Aldi UK expands online product range

LONDON, March 8 (Reuters) - German discount retailer Aldi said on Tuesday it is expanding the range of products available on its British website for home delivery by adding non-food items such as electrical goods and garden tools.

The move to sell its "Specialbuys" range online follows Aldi UK's entry into ecommerce in January when it began selling wines by the case.

The Specialbuy products on offer online include a Dyson handheld vacuum cleaner, a Gardenline petrol lawnmower and an Ambiano nutrient blender.

"In the seven weeks since its launch, Aldi's eCommerce platform is performing very well so far, attracting around one million users each week, with a significant proportion of users based in London and the south east of England," the firm said.

Aldi is offering free standard delivery for a limited time on both wine and Specialbuy products.

Aldi and rival discounter Lidl, which are opening new stores aggressively, have been winning market share from Britain's big four supermarkets, market leader Tesco (Xetra: 852647 - news) , Sainsbury (Amsterdam: SJ6.AS - news) 's, Asda and Morrisons.

Aldi's sales rose 15.1 percent in the 12 weeks to Feb. 28 compared to overall market growth of 0.5 percent, taking its market share to 5.8 percent, up 0.8 percentage points year-on-year.

Aldi trades from over 630 UK stores and is targeting 1,000 by 2022, with more than 80 openings planned for 2016.

Matthew Barnes, Aldi's chief executive, said in September an online offer of Aldi's food range was not on the firm's radar. A spokeswoman for the firm said on Tuesday its position has not changed.

Analysts say offering a full food offer online would require a substantial investment, while the economics for a discounter are not compelling.

(Reporting by James Davey. Editing by Jane Merriman)