SPAR is the largest retail foodstore chain in the world, with 12,680 stores in 33 countries – total retail sales in 2008 of €27 billion came from operations in Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia.
From its beginnings in the Netherlands in the 1930s, SPAR began its global expansion by introducing SPAR to Belgium in 1947, and it expanded rapidly in Europe during the 1950s.
Over the next 20 years, SPAR continued to increase its presence in Europe and entered Africa and Asia. From 2000, SPAR was the first international food retailer to enter the Russian, Chinese and Indian markets, reflecting the experience and flexibility of the SPAR business model.
Entering new countries demonstrates that SPAR remains at the leading edge of world food retailing. The real point of difference between SPAR and other international retailers is that we operate locally with the benefits of global business. Being global but local remains a key strategy of SPAR in the new decade.
SPAR uses its key strength, which is the unique partnership of retailers and wholesalers at local, national and international levels, to work together to achieve a common goal:
“To be the local food store of choice, meeting the real needs of individual consumers.”
SPAR formats
A key strength of SPAR worldwide is the rapid implementation of tried and tested formats into new developing markets and allowing these markets to jump ahead of the market and introduce new retail shopping environments and customer experiences.
There are four main formats:
SPAR
The core SPAR supermarket format has led a renaissance in neighbourhood retailing, through constant modernisation of stores across Europe. The majority of SPAR stores are independently owned and operated, and as a result SPAR has a place in the heart of the community.
INTERSPAR
Although there are currently none in the UK the INTERSPAR hypermarket is the largest SPAR format. Most prominent throughout central Europe, there are a total of 274 hypermarkets operating in Austria, Italy, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, China and India. These hypermarkets account for a growing proportion of SPAR sales.
EUROSPAR
Throughout the last decade there has been continuous growth of EUROSPAR, our larger supermarket format for stores over 1000m2. The UK now has over 30 EUROSPARs with growth also in Austria, Italy and Spain and also in Southern Africa where it is called SUPERSPAR.
SPAR Express
SPAR Express provides customers with everything they need when they need it, with extended opening hours and a highly convenient product assortment. SPAR Express convenience stores are expanding with the continued rise of single and two person households, especially in transient locations such as forecourts, railway stations, airports and city centres.
Corporate Social Responsibility
In the SPAR Worldwide organisation there is a commitment to responsible retailing. The SPAR store is the heart of the local community: it serves the needs of local customers, provides employment for local people and provides a market for local suppliers. It is from this local involvement that SPAR fulfils its corporate social responsibility by supporting charities, communities and sports organisations.
Strategy2Sustain
To demonstrate SPAR's commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility there is a special website with case studies and explanations of the efforts that are taking place in the SPAR global community. Click here to go to the website www.spar-strategy2sustain.com.
Record sales
Record retail sales were enjoyed by SPAR in 2009. Total retail sales amounted to €28.5 billion. SPAR also achieved another milestone, with total retail selling area exceeding 6 million m².
Take a look at our retail sales by country below.
| Country |
Retail Sales 2009 in € 000s |
Retail Store numbers |
Retail Sales area (M2) |
| Austria |
4,907,430 |
1438 |
1,015,300 |
| Italy |
3,808,378 |
1636 |
851,073 |
| South Africa |
3,801,571 |
803 |
845,153 |
| United Kingdom |
3,184,225 |
2577 |
384,225 |
| Hungary |
1,469,858 |
396 |
397,385 |
| Norway |
1,313,449 |
297 |
164,842 |
| Ireland |
1222,427 |
456 |
122,375 |
| Denmark |
1,119,070 |
531 |
178,714 |
| Spain |
1,064,869 |
869 |
312,408 |
| France |
926,577 |
911 |
226,765 |
| Belgium |
749,949 |
332 |
143,565 |
| Greece |
701,979 |
181 |
131,446 |
| Slovenia |
678,131 |
80 |
132,974 |
| Russia |
639,327 |
212 |
106,508 |
| Netherlands |
523,266 |
320 |
114,879 |
| Czech Republic |
514,082 |
139 |
152,344 |
| Switzerland |
372,001 |
158 |
67,109 |
| Germany |
332,972 |
309 |
26,280 |
| China |
254,684 |
77 |
385,214 |
| Croatia |
185,717 |
13 |
63,580 |
| Zimbabwe |
126,660 |
62 |
33,749 |
| Australia |
120,825 |
106 |
42,750 |
| Botswana |
98,683 |
25 |
22,514 |
| Namibia |
87,312 |
23 |
25,381 |
| Japan |
70,113 |
93 |
9,726 |
| Poland |
69,807 |
60 |
14,277 |
| Zambia |
41,645 |
9 |
14,473 |
| Ukraine |
38,079 |
28 |
19,608 |
| India |
20,982 |
3 |
9,217 |
| Romania |
18,375 |
14 |
17,734 |
| Mauritius |
17,420 |
6 |
5,300 |
| Portugal |
15,988 |
30 |
9,750 |
| Total |
28,495,851 |
12,196 |
6,046,618 |
Find out more about SPAR as an international brand by clicking here.