Aldi has announced the opening date for its brand-new store in Durham.

The new store at the North Durham Retail Park will open its doors to customers for the first time at 8am on Thursday October 27.

The opening comes after Aldi became the UK’s fourth-largest supermarket last month, according to new figures.

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The store will be open daily at from 8am til 10pm, and from 10am to 4pm on Sundays.

The first thirty customers in the queue will be able to get their hands on free bags of veg which will be handed out by Paralympic gold medal cyclist Ben Watson who will be officially cutting the ribbon to mark the opening.

Aldi Store Manager Louise Williamson said: “We can’t wait to open the doors to the new store in Durham. It’s set to be a special day and having Paralympic hero Ben Watson join us will make it a morning to remember.”

Customers can expect the usual Aldi offering including the chain’s much-loved middle aisle discount range.

Bosses are also calling for local charities and food banks to come forward to register to receive donations of surplus food from the new store.

The latest opening in the region comes after bosses at Aldi pledged to prioritise lower prices over short-term profits as they warned that the cost-of-living crisis is “worsening” for millions of households.

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The supermarket chain saw profits slump significantly last year after the firm witnessed rising costs and invested in pricing.

The UK operation of the German discounter revealed that pre-tax profits tumbled by 86.5% to £35.7 million in 2021, compared with the previous year.

Giles Hurley, chief executive of Aldi UK and Ireland, said: “Preserving our price discount and rewarding our people will always be more important to us than short-term profit.

“Being privately owned means we can keep our promises even when times are tough.”

The supermarket also promised it will have the “lowest grocery prices in the UK” as it seeks to support customers facing surging energy and fuel costs.

Last month, Aldi overtook Morrisons as the UK’s fourth largest supermarket, according to experts at Kantar.

The new store will be located at Unit 3, North Durham Retail Park, Durham, DH1 5ST. Any charities wishing to register to receive surplus stock can email aldi@neighbourly.com

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