This new outlet will become the company’s 74th store in Portugal and its seventh in the Setúbal district, creating 74 jobs with all employees receiving open-ended contracts from their first day, the retailer revealed in a statement. As reported by Diário do Distrito, the company continues to prioritise stable employment as it extends its Portuguese network.

Located at Rua Ana de Castro de Osório, No. 1, the supermarket will feature approximately 1,900 square metres of sales space, offering the retailer’s full range of departments, including fresh fish, butchery, delicatessen, bakery, fruit and vegetables, perfumery and its increasingly popular Ready-to-Eat section.

Expansion strategy

The layout, designed around Mercadona’s latest store concept, incorporates wider aisles and a blueprint intended to improve the customer shopping experience while providing the full assortment of the company’s own-brand products.

This Alhos Vedros opening forms part of an ambitious expansion strategy that has already seen the company launch new stores this year at Quinta do Lambert in Lisbon, Viseu, Covilhã and Abrunheira in Sintra. Further openings are scheduled before the end of the year in Amarante, Esposende, Maia, Vila Real, Beja, Portimão and Faro, marking the retailer’s long-awaited arrival in the Algarve.

Mercadona announced earlier this year that it intends to open 12 new supermarkets across Portugal during 2026, expanding into new districts including Beja and Vila Real, while reinforcing its presence in established markets. According to the company, Portugal remains its only international market and continues to play a central role in its long-term growth strategy.

The retailer has continued to increase its investment in Portugal since entering the market in 2019, reporting its first profit in the country in 2025. As reported by ECO, Mercadona generated €2.09 billion in sales in Portugal last year, an increase of 18 percent year-on-year, while employing around 7,500 people nationwide.

In addition, the company also purchased around €1.5 billion worth of goods from approximately 1,000 Portuguese suppliers, underlining its growing contribution to the national economy.