Spar (retailer)
 | |
Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 1932 (1932) |
| Headquarters | Amsterdam , Netherlands |
Area served | Worldwide (48 countries as of 2017) |
| Products | Grocers' shops, convenience shops, discount shops, hypermarkets and more |
| Revenue |  €34.5 billion (2017) |
Number of employees | 350,000 |
| Website | www.spar-international.com |
SPAR, originally DESPAR, is a Dutch multinational group that manages independently owned and operated food retail stores.[1] It was founded in the Netherlands in 1932[2], by Adriaan van Well, and now consists of more than 12,770 stores in 48 countries. The company's name is an acronym of the slogan "Door Eendrachtig Samenwerken Profiteren Allen Regelmatig", which was used by van Well to describe the brand and translates as "All benefit from joint co-operation".[3]
Its headquarters are located in Amsterdam. The company operates a partnership programme and has a presence in most European countries, as well as many others throughout Asia, Africa and Oceania.
In fiscal year 2017, SPAR achieved €34.5 billion ($40.1 billion) in global sales, which represented a 5.3 percent increase over 2016.[4]
The SPAR motto is "under the tree"
Contents
1 Etymology
2 History
3 Shop types
4 International statistics (2017)
5 See also
6 Notes
7 References
8 External links
Etymology
The name was originally DE SPAR, an acronym of the Dutch phrase Door Eendrachtig Samenwerken Profiteren Allen Regelmatig[note 1] (English: "through united co-operation everyone regularly profits"). The acronym was chosen in order to resonate with the verb sparen, which (related to English spare) means "save [money]" in Dutch and some other languages, among them German[5] and Scandinavian languages (with variants such as spara or spare). The acronym ended up meaning "the fir", after which the logo was chosen. As the organisation expanded across Europe, the name was abbreviated by dropping the DE prefix.[citation needed] There are some international naming variants:
- In Hungary, 17 stores owned by Spar located at Lukoil filling stations operate under the name Despar.[6]
- In Italy, the name is still Despar, though in keeping with the international branding, the Spar section of the logo is highlighted, and the larger shops are still called Eurospar and Interspar.
- In Austria, Despar is Spar's Italian food shop brand.[7]
- In Japan, some shops operated under the name Hotspar, although the shop logo colouring remained unchanged. Closed end 2016.[citation needed]
- In China, the name is 家家悦 (pinyin: jiā jiā yuè; literally: 'every family is pleased'), though the international branding is kept unchanged, with the Chinese name typically printed above.[citation needed]
History
SPAR shop in Moerkapelle, Netherlands
Spar was founded in 1932 in the South Holland town of Zegwaart (now Zoetermeer). In 1953 an International Spar office opened in Amsterdam to control and further develop the organisation throughout Europe and other continents. Many Spar shops are in Europe, but they can also be found in a number of countries outside of Europe, such as Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Thailand, Nigeria, South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Swaziland, Mozambique, Seychelles, Australia,[8]Mauritius, China, India, Japan (closed 2016), Vanuatu, Greenland and Angola.
