Aldi UK, the country’s fourth-largest supermarket chain, announced on Thursday that it will be discontinuing its click and collect service, which was launched at the

height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The service, introduced in September 2020, was a response to the surge in online grocery shopping driven by lockdowns during the pandemic. Currently available at 174 of Aldi’s 1,020 UK stores, the service is set to end on August 18.

Unlike other major supermarket chains such as Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, and Morrisons, Aldi does not offer a home delivery service.

Before the pandemic in 2020, online grocery shopping accounted for about 7% of Britain’s total grocery market. This figure peaked at around 15% during the pandemic and now stands just below 13%, according to industry data.

Aldi, owned by Germany's Aldi Süd, along with fellow discount retailer Lidl, has significantly expanded in the UK over the past two decades, reshaping the supermarket landscape and prompting more aggressive competition from traditional retailers.

Despite its rapid growth, recent data indicates that Aldi’s market share in the UK has slightly decreased. As of the 12 weeks leading up to August 4, Aldi held a 10.0% market share, a drop of 20 basis points compared to the previous year, according to data released by market research firm Kantar on Tuesday.

The decision to end the click and collect service was first reported by the industry publication The Grocer. Photo by Aldi, Shaw by michael ely, Wikimedia commons.