Discount supermarket chain Aldi is set to discontinue its click-and-collect service on 18 August, marking the end of a four-year trial that began during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The service, currently available at 174 of Aldi's 1,020 UK stores, allowed customers to order groceries online and collect them from store car parks for a £4.99 fee.

Aldi, Britain's fourth-largest supermarket group, introduced the service in September 2020 in response to the surge in online grocery shopping fuelled by pandemic lockdowns. However, the company has decided to terminate the offering to focus on maintaining its competitive pricing and operational efficiency.

A spokesman for Aldi stated, "Our focus is on providing customers with high-quality products at the lowest possible prices. One of the ways we keep our prices low is by running the most efficient supermarket business in Britain. We've made the decision to bring our click-and-collect service to an end so we can focus on doing just that."

This move follows Aldi's previous decisions to discontinue its home delivery of alcohol and Specialbuys last year, as well as ending its grocery delivery partnership with Deliveroo in 2022. Unlike its traditional supermarket rivals such as Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, and Morrisons, Aldi does not offer a home delivery service for groceries.

The decision comes as recent industry data from market researcher Kantar showed Aldi's UK market share slightly declining to 10.0 per cent in the 12 weeks to 4 August, down 0.2 percentage points from the previous year.

The online grocery market in Britain, which peaked at about 15 per cent during the pandemic, has since stabilised at just under 13 per cent of the total grocery market, according to industry data.

Separately, the supermarket has made an appeal to young Brits by announcing plans to recruit 250 new apprentices between now and the end of the year with opportunities across stores, warehouses, and HGV driver roles. The grocer said that a store apprentice can earn £8.44 per hour in year one, a £1.74 rise to £10.18 in year two, rising to £11.83 per hour in year three.

In a direct call to students who received their A-Level results this week, Kelly Stokes, recruitment director at Aldi UK, said: “Whether you know exactly what you want to do next, or you have no idea where to start, we’re on the lookout for talented young people like you to join our amazing teams across the UK.”

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