A Spar shop may be owned independently, by a franchisee, or be part of a chain, depending on the model applied in any given country. The owners of the parent company vary from country to country and may include the shop owners themselves. The name and the current logo was most recently revised in 1968 by Raymond Loewy and has remained unchanged ever since.[9]
Spar
In the United Kingdom Spar has become known primarily as a convenience shop.[citation needed]
In Ireland the Spar brand is known for neighbourhood shops and also the subformat Eurospar acting as mini-supermarkets.[citation needed]
Spar opened in the Republic of Vanuatu on 1 December 2009, ending Au Bon Marché's grocery monopoly.[citation needed]
Since 1996, the company has been a major sponsor of the European Athletic Association and its events.[10]
In 1997, Spar was introduced to most United Kingdom military bases by the Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes (Naafi), where it sells a variety of civilian and military products.[11]
The Dutch Spar is a member of Superunie, an inventory purchasing organization for a number of otherwise unaffiliated supermarket brands.[citation needed]
In July 2014 Spar Group South Africa opened its first supermarket in Angola but no expansion of the brand is planned for this market. In August 2014 the group acquired 80% of the BWG Group, which had outlets in Ireland and southwest England.[12]
In 2015 Ahold bought all Czech shops and converted them into Albert super- and hypermarkets, however it had to get rid of some shops in order not to have a monopoly.[citation needed]
The first SPAR shop in Oman was inaugurated in January 2015 in Muscat.[citation needed] Spar Oman plans to open more shops in the coming months as part of its expansion plans in Oman.[citation needed] Spar opened its first store in Qatar in 2017, with the second store opening in 2018. A further two stores are planned for 2018. [13]
In March 2015 the first three shops in Indonesia were opened.[citation needed] Twelve shops are planned to open in the country by the end of 2015.[citation needed]
In 2017 Ceylon Biscuits Limited in Sri Lanka acquired a license to operate Spar brand in Sri Lanka as Spar Lanka. This is a joint venture of Ceylon Biscuits Limited and SPAR Group Ltd South Africa.[14]. They opened the first store in Thalawathugoda, Colombo. The future plan is to open 50 outlets in the country by 2023.[15]
Shop types
Spar shop in Laiwu, China
In most, but not all countries, SPAR operates shops of different types and sub-brands. SPAR Express, SPAR Neighbourhood, EUROSPAR and INTERSPAR. [16]
Interspar shop in Hungary
- EuroSPAR/SuperSPAR
The Eurospar name is used in Europe and Superspar in South Africa. These are mid-sized supermarkets. They are designed to fit in a niche between convenience shops and traditional supermarkets.[17]
- InterSPAR
These are hypermarkets and compete directly against major international chains such as Real, Carrefour, and Tesco.[18][19]
- Spar Express
A filling station with a Spar Express shop in Wattens, Austria
This is the smallest type of shop. They are designed for small sites and filling station forecourts, airports and train stations. They are called Kwikspar in South Africa.[20]
- Spar Drive-Thru
There was a drive-through Spar on the Cliftonville Road in Belfast, Northern Ireland. This has now been converted to a Centra shop, and retained the drive-through for a while afterhand, but now no longer has one.[21]
- Spar Gourmet
Some small Spar shops in Austria are called Spar Gourmet, since the Austrian Spar Group took over the supermarket chains Julius Meinl in 2000. The standard range is extended to local and global delicacies.[22]
International statistics (2017)
