Dutch global grocery wholesaler Spar has announced its intention to re-establish a presence in India by the end of 2013, highlighting perceptions of the country as a prime food retail market on the world stage.
Gordon Campbell, the company’s managing director, stated that talks are currently underway with local retail supply stores to set up possible licensing agreements. “It is our objective to establish a network of Spar partners in India,” he said.
At present, Spar is based in 33 countries with 12,196 stores. It recently announced plans to expand in West Asia in a joint venture with the Abu Dhabi Co-operative Society.
Spar had previously operated 10 hypermarkets in India in partnership with Landmark group’s Max Hypermarkets. In 2011, the business was worth upwards of US$65m. This partnership ended in May 2012 amidst speculation that the retailer was suffering with the economic slowdown in Europe.
Campbell is positive about the prospect of re-entering India. “We have already shown the Spar hypermarket and Spar supermarket formats are well accept by the Indian consumer and can be profitably operated,” he said.
