Little-known family feud at heart of Aldi and Trader Joe's
Aldi and Trader Joe’s: two leading grocery stores priding themselves on providing customers outstanding value in the form of quality products at everyday prices.
According to the ninth annual Retailer Preference Index (RPI), Aldi was America’s fifth-favourite supermarket in 2025, whilst Trader Joe’s earned seventh place, beating Amazon, Wegmans, and ShopRite.
And while the two shops don’t initially seem connected in any way, it turns out there’s some serious similarities and a sworded history between the two retailers.
In 1945, Karl and Theo Albrecht successfully took over their German family’s business and began building a budget-friendly grocery store empire.
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The brothers later opened their first store in Essen-Schonnebeck, calling it Aldi Nord.
Ten years later, the Albrecht boys had opened 100 stores in North Rhine-Westphalia - but their partnership wasn't to last.
Food & Wine reported that in 1961, Karl and Theo - who both served in World War II - decided to split the business into two, eventually creating Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd.
Karl took over the former, while Theo opted for the southern shops.
Neither Aldi Nord, Aldi Süd, or the surviving Albrecht family have ever released a statement revealing the reason for the split.
However, The Guardian has previously reported that a family feud may have erupted due to Theo being in favour of selling cigarettes in Aldi Nord stores, and his sibling not being keen on the idea.
Whether the duo fell out or not, the decision to split the country into separate fiefs and for each to control the market in one half of the territory was made.
In 1976, Aldi Süd officially entered the US market and operates over 1,500 stores across 34 states, according to the cut-price store itself.
Two years later, Aldi Nord made their mark stateside by opening the first Trader Joe’s.
It may surprise you to hear, but yes: Trader Joe’s is owned by the family behind Aldi Nord, and has been since 1979.
According to ScrapeHero, there were 631 Trader Joe’s stores across 43 of the 50 states, with company offices in Monrovia and Boston, Massachusetts.
Now that you know the history behind Aldi and Trader Joe’s, you may notice that both chains share some similarities.
These include the chains’ laser-focus on stocking own-label products and pouring efforts into keeping costs down, rather than jazzing up the store’s design.
Theo died in July 2010, four years before his older brother.
Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd are now run by their respective executives, with both groups being considered debt-free.
So next time you nip into Trader Joe’s, why not chase it up with a trip to your local Aldi to honour both Karl and Theo Albrecht?
Ella Scott