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Lidl US Chairman Roman Heini exits company

Onetime Aldi executive served in Lidl role less than a year-and-a-half

Russell Redman

July 28, 2020

4 Min Read
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Roman Heini (left) became chairman of Lidl US in March 2019, joining Johannes Fieber (right) the hard discount grocer's U.S. president and CEO.LIdl US

Roman Heini has left Lidl US after nearly 16 months as chairman, Supermarket News has confirmed.

Arlington, Va.-based Lidl US said in an email late Tuesday that Heini informed Lidl leaders this week of his decision to leave the company to pursue other professional interests and spend more time with his family. No information about a potential successor were disclosed. He departed this week.

“We appreciate Roman’s commitment and contributions to Lidl throughout his tenure, which have helped position Lidl for greater success in the future,” Lidl US said in a statement. “Lidl will continue its expansion in the United States under the direction and guidance of its CEO, Johannes Fieber. Johannes assumed responsibility for Lidl US as CEO in May 2018 and will continue to work closely with the Lidl International team to drive the business forward.”

Heini joined Germany-based Lidl in October 2018 from rival hard-discount grocer Aldi, where he served as a joint managing director for the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2014. He was named chairman of Lidl US in early February 2019 and, after relocating to the Lidl US headquarters in Arlington, started in the post on March 1.

When Heini was named to assume direct supervision of the U.S. business, Lidl said international board member Michael Aranda would shift to a new role on the company’s management board in Europe. In the fall of 2017, then-Lidl Spain CEO Aranda was appointed to a corporate divisional board overseeing U.S. operations.

Related:Lidl moves ahead with Long Island store openings

"There are no words that can express how truly grateful I am for the privilege of working with the team of Lidl US. You have been part of my family and home during one of the most challenging times for all of us," Heini wrote in a post today on LinkedIn. "The decision to leave our company comes after much reflection on my personal goals, not just for my career, but most importantly, having recently lost my father, for my family. It should in no way detract from my confidence in the future of Lidl US."

Heini added, "Brick-and-mortar retail in the U.S. is at a crossroads. This team can play a fundamental role in shaping the direction the industry takes. You are in the driver’s seat, and I can’t wait to see where you take the company."

Fieber came to Lidl US more than two years ago after serving as CEO of Lidl Sweden. He took over as Lidl US president and CEO from Brendan Proctor, who had led the company’s U.S. efforts since 2015.

Lidl began opening U.S. stores in June 2017, with the first of what the company said would be 20 locations in Virginia and the Carolinas by the summer’s end and up to 100 stores on the East Coast by the summer of 2018. But in the months after Lidl’s U.S. debut, news reports said the company was scaling back its expansion plans, well short of the 100-unit target it had set.

Related:Lidl’s Long Island market entry pulled down competitors’ prices

The hiccup led Lidl to fine-tune its U.S. promotional strategy to better match the shopping habits of American consumers, as well as to retool its U.S. real estate strategy to include smaller stores and leased sites, instead of just build-and-own locations.

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Long Island, part of metro New York, has been an expansion focus for Lidl US following its acquisition of Best Market.

Lidl has since steadily pushed forward with its U.S. expansion, including the November 2018 acquisition of 27 Best Market stores in metropolitan New York, a deal that closed in early 2019. Lidl US opened its 100th store in late May in Suwanee, Ga. It now operates 101 locations in Delaware, George, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Virginia.

Most recently, Lidl opened a store in Burlington, N.J., on July 22. Plans call for converted Best Market locations to open in East Meadow, N.Y., on July 29 and Patchogue, N.Y., on Aug. 5. More remodeled Best Market stores are slated to reopen under the Lidl banner early next year in the Long Island communities of Massapequa and Franklin Square, as well as in Astoria, a community in the New York City borough of Queens.

At the end of March, Lidl also opened a 700,000-square-foot distribution center and regional headquarters in Perryville, Md. The facility supplies products to stores in Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York.

About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

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