SPAR, originally "DESPAR", styled as "DE SPAR"[2] (Dutch pronunciation:[dəˈspɑr]), is a Dutch multinationalfranchise that provides branding, supplies and support services for independently owned and operated food retail stores.[3] It was founded in theNetherlands in 1932,[4] byAdriaan van Well, although the largest number of stores are located in theUnited Kingdom.
Logo without the red box, used inNorthern Ireland and other markets
Its headquarters are inAmsterdam. The company operates a partnership programme and has a presence in most European countries, as well as throughoutAsia,Africa andOceania.
In fiscal year 2022, SPAR earned €43.5 billion in global sales,[1] which represented a 5.6 percent increase over the previous year.[1]
By 2024, the group had 13,900 stores in 48 countries.[5]
The name was originally DESPAR, anacronym of theDutch phraseDoor Eendrachtig Samenwerken Profiteren Allen Regelmatig[note 1]'Through united co-operation everyone profits regularly', which was used by Van Well to describe the brand.[6] The acronym was chosen to resonate with the verbsparen,[citation needed] which (related to Englishspare) means "save [money]" in Dutch and some other languages, among them German[7] andScandinavian languages (with variants such asspara orspare).Spar is Dutch for "spruce tree", after which the logo was chosen. As the organisation expanded across Europe, the name was abbreviated by dropping theDE prefix.[6][8]
There are some international naming variants:
InHungary, 17 stores owned by SPAR located atOrlen (formerLukoil)filling stations operate under the nameDESPAR.[9] However, there are also many SPAR and INTERSPAR locations.
InItaly, the name is stillDESPAR, though in keeping with the international branding, theSPAR section of the logo is highlighted, and the larger shops are still called EuroSPAR and InterSPAR.[10]
InAustria,DESPAR is SPAR'sItalian food product range.[11] There are alsoEUROSPAR andINTERSPAR locations within Austria.[12][13]
InCroatia,SPAR andINTERSPAR locations run concurrently.[14]
InChina, it is known as斯巴超市 (Sībā chāoshì, "Siba supermarket").[20]
InIreland,Northern Ireland,Russia andSwitzerland, both the SPAR and EUROSPAR names are used with EUROSPAR being used mostly for larger supermarket sized stores and SPAR for smaller convenience stores.
InSlovenia, both SPAR and INTERSPAR are used, with INTERSPAR being used for a larger supermarket sized stores and SPAR for smaller convenience stores[21]
A Spar shop may be owned independently, by afranchise, 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 byRaymond Loewy and has since remained unchanged.[24]
In theUnited Kingdom, Spar was founded in 1959 and may be a supermarket or aconvenience shop. In 1997, Spar was introduced to most United Kingdom military bases by theNavy, Army and Air Force Institutes (Naafi), where it sells a variety of civilian and military products.[25] InIreland andNorthern Ireland, the Spar brand is known for neighbourhood shops and also the subformat Eurospar acting as mini-supermarkets.[citation needed]
Spar stores in theNetherlands are members ofSuperunie, an inventory purchasing organisation for a number of otherwise unaffiliated supermarket brands.[citation needed]
In 1988,SPAR South Africa became a wholly owned subsidiary ofTiger Brands, a holding company with a large diversified portfolio. It was unbundled and listed as a separate company in 2004.[27]
In July 2014, SPAR South Africa opened its first supermarket inAngola but no expansion of the brand is planned for this market. Since 2021, the group has 100% ofBWG Foods, which had outlets in Ireland and southern Britain.[28]
In 2015,Ahold acquired all 35 hypermarkets and 14 supermarkets from SparCzechia for more than 5.2 billionCzech koruna.[29] and converted them intoAlbert super- and hypermarkets. However, it had to divest itself of some shops in order not to have amonopoly.[citation needed]
The first SPAR shop inOman was inaugurated in January 2015, inMuscat.[citation needed] Spar Oman had plans to open more shops over time as part of its expansion plans in Oman.[citation needed] Spar opened its first store inQatar in 2017, with the second store opening in 2018. A further two stores were planned to open in 2018, but it got cancelled.[30]
SPAR opened in Saudi Arabia in 2017, sublicensed to Al-Sadhan Group[31] opening its first stores inRiyadh.
In 2020, there were more than 13,500 SPAR stores in 48 countries.[34]
In 2022, SPAR International entered theKazakhstani retail market.[35]
In 2022, Israeli supermarket chainShufersal announced plans to open SPAR stores in Israel; with 10 stores to be opened in the first three years of operation.[36] Also in 2022, SPAR entered Latvia where by 2023 it opened 23 stores.[37][38] A first Israeli Spar store was opened in 2024.
At the beginning of 2025,Tokmanni Oy signed a license agreement with Spar International. The granted license gives Tokmanni the exclusive right to sell Spar products and use the Spar brand inFinland.[39] In June 2025, the first Spar-branded food department was opened in the town ofYlöjärvi.[40] Before that, Spar has had stores in Finland in years 1962–1973 and 1998–2005.[39][41]
INTERSPAR is an Austrianhypermarket chain founded in 1970 and owned by SPAR Austria, operating large stores ranging from 3,000 to 6,000 m² in Austria, Croatia, Hungary, Slovenia and Northeastern Italy.[95][96]
KwikSPAR, only found in South Africa, is a smaller quick stop shop for convenience, larger than the conventional SPAR Express and smaller than the normal SPAR. These stores tend to have extended trading hours, some operating as 24-hour convenience stores.
A filling station with a SPAR Express shop inWattens, Austria
The Austrian Spar Group has around 50 supermarkets branded SPAR Gourmet, mainly in and around Vienna. They are smaller supermarkets that specialize in foods, with a reduced range of other household goods. They originate from the acquisition of retail units from theJulius Meinl coffee and tea chain in 2000.[98][99][100]
The SUPERSPAR name is used in Australia, designed to fit in a niche between convenience shops and traditional supermarkets. In South Africa, the name is used for large supermarkets.[94]
There was adrive-through SPAR on the Cliftonville Road inBelfast, Northern Ireland. This has now been converted to aCentra shop, and retained the drive-through for a while afterwards, but now no longer has one.[102]
^"SPAR". Raymond Loewy Foundation. Retrieved1 October 2013.
^"Naafi allies with Spar".The Grocer. 22 March 1997.Naafi has chosen Spar as its retail partner to convert its 200 UK shops into a "world class operation for the next millennium". The contract, worth nearly £500 million over the next five years, was awarded after extensive trials with Costcutter and Londis.[dead link]
rough translation of relevant parts: "From next February, the convenience store chain 'HOT SPAR' will be renamed to 'COCO!'".; "[...] because the licensing contract with the Dutch firm SPAR International will expire on November next year"
€43.5 billion (2022)[1]
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