Aldi grocery stores are owned by the Albrecht family from Germany. The name "Aldi" is a nickname for Albrecht Discount, which was the official name of the store chain until 1962.
Anna Albrecht opened the first store in 1914 in Essen, Germany. Her sons, Karl and Theo Albrecht, took over the store after World War II. Karl and Theo quickly expanded the chain to four German stores and began a significant expansion across Europe and into the United States. As of 2014, there are more than 4,000 Aldi stores around the world, and the company remains in the family. The Albrecht family also owns the Trader Joe's grocery store chain.
