SPAR International has announced the brand’s entry into the Saudi Arabian retail market. Partnering with the well-established Saudi conglomerate, the Al Sadhan Group, the plan is to open 40 stores in Saudi Arabia by 2020.

Yesterday, three large SPAR Supermarkets ranging in size from 2,900m2 – 4,500m2 were officially opened in Riyadh, the nation’s capital and primary economic hub. Plans are in place to open a further five stores throughout 2018, bringing the total number of stores in the country to eight by the end of the year.

The first SPAR stores in the Saudi Arabian market will be aimed at the mid- to premium sector of the retail market. However, as the brand develops in the country, SPAR plans to launch stores in all economic sectors, providing all customers with competitive pricing for the best global and local products.

The Al Sadhan Group is a family owned business established in 1952. Its services include real estate, facilities management, food retail and brand development. Al Sadhan Stores operates the company’s retail arm employing 1,500 colleagues and has a long history in the market, being the first supermarket to obtain a business licence in Riyadh in 1952. SPAR International began their partnership with Al Sadhan in 2016, soft launching the first SPAR store in the second half of 2017.

SPAR International has provided extensive support to Al Sadhan in the lead-up to the store openings including study tours to other SPAR markets and fostering awareness of the SPAR Way of Working. Support was also given in logistics development, supply chain creation and store design.

The stores will benefit from the access to globally and locally sourced SPAR Own Brand products, expertise in category management and the support from SPAR International’s design and development teams to ensure modern and dynamic store design.

SPAR International will also support SPAR Saudi Arabia to utilise the strengths of the joint buying model to ensure competitiveness.

The partnership with Al Sadhan in Saudi Arabia builds on SPAR International’s existing partnerships in the wider region, notably in the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Qatar.

A grand opening ceremony took place in Riyadh, with ribbon-cutting ceremonies at the three high-quality SPAR Supermarkets. Tobias Wasmuht, SPAR International’s Managing Director, was joined by Mrs. Mascha Baak the Deputy Head of Mission at the embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and amongst others, Mr. Mohammed bin Abdul Aziz Al Sadhan, Chairman of Al Sadhan, to celebrate the brand’s official debut in Saudi Arabia.

Speaking at a press conference announcing SPAR’s entry into the market, Tobias Wasmuht, said: “With a growing young population, rising GDP and increased consumer purchasing power, the retail market in Saudi Arabia has been growing steadily. We are delighted to enter this exciting and dynamic market with such an established and well-respected Partner as Al Sadhan Group. In addition, the new partnership provides SPAR with yet another important base in the Middle East, a region that is becoming more and more important to SPAR International’s strategic business development.”

Mr. Mohammed bin Abdul Aziz Al Sadhan commented: “We are very proud of this partnership with SPAR International. Having the right mix between SPAR International’s knowledge and best practice along with our experience in the local market will provide our customers with an excellent retail experience. The SPAR Brand products will be a key factor in our success, and we are getting great support from SPAR International’s team to source items from SPAR Partners around the world. Also, this partnership is in-line with the Saudi Arabian vision 2030 and the support we have from the Saudi government for the development of the Saudi market.”