Hofer: Why Aldi is called differently in Austria

Anyone who has ever been to Austria will have noticed that the discounter Aldi can be found there under the name Hofer. We explain the reason for these different names here.

Why Aldi is called Hofer in Austria

In Germany and in many other countries, the supermarket chain can be found almost exclusively under the name Aldi. Our neighboring country Austria is an exception. Here the successful discounter bears the name Hofer.

• After a conflict between the two entrepreneur brothers Theo and Karl Albrecht, the then Albrecht KG was split between the two in 1961, so that Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd were created. To this day, Germany is symbolically separated by the two companies.
• Both Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd operate successfully abroad, but they do not compete in the countries. While Aldi Nord is represented in Belgium, Denmark, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal and Spain, Aldi Süd covers the countries Australia, Ireland, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Slovenia, UK, Hungary and the USA.
• In 1967, Aldi Süd initially worked abroad by expanding the company to Austria. There Aldi Süd took over the Austrian supermarket chain Hofer. In order to build on their success and popularity, the well-known name "Hofer" was adopted. For reasons of geographical proximity and the economic relationship between the two countries, Aldi in Slovenia is also known as Hofer.
• In 2018, the discounter celebrated its 50th anniversary in Austria and now operates around 500 branches in the country.

Find out in the next article why Aldi is so successful worldwide.