| Country | Sales (in millions)[23] | No. of shop[23] | Sales area (m²)[23] | Sales per area | Average shop size (m²)[23] | Year | Nationwide owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Albania | €37.6 | 30 | 20,536 | €1,831/m² | 685 | 2016 | Balfin Group[24] |
 Angola | 1 | 2014 | The SPAR Group Ltd. | ||||
 Australia | €200.7 | 130 | 46,105 | €4,353/m² | 355 | 1994 | SPAR Australia |
 Austria | €6,700.0 | 1,556 | 1,178,429 | €5,686/m² | 757 | 1954 | Spar Austria Group[25] |
 Azerbaijan | €19.4 | 7 | 5,466 | €3,546/m² | 781 | 2014 | AZretail MMC |
 Belarus | 2017 | ||||||
 Belgium | €998.2 | 320 | 155,408 | €6,423/m² | 486 | 1947 | Colruyt and Lambrechts |
 Botswana | €161.1 | 30 | 3,092 | €5,209/m² | 1,031 | 2004 | The SPAR Group Ltd. |
 Cameroon | €8.4 | 3 | 24 | €3,494/m² | 2,400 | 2014 | Spar Cameroon |
 China | €1,836.8 | 408 | 1,090,346 | €1,685/m² | 2,672 | 2004 | Spar China |
 Croatia | €596.7 | 103 | 142,385 | €4,191/m² | 1,382 | 2004 | Spar Austria Group[25] |
 Cyprus | 2017 | ||||||
 Denmark | €487.5 | 147 | 95,737 | €5,092/m² | 651 | 1954 | Spar Denmark |
 France | €961.1 | 860 | 251,204 | €3,858/m² | 292 | 1955 | Casino |
 Georgia | €27.0 | 42 | 6,519 | €4,135/m² | 155 | 2014 | Foodmart |
 Germany | €318.2 | 466 | 37,310 | €8,529/m² | 80 | 1953 | Edeka |
 Greece (2014) | €525.6 | 184 | 141,107 | €3,725/m² | 767 | 1969 | Veropoulos |
 Hungary | €1,817.3 | 519 | 416,079 | €4,368/m² | 802 | 1992 | SPAR Austria Group[25] |
 India | €158.0 | 18 | 82,453 | €1,916/m² | 4,581 | 2014 | Max Hypermarkets |
 Indonesia | €45.6 | 23 | 42,276 | €1,078/m² | 1,838 | 2015 | Ramayana Lestari Sentosa |
 Ireland | €1,237.8 | 453 | 116,452 | €10,629/m² | 257 | 1963 | BWG Foods |
 Italy | €3,375.7 | 1,218 | 738,890 | €4,569/m² | 607 | 1959 | SPAR Austria Group[25] |
 Malawi | €6.5 | 3 | 2850 | €2,290/m² | 950 | 2014 | SPAR Malawi |
 Malta | 2017 | ||||||
 Mauritius | €24.4 | 6 | 5,700 | €4,273/m² | 950 | 2000 | Casino |
 Mozambique | €40.1 | 9 | 10,241 | €3,915/m² | 1,138 | 2012 | The SPAR Group Ltd. |
 Namibia | €160.9 | 29 | 31,967 | €5,034/m² | 1,102 | 2004 | The SPAR Group Ltd. |
 Netherlands | €471.9 | 261 | 94,547 | €4,991/m² | 362 | 1932 | SPAR Holding B.V. |
 Nigeria | €115.5 | 12 | 39,385 | €2,933/m² | 3,282 | 2009 | SPAR Nigeria |
 Norway | €1,534.3 | 291 | 180,325 | €8,508/m² | 620 | 1984 | NorgesGruppen |
 Oman | €27.3 | 24 | 8,286 | €3,300/m² | 345 | 2014 | Khimji Ramdas |
 Pakistan | 2 | 2017 | Galaxy Group[26] | ||||
 Poland | €244.5 | 250 | 67,648 | €3,615/m² | 271 | 1995 | SPAR Polska |
 Portugal | €72.3 | 131 | 32,395 | €2,233/m² | 247 | 2006 | Novo Retalho |
 Qatar | 2 | 2015 | Al Wataniya International Holding | ||||
 Russia | €1,713.3 | 466 | 376,049 | €4,556/m² | 807 | 2000 | SPAR Russia |
 Saudi Arabia | 4 | 2016 | SPAR Saudi Arabia | ||||
 Seychelles | €5.3 | 1 | 895 | €5,916/m² | 895 | 2015 | |
 Slovenia | €783.9 | 115 | 161,316 | €4,859/m² | 1,403 | 1992 | SPAR Austria Group[25] |
 South Africa | €4,836.2 | 839 | 976,197 | €4,954/m² | 1,164 | 1963 | The SPAR Group Ltd. |
 Spain | €1,389.5 | 1,088 | 438,181 | €3,171/m² | 403 | 1959 | SPAR Española |
 Sri Lanka | 1 | 2017 | Ceylon Biscuits Limited & SPAR SA | ||||
 Switzerland | €515.0 | 183 | 70,469 | €7,309/m² | 385 | 1989 | SPAR Handels AG |
 Thailand | €5.2 | 33 | 4,810 | €1,089/m² | 146 | 2016 | |
 Ukraine | €6.3 | 11 | 3,411 | €1,835/m² | 310 | 2001 | SPAR Luhansk SPAR Kharkiv |
 United Arab Emirates | €130.8 | 25 | 23,714 | €5,515/m² | 949 | 2011 | SPAR United Arab Emirates |
 United Kingdom | €3,236.9 | 2,620 | 384,094 | €8,427/m² | 147 | 1959 | SPAR UK |
 Zambia | €53.2 | 14 | 27,614 | €1,972/m² | 1,972 | 2003 | SPAR Zambia |
 Zimbabwe | €115.7 | 35 | 26,011 | €4,447/m² | 743 | 1969 | Originally SPAR Rhodesia now SPAR Zimbabwe |
