SPAR spreads brand to Seychelles |30 May 2015

SPAR International has spread its brand to the Seychelles! This was through the opening of SPAR Eden Island at the former FOODMART supermarket at Eden Plaza on Wednesday evening.

Present at the opening was Vice-President Danny Faure, the Minister for Tourism and Culture Alain St Ange, the chairman of the Seychelles Chamber of Commerce and Industry Marco Francis, SPAR officials and staff and other dignitaries.

“Seeing the progress that we are making as a small island state to today have a brand, a shopping centre brand like SPAR is indeed a step forward. I am even doubly pleased that it is being led by the private sector,” said Minister St Ange.

It is the private sector, he said, that stands as the motor behind the brand and it is members of the business community of Seychelles that are today seeing it possible to move forward and to grasping the economy.

“A shopping centre, a good shopping centre, makes happy people,” he said.
He reminded all of the ‘napa’ period we experienced a few years back. Now, he said, seeing a brand here like SPAR is because we have the ability to sustain, and we have the people with the ability to purchase, what is available.

He described the opening as an opportune time to be in Seychelles so that Seychellois people and people living here have what they want and when they want.
As the chief executive of Eden Island Craig Heeger noted that FOODMART was opened about twenty months ago but SPAR was behind the scene supporting it in the process of managing the system. And to the young man running it without such background support, it would have been far more difficult for him to get to this point.

The event was to celebrate the new stage of the supermarket where SPAR has come out in support of and as partnering the venture to add value to the supermarket.

“In order for the supermarket to be successful, it cannot cater for the elite, it has to appeal to all income groups to make it a success,” said Mr Heeger, adding that it is a vital component for the client base. To that end, together with relevant stakeholders, he will ensure the marketing of the centre is carried through to every sector of the economy in Seychelles.

As for the man running SPAR Eden Island, Samad Suleman, it is a great pleasure to see the SPAR sign at their door and it is a dream come true. It is an extreme pleasure to work with SPAR and he aims to make it the number one retail centre in Seychelles which he said can be achieved.
He also thanked all who supported the venture.

After giving a brief overview of the worldwide SPAR organisation comprising of over 12,000 stores in 40 countries on four continents that meets the needs of over 13 million consumers every day, Gary Albert, divisional operations manager of SPAR Republic of South Africa, which is more linked to Seychelles, explained that SPAR Eden Island is 100% local company linked to its partner structures around the world.

He thanked the government and people of Seychelles for helping in bringing this opportunity in the country.

“It has been a tremendous journey to where we are today as SPAR. I am sure you will be very pleased with the SPAR Eden Island shopping experience,” said Theodore Hansen, general manager of SPAR Seychelles after giving a brief overview of how the SPAR concept to Seychelles all started.