakery sections, and more room for customers’ favorite products with approximately 22,150 square feet of selling space, company officials said.

“Everyone deserves great food at affordable prices. This is our mantra at Aldi, and we’re excited to introduce it to customers in Fairfield with our brand new store,” said Sarah Brown, Springfield division vice president for Aldi. “Aldi stores are designed with shoppers’ time and money in mind, and we’re proud to bring the community a better grocery shopping option.”

The store’s design features open ceilings, natural lighting and environmentally friendly building materials, such as recycled materials, energy-saving refrigeration and LED lighting, officials said.

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Store hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Aldi plans to invest $3.4 billion for the addition of 650 new Aldi locations in the United States by the end of 2022, bringing its total number of stores to 2,500.

Located at the corner of Pleasant Avenue and Patterson Boulevard, the new Aldi replaces a Marsh grocery store that was razed several years ago. City officials previously told the Journal-News the new Aldi should have a ripple effect on vacant space in the shopping plaza in which it was constructed.

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