 Bermuda | €865.5 | 5 | 5,098 | €5,331/m | 5 | 1987 | SPAR Bermuda |
 New Caledonia | €920.16 | 16 | 16,067 | €16,621/m | 16 | 2001 | SPAR New Caledonia |
 Suriname | €721.20 | 20 | 20,099 | €20,986/m | 20 | 1994 | SPAR Suriname |
 The Bahamas | 5 | 1999 | SRAR Bahamas | ||||
 Central African Republic | 1991 | SPAR Central African Republic | |||||
 Mali | 2014 | SPAR Mali |
See also
Notes
^ Dutch pronunciation: [doːr eːnˈdrɑxtɪx ˈsaːmə(n)ʋɛrkə(n) proːfiˈteːrə(n) ˈɑlə(n) reːɣəlˈmaːtəx]
References
^ "About us". SPAR International. Retrieved 13 September 2018..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/12px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#33aa33;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ "Spar boss brings in Subway and Greggs to snatch grocery spend from retail giants". Telegraph. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
^ "History". SPAR International. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
^ "2017 Review". SPAR International. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
^ "Englisch-Deutsch Wörterbuch". LEO. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
^ "DESPAR" (in Hungarian). Lukoil Magyarország. Retrieved 8 March 2019.
^ "DESPAR" (in German). SPAR Österreich. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
^ "SPAR Australia opens first Vanuatu shop: AUS". Wayback Machine. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
[not in citation given]
^ "SPAR". Raymond Loewy Foundation. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
^ "Athletics, Sprints & Sports Days". SPAR. Wayback Machine. Archived from the original on 9 October 2009. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
^ [1][dead link]
^ Mark Allix (12 August 2014). "Spar buys stake in Irish supermarkets". BusinessLIVE. Archived from the original on 26 October 2014. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
^ Spar-s-flagship-store-opens-at-Tawar-Mall
^ "SPAR Sri Lanka". Retrieved 31 May 2018.
^ "* Spar continues expansion with entry into Sri Lanka". Retrieved 31 May 2018.
^ Eric Pfanner (12 November 2004). "An international grocery giant is emerging from the shadows". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
^ "Shop formats". Spar International. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
^ Ians (28 January 2011). "SPAR to open 24 more hypermarkets in next two years". Sify. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
^ Sedlák, Lubomír (3 February 2011). "CZECH: Spar looks to expand supermarket chain". just-food. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
^ "Shop formats". Spar South Africa. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
^ "Inquiry into Town Centre Regeneration". Northern Ireland Assembly Archive Site. 20 October 2009. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
^ "Chronologie: Von Konsum bis Rewe". Derstandard.at. 24 February 2008. Retrieved 1 October 2013.
^ abcd "Spar Annual Report 2017" (PDF). SPAR International. Spar International. 7 May 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 24 September 2018. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
^ globalvanet.com. "Balfin Group brings Spar International to Albania". Europaproperty.com - Balfin Group brings Spar International to Albania. Retrieved 24 September 2018.
^ abcde "ASPIAG Countries". ASPIAG Austria SPAR International. Retrieved 9 April 2016.
^ http://spar-international.com/news/spar-continues-global-expansion-entry-pakistan/
External links
Media related to SPAR (category) at Wikimedia Commons
- Official website
- SPAR International - Annual Report 2017
- SPAR International - Annual Report 2014
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