Supermarket chain Aldi has named Verwood in a long list of places it wants to open a store in the future.

Over 320 new locations were published this week, including Ringwood, Ferndown, Wimborne, Bournemouth, Poole, Christchurch, New Milton, Shaftsbury and Blandford.

No particular location in Verwood has been mentioned, but the company says it prefers freehold, town centre or edge of centre sites suitable for property development in towns with a population of 15,000 or more.

Aldi says: “Our sustained growth means we are continually expanding our property portfolio to help achieve our ever-growing goals for 2022.

“We have ambitious acquisition and development plans beyond that and are looking to acquire sites that meet the following property criteria for our standard store format.

“We are willing to explore all opportunities including developer-led schemes and existing or new retail units.

“Our yield profile is increasingly adding value to developments.”

Aldi adds that the list is not definite and subject to change.

Rival Lidl is currently waiting on the outcome for its planning application to build a supermarket in Verwood, with a decision expected this month.