Aldi has kicked off a major recruitment drive to bring in 4,500 new store colleagues ahead of Christmas 2025.

The roles, including store assistants, managers and cleaners, are a mix of permanent positions designed to meet the spike in festive demand while supporting Aldi’s long-term UK growth strategy.

The discounter remains the UK’s highest-paying supermarket, with store assistants earning £13.02 an hour nationally and £14.35 inside the M25.

The hiring spree comes as Aldi looks to open a store a week until the end of 2025, part of its ambition to reach 1,500 UK stores.

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Recruitment director Kelly Stokes said the move would ensure Aldi “continues to deliver the very best experience for our shoppers” during the peak trading season.

She added: “At Aldi, our goal is to make high-quality, affordable food accessible to everyone – and at Christmas, demand for that always increases.

“Our people are at the heart of our success, and once again we’ll be closing all our stores on Boxing Day and New Year’s Day. It’s important to us that our colleagues have the chance to enjoy a well-deserved break and spend valuable time with their loved ones.”

This year’s Christmas recruitment drive is up 28% from last year, when Aldi announced it was to hire 3,500 new store colleagues as it geared up for the festive season.