Aldi (stylized as ALDI) is the common brand of two German family-owned discount supermarket chains with over 10,000 stores in 20 countries and an estimated combined turnover of more than €50 billion. The chain was founded by brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht in 1946 when they took over their mother's store in Essen. The business was split into two separate groups in 1960, that later became Aldi Nord, headquartered in Essen, and Aldi Süd, headquartered in Mülheim.