This article is about the convenience store. For the type of wood, see Spar.
SPAR is an international retail franchise comprising over 17,500 convenience stores in 34 operating regions. It was founded in Holland in 1932, and operated on a principal similar to co-operative stores elsewhere - retailers would group together to get bulk discounts from wholesalers. The company is headquartered in Amsterdam
Stores are more prevelent in Europe, but a few countries outside of Europe, such as Australia, Mauritius and Argentina also have SPAR stores.
The name, which was originally DE SPAR, is an acronym of the initial letters of a Dutch phrase 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.
Each store is a franchise from the parent company, and the parent company varies from country to country. For example, in Ireland, the franchises are owned by BWG, but in South Africa, a co-operative of the country's major wholesalers owns the brand. The only common glue between the stores in different countries is the branding - the name and the logo, which was designed in 1968 and has been unchanged since.
External links
SPAR International (http://www.spar-international.com)
The spar deck of a frigate was called such as it was used to carry spare spars.
Spars of all types are used in the rigging of sailing ships to resist compressive and bending forces, and to provide support for the sails.
In an aircraft, the spar is the main structural member of the wing, running lengthways across the span of the wing, at right angles (or thereabouts) to the fuselage.
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