Aldi has confirmed that it will close its stores on the day of the Queen's funeral. The monarch's state funeral will take place next Monday, September 19.
This afternoon, Aldi was the latest supermarket to confirm its plans for the day.
It said: "As a mark of respect, all Aldi stores across the UK will close on Monday, September 19, to allow our store colleagues to pay tribute to Her Majesty the Queen."
Waitrose and Primark had earlier said that they will do the same, closing for the day. Waitrose will keep a handful of stores along the funeral route open to allow well-wishers to stock up on food and drinks for the day. All John Lewis stores will be closed.
The date of the Queen's state funeral has been confirmed as a bank holiday, meaning that banks and Post Office will be shut.
It has also been reported by The Sun that major supermarkets including Sainsbury's, Tesco, Asda and Morrisons are finalising their plans. It is likely that they will either close or reduce their hours, with it being thought that large stores could be shut between 10am and 2pm to allow both staff and customers to watch the funeral.
Smaller convenience stores are set to remain open, especially those on the funeral route to cater for people needing food and drinks on the day. M&S is also finalising plans, but it is thought it will close all of its clothing-only stores for the day, while those that offer clothing and food will have reduced hours.
The Government has advised businesses that they may wish to close, but it is at their own discretion.
Andrew Murphy, chief operating officer, at The John Lewis Partnership, told Retail Gazette: “We are deeply saddened by the death of Her Majesty The Queen. We will be closing our stores on the day of her funeral as a mark of respect, and because we believe this is the right thing to do for our Partners and customers.”
