Aldi Portugal, Spain and Poland, while Aldi Süd operates in Ireland, Great Britain, Hungary, Switzerland, Australia, China, Italy, Austria and Slovenia. Both Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd also operate in the United States with 1,600 stores as of 2017. The earliest roots of the company trace back to 1913, when the mother of Karl and Theo Albrecht opened a small store in a suburb of Essen. Their father was employed as a miner and later as a baker's assistant. Karl Albrecht was born in 1920, Theo Albrecht in 1922. Theo Albrecht completed an apprenticeship in his mother's store, while Karl Albrecht
QFI (supermarket) QFI (supermarket) QFI was a San Francisco supermarket chain founded in the late 1940s by John Musso. Originally, some QFI locations were leased, resulting in some stores being co-named with others (such as Lick Super Market). By the 1970s, when Musso's son Leo took over, all QFI stores were wholly owned and operated. QFI peaked as the number three grocery chain in the region, behind Safeway and Lucky, and had about 14 locations ranging from San Francisco south to Redwood City. In 1973, QFI was acquired by Cala Foods, which itself was acquired by Ralphs (a subsidiary of Kroger) in