Aldi Derriford celebrates grand opening with help from paralypian
A brand-new Aldi store on Bravo Way in Derriford, Plymouth, opened its doors to customers this morning at 8am, with ParalympicsGB swimming hero Reece Dunn cutting the all-important red ribbon alongside pupils from St Matthew's C of E Primary School.
The Bravo Way store is the newest Aldi to open in Plymouth and will be run by Store Manager Ian Ramirez, along with a team of 37 colleagues from the local community. Applications and more information on all of Aldi’s store positions can be found here.
ParalympicsGB gold medallist Reece Dunn gave away complimentary bags of fresh fruit and vegetables from Aldi’s famous Super 6 range to the first 30 customers in the queue, before delivering an inspirational assembly for pupils at St Matthew’s C of E Primary School as part of the supermarket’s initiative, Get Set to Eat Fresh - which has already inspired over two and a half million school children aged 5-14 years to learn more about the benefits of cooking fresh, healthy food with their families.
To celebrate the official partnership between Aldi and ParalympicsGB, the three-time gold medallist from Tokyo 2020 focused on the benefits of eating healthy food and the importance of exercise and believing in yourself. He also talked to pupils about his experience of competing as a Paralympian and shared his challenging training regime.
Aldi Derriford also offered pupils at St Matthew’s C of E Primary School the opportunity to win a £20 gift voucher to spend at the new store. The children were tasked with creating a poster to show what healthy eating means to them. Reece Dunn announced the winner during the assembly and the pupil was presented with their £20 voucher.
Store Manager Ian Ramirez said: “It’s been a wonderful morning here at the opening of Aldi Derriford. It was lovely to welcome our new customers into store, and I look forward to meeting more of the community in the coming weeks. I’m also thrilled that we’ve been able to support St Matthew’s C of E Primary School through our partnership with ParalympicsGB.”
ParalympicsGB star Reece Dunn added: “I’ve had a fantastic time opening the new Aldi this morning. It was an honour to officially open the store and welcome customers inside for the first time.
“It was great to speak with the children at St Matthew’s C of E Primary School about the importance of eating healthily and how it can be fun to plan and prepare meals as a family. Hopefully I’ve also managed to inspire the pupils to keep active and try different sports.”
The new Aldi store offers large chillers and freezers dedicated to fresh, British meat products, a ‘Food to Go’ section at the front of the store, and an exclusive section full of Health & Beauty products.
Plymouth customers can also take a walk down the ‘Aisle of Aldi’, where they will find legendary Specialbuys which are available every Thursday and Sunday. During opening week, the store will be offering a range of Bluey toys, including a Bluey cash register for £19.99, Bluey keyboard for £12.99 and Bluey figure sets for £9.99.
Additionally, the new Aldi store is calling on local charities and food banks in Plymouth to register with Neighbourly, a community engagement platform that links businesses to charitable organisations in the local community.
Local charities that register will be able to collect surplus food and perishable products, such as fruit, vegetables and baked goods, seven days a week. Any charities in the area that would like to partner up with the new Aldi store should email aldi@neighbourly.com.
The new store is located on 5 Bravo Way, Plymouth, Devon, PL6 5GA, and will be open:
Monday - Saturday: 08:00 -22:00
Sunday: 10:00 -16:00
