Spar International

Significant investment has been made in opening stores that adhere to best international practice and in introducing 'Food to Go', Bread Departments and Fresh Meat Departments,with a focus on offering customers a 'tasty supermarket'. This is a unique positioning inthe Russian supermarket sector, which has been developed by SPAR.

The first store in Russia was opened under the EUROSPAR format in August 2001. Today, SPAR operates under 3 formats, EUROSPAR, SPAR and SPAR Express. EUROSPAR has been particularly successful with the stores accounting for 18% of turnover.

The retail market in Russia is very young, as a free market retail environment has existed for just 20 years, so there is still significant scope for expansion and development.

To support the continued growth of SPAR in Russia, the SPAR partners and SPAR International decided to establish a new SPAR Central Russia company to provide support services and recruit new partners. This new structure was implemented during 2008 with the appointment of a General Director.

The key focus for 2010 was the development of a strong private label range, the negotiation of federal contracts with branded suppliers and the strengthening of buying co-operation.

The new structure will deepen the link between the SPAR partners and SPAR International. Importantly, it will support the transfer of best practice retail design, retail operations and supply chain management.

The focus of SPAR in Russia has been on investing in improved retail standards and customer service. This focus has been accompanied by an aggressive drive to expand the private label range and to improve staff training.

The SPAR Partner have grown their business through franchising and working with independent retailers. This concept has been rolled out in the Middle Volga area of Russia with great success and will continue on a national scale through 2011. Franchising is recognized as an important route to growth and is seen as a major driver for 2011.

There are excellent prospects for growth in Russia in 2011. Four potential new SPAR Partners have been identified with three expected to become SPAR Partners before the end of June 2011.