Milestone for Aldi USA as retailer opens Portland, Maine store and goes live in 40th US state

Aldi has opened a store in Portland, Maine, which marks the retailer's entry into its 40th US state.

The ultimate goal is 3,200 stores by 2028.

"This milestone reflects our commitment to bringing high quality groceries at everyday low prices to even more communities across the country. We are not just expanding our footprint; we’re delivering a unique and efficient shopping experience designed to help our customers save time and money every day," says Atty McGrath, CEO at Aldi USA.

"This new store is a direct result of both the hard work of our teams and the ongoing partnerships with our suppliers and communities. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who has contributed to making this moment possible."

Walmart and Kroger

Aldi plans to open more than 180 stores in the US this year.

The German grocer has become the third largest grocer in the country by store count, behind Walmart and Kroger. It had 2,614 locations in the US as of 31st December. In addition to relaunching its website and entering Maine, it will also add new distribution centres in Florida, Arizona and Colorado over the next five years.

Aldi Shop & Go

Aldi UK has binned its checkout-free stores trial and converted its only Shop & Go location to a standard Aldi Local with self-service.

The store in Greenwich, South East London went live in 2022 at a time when checkout-free stores were being touted by many industry observers as the next big thing in retail. But the technology never really took off in the UK, with high profile failures including Amazon ditching its ambitious Just Walk Out technology powered Amazon Fresh experiment, just four years after the US online giant launched its first grocery store in London.

An Aldi spokesperson said: “Whilst our Shop & Go trial has now come to an end as planned, our Greenwich High Road store will remain open as an Aldi Local, ensuring customers can still get everything they need at unbeatable Aldi prices.”

2026 RTIH Innovation Awards

Physical stores will be a key focus area at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards.

The awards are now open for entries and celebrate global retail technology innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our winners will be revealed at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards Ceremony, taking place at The HAC in Central London on Wednesday, 4th November.

Check out our 2025 winners here.

Our 2025 hall of fame entrants were revealed during a sold out event which took place at The HAC on 16th October and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Tiff Stevenson.

In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “This is the awards’ fifth year as a physical event. We started off with just 30 people at the South Place Hotel not far from here, then moved to London Bridge Hotel, then The Barbican, and last year RIBA’s HQ in the West End.”

“But I’m conscious of the fact that, to quote the legend that is Taylor Swift, You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby. So, this year we’ve moved to our biggest venue yet, and also pulled in our largest number of entries to date and broken attendance records.”

He added: “This year’s submissions have without doubt been our best yet. To quote one of the judges: The examples of innovative developments across both traditional and digital retail spaces were truly remarkable.”

Congratulations to our winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Tiff Stevenson, and all those who attended our 2025 gathering.