Albert Heijn pulls plug on AH to go in Germany

Albert Heijn has decided to shut down its German AH convenience stores. According to the supermarket company, the chain does not have enough room to grow in Germany despite having built up its presence in the past five years.

Not enough opportunities

“The stores present modest growth, but considering our current constellation, this does not present enough future opportunities for a sustainable company”, AH spokesperson Anoesjka Aspelagh told Distrifood.

Albert Heijn thinks it has given the chain sufficient time to grow in Germany, but now deems the formula has not gained enough traction. “Over the past few years, we have gained valuable knowledge about the German market.”

There are six AH to go stores in Germany, all located in the North Rhine-Westphalia region. They will all shut down in 2018’s first quarter, but all at different times. In any case, starting 31 March 2018, there will be no more AH to go stores in Germany.

It also has another five AH to go stores located in Shell gas stations. Despite the fact the first one only opened in the summer of 2016, they will also all disappear soon.