Interested in turning your shop into a SPAR store? Perhaps you're wondering if we will suit you, and if you and your premises will suit us? Take a look at the information below and find out more about how what to do next...
Store premises
A modern convenience store requires sufficient space to provide the customer with a full SPAR offer. This is because our customers expect the key retail categories to be represented in all of our stores. Ideally, we look for business premises with a minimum retail selling space of between 1,20m2–1,50m2. However, we always look beyond just the physical space when assessing a business's potential. In the right location, stores with as little as 70m2 of retail sales space are among some of our most successful outlets.
Along with the ability to sell all the usual convenience store products, a store should be licensed, sell news and magazines and be able to offer services such as prepayment and phone card top-ups. If the store has a lottery terminal or offers extra facilities such as a Post Office, all the better. Again, as a potential SPAR retailer you should not be put off by this list as you do not need to have all of these things in place already; in many cases SPAR can assist in bringing in new categories to help build your store's retail offering.
Opening hours
As we are all aware, the days of weekend and half-day closing have been consigned to retailing history. SPAR was the very first symbol group to adopt ‘8 till late’ extended hours, opening to meet the changing times, and many of our stores today trade for up to 16 hours a day.
Turnover
SPAR always seeks out stores with potential and is not just concerned with how much your store is making now. Ideally, we would expect a mature SPAR store to be turning over a minimum of £15,000-£20,000 a week, with many of our stores significantly in excess of these figures. If you have not reached these figures yet, we would love the opportunity to come and speak to you and demonstrate how you could achieve them.
Membership
We’re looking for retailers whose stores, whatever their size, have growth potential. A nominal membership fee is charged on a sliding scale depending on the size of the store. This fee contributes to the annual marketing budget. There is no minimum tie-in period so retailers are free to join or leave the group at any time. Join us and you really will see your business grow.
How to join
You'll be pleased to know that the process of turning your store into a SPAR is relatively simple. Please get in touch and tell us a little more about yourself and your business – we look forward to hearing from you!