Global retailer Spar International has opened its first supermarket in the Middle East.
The new store, located in the Khalidiya district of Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, is the first step in the company’s global expansion strategy to gain a foothold in the Middle East and north Africa.
“By 2015 we plan for Spar to have significant presence not only in the UAE but also across a number of other GCE countries”, MD Dr Gordon Campbell said today (1 November).
“This exciting opening in Abu Dhabi increases the global footprint of Spar with the UAE becoming the 35th country in which Spar operates.”
The supermarket has a sales area of 2,200 sq m, employs 120 people and has 20,000 products, including 500 private-label products, local products and international Spar brands imported from Europe, the company said.
The second Spar store in the UAE, a compact hypermarket, will open in the Khalifa district of Abu Dhabi before the end of the year. Plans are in place to open further stores in 2012 and the target is to have nine stores operational by the end of 2013.

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