• 1930

  Our history began in 1930 when Josef Schwarz, father of the current owner, opened a grocery store. The store was destroyed in the Second World War and rebuilt during the late 1940s.

• 1960-1984

  In 1960, the first fruit and retail store was opened as a cash & carry market in Heilbronn. Eight years later, the first Handelshof consumer store opened in Backnang. In 1973, the first Lidl store opened its doors in Ludwigshafen. The first self-service store, located in Neckarsulm, followed in 1984.

• 1989-1998

  International expansion efforts began in 1989, when the first store opened in France, and with Kaufland in the Czech Republic in 1998.

• 2015

  Meanwhile, the Schwarz Group counts more than 11,000 stores in more than 20 European countries.

• 2017

  In 2017, Lidl began its expansion in the U.S.

• 1999

  Those units offering corporate administrative services and financial services were brought together in an independent company for the first time in 1999.

• 2004

  Around 50 employees were working for this company in 2004.

• 2014

  Since 2014, Schwarz Dienstleistung KG (SDL) has been the central corporate services provider covering taxes, finance and accounting for Lidl and Kaufland.

• 2014/2015

  Shortly after, the set-up of the operational activities began.

• 2022

  In 2022, Schwarz Dienstleistungen will have more than 6,000 employees and will consist of over 20 departments.

• 2019

  Over the years, more and more areas have been bundled at Schwarz Dienstleistungen. Another milestone was reached in May 2019 with the merger of Lidl IT and Kaufland IT into Schwarz IT.