ELLENBROOK locals breathed a sigh of relief this morning as the doors to German discount supermarket Aldi swung open for the first time.
Shoppers keen to get their hands on a bargain lined up outside the store on The Promenade, waiting for West Swan MLA Rita Saffioti to cut the ribbon to officially open the store.
Ellenbrook residents Chris Boggitt and Peter Dauven earned the title of the first customers, eagerly waiting outside from 6.30am for the store to open.
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READ NOW“I first discovered Aldi in Victoria when I was visiting my dad,” Mr Boggitt said.
“I realised how much he was saving so I wanted to start saving myself.
“So when it opened in Joondalup we were driving all the way there, but now I won’t have to and the savings will happen even more.”
Mr Boggitt said while he would not rule out buying electrical goods, he was mainly there for groceries.
“I want to save mainly on groceries, but also the fun things that you can only get at Aldi,” he said.
“My partner is half German so getting things like pretzels is pretty exciting.
“We think it’ll be very busy, as there are lots of people with big families in the area that are looking to save a bit of money here and there.
“It’ll give Coles and Woollies a run for its money.”
Ms Saffioti said the store’s opening was great news for the community.
“People are pretty excited; you can see by the turn out here on the first morning people are keen,” she said.
“There’s more choice in the market and I think shoppers generally welcome choice, as well as low prices.”
Ms Saffioti said the opening of the 18th WA store would also create more local jobs.
“I’ve spoken to some local people from Ellenbrook, Brabham and Dayton who have got jobs here,” she said.
“It’s going to create more jobs for the entire area and as I said it’s more retails, more employment and that’s a good thing for Ellenbrook and the entire community.”