Lidl eyes Qormi supermarket at former Coca-Cola factory

Discount supermarket giant Lidl wants to open an outlet on the site occupied by the former General Soft Drinks factory along Mdina road and Triq il-Vitorja in Qormi.

The proposal is made is being made in a joint application by the Mizzi Group and Lidl, to amend a permit issued last year for the erection of residential units and showrooms on the 7,100sq.m site.

The factory fronts a residential area along Triq il-Vitorja, and a mixed commercial and residential area along Mdina road. The local plan zones the frontage on Mdina Road as a commercial area, while the remaining part of the site is a residential area.

As approved in 2021, the five-storey development includes three basement levels, three ground-floor showrooms over 2,103sq.m, and 126 apartments and 29 penthouses.

The new plans envisage a 3,251sq.m supermarket with an underlying parking level at ground floor and 806sq.m of showrooms fronting Mdina road.

The General Soft Drinks plant was inaugurated in 1952 and relocated to Marsa in 2008.

Lidl already operates a supermarket in Qormi’s Landmark commercial centre. The site is owned by the Vassallo Builders Group, which recently applied to change the designation of a landscaped car park near Lidl from a ‘green area’ to a site for SMEs.

Lidl was also granted a permit for a supermarket on the site of the SMW Cortis factory in Ħaż-Żebbuġ, which is just over 2.5km away from the former General Soft Drinks factory.

In 2019, Lidl commanded the greatest market share by far in Malta’s supermarket retail industry, with turnovers of over €180 million. The next highest-grossing chain were the Pavi and Pama supermarkets with a combined €80 million.