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
Dia (supermarket chain) 2000 to 2011, Dia was part of the Carrefour Group but following its spin-off it became independent and debuted in Madrid's IBEX 35 stock market on 2 January 2012. The Dia Group purchased the operation of Schlecker (including its 1,127 stores in Spain and 41 stores in Portugal, and four distribution centers) for 70.5 million Euros. In 2014, Dia sold the whole of its business in France to Carrefour for 600 million euros. Although the shops retain the Dia name and logo, Carrefour own-brand products are increasingly replacing Dia's. Dia (supermarket chain) Distribuidora Internacional de Alimentación, S.A. (DIA) is a