Lidl is stepping up its expansion plans in the UK. In an interview with The Times, Martin Bailie the company's regional director for the Midlands, said that the group expects to open a further 50 stores in 2009. This comes on top of the 49 opened in 2008, which brought the total to 505.
 
Many of the new stores will come through opportunistic acquisition, such as through the collapse of Woolworths, in towns which were previously unavailable. "Throughout the financial year, a lot of sites have come up, including the Co-op, Somerfield and potentially Woolworths stores," Bailie told the UK newspaper. 

Lidl will also continue its strategy of opening smaller stores, in particular in the big cities as part of its three-point plan for growth. This includes Lidl extending its range to around 2,000 SKUs and the introduction of a premium private label range.

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