Located in Calabar, Nigeria’s tourism capital, a newly built 4,807m2 SPAR Hypermarket opened its doors on 6 July. The hypermarket showcases the world-class retail standards to which SPAR Nigeria operates - building on learnings shared by SPAR International and other SPAR Partners around the world.

A broad range of products are on offer instore with a strong focus on fresh. There is an instore bakery, butchery and fruit & veg department, as well as a ready-made hot meals counter. The instore offer has been tailored to meet the needs of shoppers in the area comprising families and single households.

Supplementing the broad grocery range, there are a number of non-food categories including electronics, perfumes and jewellery.

Bringing the brand to a new city required a strong pre-launch awareness building campaign with billboard advertisements throughout the city and a good presence on social media. The successful campaign saw an unprecedented number of customers waiting at the doors on opening day, some of whom had had traveled from the surrounding region. In total, over 50,000 shoppers walked through the hypermarket within the first six hours of trading, with 2,312 transactions recorded.

The opening was officiated by past Minister of Tourism, High Chief Edem Duke, who cut the ribbon in the presence of various members of the press and other dignitaries. Entertainment was provided by children from the Access Group of Schools Calabar and traditional dancers.

Speaking on the occasion, SPAR Nigeria spokesperson, Mr John Goldsmith, said: “SPAR is the hypermarket store of choice for all Nigerians, cutting across all socio-economic groups. This new SPAR store was designed to cater for the various shopping needs of the people living in Calabar. SPAR offers the most competitive prices on fast moving consumer goods and other items required to make life enjoyable.”

Details of the extensive instore offer, opening hours and location were made public by radio and newspaper advertising, leaflets distributed to the catchment area and an ongoing social media campaign. Consumers have been invited to sign up to receive news updates on promotions and other special activities via SMS, which has already proven to be very popular.

SPAR is licensed to the Artee Group for Nigeria and is currently operational in Victoria Island, Lekki, Maryland Ikeja, MMA2, Abuja Wuse II, Abuja Ceddi Plaza, Port Harcourt Mall, Port Harcourt Garrison and Calabar.