A brand-new Aldi store on Oakwell Road in Castle Douglas opened its doors to customers this morning at 8am, with ParalympicsGB wheelchair rugby hero Jack Smith cutting the all-important red ribbon alongside pupils from Castle Douglas Primary School.
The Oakwell Road store is the newest Aldi to open in Castle Douglas and will be run by Store Manager Justin Wilson, along with a team of 25 colleagues from the local community. Applications and more information on all of Aldi’s store positions can be found here.
ParalympicsGB gold medallist Jack Smith 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 Castle Douglas 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 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 Castle Douglas also offered pupils at Castle Douglas 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. Jack Smith announced the winner during the assembly and the pupil was presented with their £20 voucher.
Store Manager Justin Wilson said: “It’s been a wonderful morning here at the opening of Aldi Castle Douglas. 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 Castle Douglas Primary School through our partnership with ParalympicsGB.”
ParalympicsGB star Jack Smith 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 Castle Douglas 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, Scottish meat products, a ‘Food to Go’ section at the front of the store, and an exclusive section full of Health & Beauty products.
Castle Douglas 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 Black Friday deals, including a smart TV for £199.99, a drone for £24.99 and a dash cam for £11.99.
Additionally, the new Aldi store is calling on local charities and food banks in Castle Douglas 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 [email protected].
The new store is located on Oakwell Road, Castle Douglas, DG7 1JY, and will be open:
Monday – Saturday: 08:00 -22:00
Sunday: 08:00 -20:00
