Retailers are relaxed as Aldi prepares to enter the market

Despite the fact that recruitment advertisements talk of a three year training period in Germany prior to working in Poland, sector competitors claim the company will not wait that long before opening its first outlets. "I think the development strategy of Aldi will be quite differentiated. Most probably it will not only develop through building of its own stores, but it will also look for opportunities to take over existing networks that are not doing very well on the market," said secretary general of the Polish Trade and Distribution Organization, Andrzej Faliński. He added that in the first phase of expansion, Aldi could launch between 30 and 50 outlets in carefully selected locations. Due to the fact that the company's entrance has been expected, in a similar way as Wal-Mart is expected to launch operations in Poland, sector competitors are not afraid of the new rival on the market. (Puls Biznesu, pp. 1, 9) A.K.