East Sussex chain fears shop closure if nearby Aldi approved

A family run store in East Sussex, which also has a post office, fears it will have to close one of its shops in Rye if an Aldi is approved nearby.

Jempson's Supermarket estimates it will lose £5.6 million in turnover by 2027, which could make its supermarket in Station Approach, Rye unviable, BBC reported. The supermarket, which first opened in 1935, also fear that fewer people would use its two-hour car park which could also lead to a “significant decline” in people visiting other shops in the town.

Stephen Jempson, managing director of Jempson's, told BBC Radio Sussex, “The impact on the town centre of the additional services we provide could well be significant. Rye only has one bank which is only open three days a week, so everything is done in the post office. We provide the post office which is open 90 hours a week."

A letter of objection to the Aldi application from Jempson's said, “The proposal is in conflict with national and local planning policy, as it proposes a significant amount of out-of-centre retail floorspace at a location outside the town that will have a significantly adverse impact on the vitality and viability of Rye town centre.”

Jempson's also has a bigger store in Peasmarsh, as well as convenience stores and cafes in Battle, Bexhill, Northiam, Paddock Wood, South Chailey and Wadhurst.

Richard Thornton, director of communications for Aldi, told BBC, “What we tend to find when we enter into a new location is that actually Aldi contributes really positively to other surrounding local businesses.

"Aldi is a discount supermarket and offers the lowest priced groceries in the UK. We do that by being really efficient but what it means is we don’t have some of the peripheral services that you might find in a more expensive supermarket. Things like a deli counter.”

First founded as a little bakery shop in Peasmarsh in 1935, the business now consists of two supermarkets, four convenience stores, six cafes, five post office counters, a petrol station and a pharmacy. Its stores are known for its stock of local produce, deli, butchers and bakers counters.

Last year in March, Jempson’s joined Morrisons retail partnership Together with Morrisons, thus moving all of its stores.