TWENTY new jobs will be created as discount supermarket chain Aldi is set to open a new store in Poole.

The new store will open in Fleets Lane on June 17 at 8am.

It will be run by store manager Gina Battell along with a team of 30 colleagues, and 20 jobs will be created for the local community.

Ms Battell said: “We’re really looking forward to opening the new store here in Poole.

“It’s set to be a great day and it’ll be lovely to welcome our new customers into the store and provide them with access to affordable, high-quality food.”

Last summer Aldi announced it was looking for new store locations in 14 Dorset towns, including Bournemouth, Dorchester and Weymouth.

As well as its store in Fleets Lane, the German company hopes to open a store in Blandford Road North, Upton later this year as it looked to invest £7million in new stores across Dorset.

Giles Hurley, chief executive officer at Aldi UK and Ireland, said: “We have been investing in Britain for more than 30 years now, but we know that there are still areas that either don’t have an Aldi at all, or that need another store to meet customer demand.

“With shoppers increasingly looking to make sure they get unbeatable prices on their weekly shop without compromising on quality, our stores are becoming ever more popular.

“This investment in Aldi stores over the course of this year will help make the UK’s lowest-priced supermarket more accessible to even more people, and bring us closer to our long-term goal of having 1,200 stores across the UK by 2025.”

The Fleets Lane Aldi will have a number of safety measures in place, including sanitisation stations on entry, Perspex screens at its tills and social distancing reminders in store, as well as a traffic light system in place to control the number of people going in and out of the store.

It is also calling on local charities and food banks in Poole to register with Neighbourly, a community engagement platform that links businesses to charitable organisations in the local community. Local charities that register will be able to collect surplus food and perishable products, such as fruit, vegetables and baked goods, up to five days a week.