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Aldi to invest £300m in UK stores following record sales

The British arm of Aldi has said it will invest £300m in its stores after posting a 12% increase in sales to a record £7.7bn in 2015.

The figures represent record results for the company, which plans to open 70 new stores in 2017 as part of its plan to reach 1,000 by 2022.

It currently operates 785 stores in the UK and Ireland (Other OTC: IRLD - news) .

Matthew Barnes, CEO of Aldi UK and Ireland, said the investment would also include the refurbishment of over 100 existing stores over the next year.

"We've completed our largest-ever listening exercise, involving over 50,000 shoppers across our stores," said Mr Barnes.

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"We've listened and we're evolving our new format for new and existing stores to deliver what our customers want."

The new format includes newly designed fixtures for alcohol, fresh produce and food-to-go, with each store benefiting from an increase in chilled space.

"Our promotion of British-sourced products and our relationships with British suppliers demonstrate our pride in Britain and our commitment to providing the very best quality British food," Matthew Barnes added.

"At the same time, we continue to deliver on our promise that whenever you shop at Aldi, you are paying the lowest prices in grocery."

Operating profits for 2015 dropped by 1.8% to £255.6m (from £260.4m in 2014), which the grocer said reflected its continued investment in prices.

Last year, Aldi says it invested £536.2m in opening new stores and improving its distribution network, and in turn attracted 761,000 new customers, boosting its market share by 15.3%.