The German discount supermarket giant Lidl will open its first-ever airport location at Madrid Barajas International Airport in Spain after beating rival Aldi to the 30-year lease.
Lidl had been competing against Aldi and local competitor Ahorramas for the chance to open a supermarket in a part of the airport estate called Airport City, which is still being actively developed.
Although the airport will be designed to serve passengers, the store won’t actually be in one of the terminals but will instead be a standalone location with its own parking, serving airport employees and local residents.
The lease for the supermarket was awarded by national airport operator Aena which opened up bids for the site last March. It’s part of a strategy to widen the facilities available at airports across Spain and similar projects are likely to follow in the future.
In fact, back in 2015, the supermarket chain Spar opened its first airport location in Gran Canaria.
Lidl will be responsible for constructing the new store and obtaining all the necessary permits from local authorities. No timeline for when the new location will open has yet been released.
