SPAR logo.

SPAR is an international retail franchise comprising over 17,500 convenience stores in 34 operating regions. It was founded in the Netherlands in 1932, and operated on a principal similar to co-operative stores elsewhere - retailers would group together to get bulk discounts from suppliers/wholesalers. In 1953 an International SPAR office was opened in Amsterdam to control and further develop the organisation throughout Europe and other continents. Image File history File links Spar-logo. ... Image File history File links Spar-logo. ... Drawing of a self-service store. ... It has been suggested that Party store be merged into this article or section. ... 1932 (MCMXXXII) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link will take you to a full 1932 calendar). ... A cooperative (also co-operative or co-op) comprises a legal entity owned and democratically controlled by its members, with no passive shareholders. ... Amsterdam Location Flag Country Netherlands Province North Holland Population 743,905 (1 April 2006) Demonym Amsterdammer Coordinates Website www. ...

Stores are more prevalent in Europe, but a few countries outside of Europe, such as South Africa, Botswana, Australia, Mauritius, Argentina, China and Japan also have SPAR stores. In Japan the store operates under the name HOT SPAR, although the store logo remains unchanged. In the United Kingdom and Ireland, Spar has become known primarily as a convenience store format. European redirects here. ... A logotype (from the Greek λογότυπο), commonly known as a logo, is the graphic element, symbol, and icon of a trademark or brand, which is set in a special typeface or arranged in a particular way. ...

The name, which was originally DE SPAR, is an acronym of the initial letters of a Dutch phrase Door Eendrachtig Samenwerken Profiteren Allen Regelmatig, meaning "All will benefit from united co-operation". De spar in Dutch translates into English as fir tree, and hence a fir tree is the logo of SPAR. As the organisation expanded across Europe, the name was later abbreviated by dropping "DE", but the underlying meaning remains (In Italy, the name is still Despar. though in keeping with the international branding, the "SPAR" section of the logo is highlighted. and the larger stores are still called Eurospar and Interspar). Coincidentally, "spar" is also the imperative form of "to save money" in German, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish and Afrikaans. FIR may stand for: finite impulse response (a property of some digital filters) far infrared, i. ... In linguistics, many grammars have the concept of grammatical mood, which describes the relationship of a verb with reality and intent. ... Look up Wiktionary:Swadesh lists for Afrikaans and Dutch in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

A store may be independently owned, a franchisee or a chain store depending on the model being applied in any given country. The owners of the parent company vary from country to country and may include the store owners themselves. The only common link between the stores in different countries is the branding - the name and the current logo, which was designed in 1968 and has remained unchanged ever since. There are a number of sub-brands under the Spar brand, with larger supermarkets being branded "Eurospar", smaller stores "Spar Express", and hypermarkets "Interspar". Not all of these brands or formats are used in every country however. Franchising (from the French for free[citation needed]) is a method of doing business wherein a franchisor licenses trademarks and tried and proven methods of doing business to a franchisee in exchange for a recurring payment, and usually a percentage piece of gross sales or gross profits as well as... Chain stores are a range of retail outlets which share a brand and central management, usually with standardised business methods and practices. ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... Exterior of typical European supermarket (a Tesco Extra) Exterior of typical North American supermarket (a Safeway) A typical supermarket in Hong Kong. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

The company has been major sponsors of the European Athletic Association and its events since 1996. The European Athletic Association is the European governing body for the sport of athletics. ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ...

Slogans

• "So near, so SPAR"
• "Under the tree, at SPAR"
• "Du kjenner oss" ("You know us"), Norwegian slogan

SPAR International Statistics 2005

The Czech Republic (Czech: Česká republika) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. ...

External links

• SPAR International
• A public collection of SPAR photographs from around the globe

Data

• Yahoo! - SPAR Handels-Aktiengesellschaft Company Profile (2,500+1,175+200 stores)
• Yahoo! - SPAR (UK) Limited Company Profile (2,600 stores)