Karl and Theo Albrecht, two brothers, established the well-known cheap supermarket business Aldi in 1946. The company, which started as their mother's shop in Essen, Germany, split into two distinct groups in 1960, becoming Aldi Nord, with its headquarters in Essen, and Aldi Süd, with its headquarters in Mülheim. Albrecht Diskont is referred to by the syllabic abbreviation Aldi, which was first used in 1962. Even though Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd have been legally and financially independent since 1966, they frequently behave as a unified company when interacting with retail brands or settling contracts with contractor businesses.

The global activities of Aldi include the operation of 1,900 stores in western and southern Germany by Aldi Süd's 32 regional companies and around 2,500 stores in western, northern, and eastern Germany by Aldi Nord's 35 distinct regional companies. Aldi Süd operates in nations like Ireland, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Australia, China, Italy, Austria, and Slovenia, whilst Aldi Nord operates internationally in nations like Denmark, France, Portugal, Spain, and Poland. The only nation where both Aldi firms are active outside of Germany is the United States, which is unique in that it has both Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd operations.

The enterprising drive of the Albrecht family has shaped the company's history. The brothers took over the operation in 1945 after their mother established a tiny shop in a suburb of Essen, Germany, in 1913. Shortly after, they added a second store close by. They had 13 outlets in the Ruhr Valley by 1950. They used a novel technique by pre-discounting the 3% legal limit refund, differentiating themselves from the industry leaders at the time. To save money, they did not advertise or sell fresh goods, and they kept the number of their retail locations modest. They also ruthlessly eliminated merchandise that did not sell from their shelves. Especially following the German reunification and the fall of the Iron Curtain, Aldi's expansion has been tremendous throughout time, and the company is still a big participant in the worldwide retail industry today.