Posted on 07/28/2010 2:26:24 PM PDT by wolf78
Theo Albrecht and his brother Karl introduced the world to discount shopping when they founded Aldi half a century ago. The two intensely secretive men were considered some of the richest people in Germany. On Saturday, Theo died at the age of 88.
He was one of the richest men in Germany, and also one of the most secretive. Theo Albrecht, who co-founded the immensely successful discount grocery chain Aldi, died on Saturday according to a statement released by the company. Eighty-eight years old at the time of his death, he was laid to rest on Wednesday in a small service attended only by close family members.
Albrecht had been experiencing severe health problems for some time prior to his death. Last summer he spent several weeks in the hospital in his hometown of Essen following a fall. He never fully recovered and required extensive care toward the end of his life.
Theo and his brother Karl, who is two years older, laid the cornerstone for what became their discount empire in 1948 when they took over their mother's small grocery store. In 1961, they changed the name to Albrecht's Discount -- or "Aldi" for short. Within decades, the store became a discount chain worth billions, one which permanently changed the way food retailing was done in both Germany and across the globe.
(Excerpt) Read more at spiegel.de ...
Aldi’s has cheap stuff that is still good quality.
I miss living far from a Trader Joe's.
I love shopping at Aldi! Everything we have tried has been very good.
Thank you Mr.Albrecht, RIP.
Never seen a Trader Joe’s, but heard they are great.
Love Aldi’s.
We are headed to Trader Joe’s in a few minutes. Great prices on good quality groceries.
Nothing in this article ties these men to Trader Joes.
What’s the deal.
Aldis is great, this man was a true innovator in an industry that most ignore. RIP.
The Cinnamon Roll bread is to die for.
My wife loves ALdi’s and Trader Joe’s.
I thought that was odd, so I dug around...Theo did own TJ’s...
They were very secretive indeed. None of us has sufficient clearance to be made aware of the connection.
Maybe the next owner will build a Trader Joe’s in my area. We really miss them.
Never heard of Aldi’s, but love Trader Joe’s.
Lots of good house brand items that would cost more in the regular grocery store, like soups and dried fruits, etc. and gourmet stuff to pack a romantic picnic basket with, like wine, cheeses, breads, nuts.
Bittersweet thing about Trader Joes is that they have house brand items that you become fond of, then they get discontinued due to light demand or lack of supply at a price point the owners are willing to pay. Our favorites currently not available in the store: Trader Joseph’s Chard of Many Colors; Sir Strawberry Juice.
I get my produce from the farmer’s markets. But I get my frozen fish at Aldi’s. The price is crazy low compared to the local supermarket! And I eats a lotta fish!
Hmmm ... Germans dividing the world between them ...
We LOVE Trader Joe’s. It has great stuff like Whole Paycheck, but it’s much less expensive and not pretentious.
I used to love their Buffalo milk yogurt. I think it was water buffalo, not real buffalo.
Anyway, it had a stronger texture more like ricotta. They discontinued it, and now I can’t find it anywhere.
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