Tobias Wasmuht has been the Managing Director of Spar International since 2016, responsible for the strategic development and expansion of the Spar brand worldwide.
He has spent more than 25 years in the retail industry; having joined Spar in 2000, where he was responsible for the international retail and marketing activities of Spar. In this role, he implemented new retail concepts and drove brand and marketing development worldwide.
Since he has been in his current role, more than 1,000 additional stores have been added to Spar’s international network.
In 2019, Spar Australia opened five new stores in Queensland and New South Wales.
The current portfolio of 126 Spar supermarkets has a total sales area of 44,038m2, and achieved a retail turnover of €190.90 million (A$309.9m).
Wasmuht said: “In 2020, one larger and two neighbourhood stores have been opened, and plans are in place to open another three before the end of the year.”
During the past year, 51 new Spar products were introduced with a further five SKUs added under an exclusive brand arrangement with Spar International, bringing the total to 331 Spar SKUs.
“Based on shopper responsiveness and desire for increased focus on value by customers, additional Spar Own Brand products will be introduced, also providing margin opportunities for independent retailers.”
In 2019, Spar Australia introduced a pilot ‘Freight Subsidy’ incentive scheme to enhance growth and build volume for retailers located in more isolated regions.
“The results of this trial showed an increase of 7.5 per cent in products being distributed to those stores. The company developed a mobile app for retailers to place special orders for new products, supplier funded sales, and distribution drives,” said Wasmuht.
This is an excerpt of an interview between Simon King and Spar International’s Managing Director Tobias Wasmuht. The full article can be read in the December/January issue of C&I Retailing Magazine, which will be available in print and online very soon.