Another South MS Winn-Dixie is converting to ALDI. Here’s what shoppers should know
The switch is on, as the Winn-Dixie grocery store on U.S. 49 in Gulfport sees its last days and a new ALDI supermarket is on the way.
The closing sale began Wednesday, Oct. 16, at the Orange Grove Winn-Dixie and the staff said the store will close Nov. 10.
Signs posted at Winn-Dixie say the weekly sales no longer apply at the Gulfport store, replaced by the liquidation sale. The last day to use rewards points at the store is Nov. 9.
The same scenario was followed when the D’Iberville Winn-Dixie closed in late August. Part of the building is being transformed into a much more compact ALDI store, which averages about 18,000 to 22,000 square feet, or half the size of a typical Winn-Dixie.
“The store will reopen to the community as an ALDI over the next several months,” the company said when the D’Iberville store closed. “We thank our customers for their years of loyalty at this location and look forward to seeing them soon as a new ALDI,” the company said.
Comments posted on Facebook by fans of Winn-Dixie say they will miss the selection of grocery items they can’t find anywhere else and the buy one-get-one-free specials. Those who like the smaller size and low prices at ALDI said they are glad to see the store change.
In 2023, ALDI purchased 400 grocery stores across five Southern states from Southeastern Grocers, including four in South Mississippi.
Jobs at the new Gulfport store are posted on the ALDI website.
Shoppers will find ALDI different than the Winn-Dixie and other traditional grocery stores. They will insert a quarter to get a shopping cart and get a quarter back when they return the cart. Shoppers bag their purchases themselves after they are scanned by a checker. Most of the products sold are labels chosen by ALDI instead of more recognizable national brands..
ALDI now has 12 locations in Mississippi and more on the way.
In South Mississippi:
▪ ALDI has two stores in Ocean Springs and Pascagoula
▪ Two new stores will open next year in D’Iberville and Gulfport
▪ The Long Beach store is still a Winn-Dixie, and could be transformed into an ALDI
▪ The future of the Ocean Springs Winn-Dixie is uncertain, since there already is an ALDI store a few miles away,
In neighboring states:
▪ ALDI has 41 location in Alabama, three in Mobile. There are still seven Winn-Dixie stores near Mobile.
▪ ALDI has 15 stores in Louisiana, with one in Metairie and one in Covington. There are still more than a dozen Winn-Dixie stores in the New Orleans area.
