Lidl Continues East Coast Expansion With New Store in the Bronx
Amid its new store openings, Lidl US will debut its latest New York City location on Oct. 23. The store will be located at 700 Exterior Street in the Bronx. Local leaders will welcome Lidl US to the community at a ribbon-cutting event starting at 7:40 a.m., followed by a grand-opening celebration featuring special offers for shoppers. The store will operate daily from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
The new location is part of Lidl US’ growing store network along the East Coast. The discount retailer recently revealed plans for another New York City location, this one in Manhattan. The 23,000-square-foot grocery store at 408 Grand Street will be Lidl US’ third location in the borough and is expected to open in summer 2025.
This month, Lidl US will open a new store on Oct. 16 in Centreville, Va.
Lidl US has already welcomed shoppers to its newest location, in Cumming, Ga., which opened to the community on Sept. 25. Other recent store openings include the Glen Oaks neighborhood of Queens, N.Y., and the Cathedral Heights neighborhood of Washington D.C.
The discount grocer, whose globally headquarters is in Neckarsulm, Germany, is in the process of rolling out a shopping experience more tailored to its American customers.
“That starts with getting our assortment right,” explained Frank Kerr, Lidl US’ chief customer officer, in an exclusive interview with Progressive Grocer. “That’s really been our primary focus of this calendar year is to get our assortment right to meet the U.S. consumer’s expectations. A great example of that is some things that we’ve done in the bakery.”
In June, Lidl US added new bakery items to all stores. The new offerings include a variety of doughnuts, muffins and classic New York-style bagels.
"These new offerings are part of our strategic pivot here at Lidl US; bagels and doughnuts, in particular, are a testament to our commitment to bring more of what U.S. consumers expect to our assortment,” said Tod Seiling, VP Fresh at Lidl US. "We pride ourselves on the quality and consistency of our bakery items, and we’re excited to continue tailoring our baked goods to ensure we’re delivering the best experience for our shoppers.”
Also new this year, Lidl stores are incorporating new fresh protein, including organic and grass-fed options.
In addition to assortment, store layout is also important to Lidl's growth strategy. Its easy-to-shop layout allows customers to quickly find what they need at an affordable price while not having to compromise on quality.
“A consumer can come to any one of our locations, and on average, they could do a completely full shop, save up to 40% against national brands on prices, and – what we think is really important as well – save 17 minutes of their time during that shop in one of our stores,” said Kerr. “We view that complex value proposition as delivering on price, delivering on quality, not sacrificing on either one of those, but then also the value of giving them time back to their days, because [it’s] a busier world than ever.”
Lidl operates more than 12,000 stores and is active in 31 countries, employing more than 360,000 employees globally. Lidl US operates more than 170 stores across nine East Coast states and Washington, D.C. The Arlington, Va.-based grocer is No. 91 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2024 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.
