The major supermarket multiples look set for another difficult year after Aldi revealed that it will open 80 new stores during 2016 – 23% more than last year and its fastest ever rate of growth in the UK.

The plan, revealed by the Mail On Sunday, will take Aldi’s store count in the UK to over 700 and debunks any suggestion that the pace of its growth is set to slow amid moves by the Big 4 supermarkets to win back customers from the discounters. In August last year, Aldi said it would being spending £600m over a two period to grow its store base with its aim of reaching 1,000 outlets within eight years. 

Speaking to the newspaper, Jonathan Neale, joint Managing Director of Buying at Aldi UK, said: “This has been another excellent year for Aldi. We’re seeing a permanent, structural change in the shopping habits of UK consumers. 

“They now know they can get all the products they want at significantly cheaper prices than at other supermarkets.” 

The news comes just two months after Lidl revealed that it will spend £1.5bn over the next three years accelerating its expansion and overhauling its stores in an effort to grab further share. The discounter is now looking to open 40-50 new outlets a year in the UK, up from a previous target of 30-40. It also plans to refurbish around 150 of its existing 629 sites to a new “Lidl of the future” concept.