Maltese consumers will benefit from three new supermarkets as from 24 April, when Lidl Malta supermarkets will open their doors and commence commercial activity.
The Lidl franchise is one of the leading European supermarket franchises, and boasts over 150,000 employees within its 8,000 stores across Europe. Its annual turnover of e35 billion places it among the top 10 retailers in the world. Having already proven to be a highly successful franchise in Italy, Lidl is now attempting to broaden its market by extending to Malta.
The three stores, in Santa Venera, San Gwann and Luqa, will be selling a variety of fresh and frozen food, as well as other household items. A fourth supermarket in Safi – which has been in the limelight due to a controversy over the granting of the permit by Mepa’s DCC board – is set to open by October. Each supermarket will cover an area of approximately 1,000 square metres and provide customers with over 100 parking spaces.
The supermarkets will be entirely operated by Maltese employees, and Lidl Malta has spent the past two years recruiting and training staff in its Italian branches. Until now, Lidl Malta employs 50 people, many of them working in the stores, who were recruited in March and given a paid training course for a period of two months in view of the franchise’s opening in Malta.
David Gatt, Country Manager for Lidl Malta, explained that Lidl aims to be a community supermarket, rather than a large-scale quasi-hypermarket. Products will be imported from a number of European countries and local goods will also be sold. 1,100 products will be available at each supermarket, and Lidl will be selling its own branded products, alongside other brands.
“Since Maltese culture owes a lot to the Italian lifestyle, a large portion of our products will be similar to those of Lidl Italia. However, we will be paying particular attention to the Maltese lifestyle and consumption habits by providing products that are in line with Maltese culture”, he said.
Mr Gatt emphasised the franchise’s corporate philosophy – “providing the best quality at the best price” and its priorities of store cleanliness, short queues and high customer satisfaction.
Lidl Malta will be offering weekly discounts on numerous items through its website, www.lidl.com.mt, as well as through leaflets and flyers distributed to households.
Lidl Malta caught the public’s attention in recent weeks because of a permit issued by Mepa’s DCC board (which has since resigned) for the company’s proposed supermarket in Safi, despite a large portion of the land lying Outside Development Zone. The application was made by construction magnate Charles Polidano, better known as ic-Caqnu.
When quizzed about the controversy over the permit, Mr Gatt insisted that Lidl Malta is “in no way involved in the application process. The company only takes over the construction once the permit has been issued. It is not the intention of the company to do anything against the law”. Nonetheless, he confirmed that although the irregularity of the permit was brought to light, Lidl Malta will still be opening its supermarket in Safi. Mr Gatt added that although the company was “not happy about the issue being brought before the public ”, it is not responsible for the decision to issue the permit since “the best person to comment is the MEPA auditor”.