Aldi celebrates remodeling for one Joliet store, prepares to start another

Aldi celebrated the remodeling of its store by the Louis Joliet Mall on Thursday as it prepares to embark on another Joliet project next month.

The formerly no-frills grocer is remodeling and expanding stores in Joliet and around the country as it adds more fresh produce, organic foods and ready-to-eat items.

Customers who would have never seen a head of lettuce in the Aldi store on Hennepin Drive when it opened in 1993 now see fresh produce as soon as they walk through the door.

“Really what we did is we added a lot of refrigeration,” Aldi Division Vice President Heather Moore said of the store remodeling. “We’ve added about 20 percent to our product line – more healthy items and ready-to-eat items.”

Aldi added about 3,000 square feet to the store, which is now 12,000 square feet. The store was closed for about a month before reopening two weeks ago.

Aldi held a grand reopening ceremony Thursday.

The Jefferson Street store will not close during a remodeling that is expected to start in May. Another 1,000 square feet will be added. The store was just built in 2014, but again Moore said Aldi is expanding to add products.

Aldi is spending $180 million on remodeling and expansion at 130 of its 155 stores in the Chicago market, Moore said, and $1.9 billion nationwide. Aldi has 1,800 stores in the U.S.