“Aldi considers merger of Nord and Süd”

German discounter Aldi is considering to reunite its independent Nord and Süd divisions. The generally well-informed German Manager Mazin said it read as such in a report.

Secret meeting

According to the German magazine, sixteen top-level managers had a meeting late last year regarding such a merger. The secret meeting was at Aldi Süd’s main office in Mülheim and the magazine said it discussed possible options to collaborate and improve efficiency.

According to the 23 November meeting’s notes, the managers agreed to “consider further organizational steps in the collaboration”, including a possible merger of both entities. Apparently, legal advisors have already been asked to list the issues the Bureau of Competition may come up with.

Separate since 1961

If both do merge, then that would bring an end to a split that lasted nearly sixty years. Aldi, short for Albrecht Discount, split in 1961 because brothers Theo and Karl Albrecht disagreed about tobacco sales. They both went their own way and divided German and then the world among themselves. The Belgian and Dutch Aldi stores are part of Aldi Nord and the United States is part of Aldi Süd.

Remarkably, both Aldi chains collaborated a mere few weeks ago to launch their own quality brand. Was it a prelude to more, much more?