SPAR announces increased growth

SPAR Ireland, part of BWG Group Ltd., has forecast growth of 12% for 2003.

The group is set to report retail sales of over €850m by the end of the year, an increase on the €763m reported last year.

The figures were released today to over 300 SPAR retailers gathered at the SPAR 40th Anniversary Retailer Convention in Dublin.

Leo Crawford, Chief Executive, BWG Group Limited said that since the group's new strategy in May, they are on target to open 35 new stores in 2003 bringing total store numbers past the 400 mark and creating 250 new jobs in the process..

During the convention, SPAR Ireland launched its next generation of new SPAR stores, with its flagship store due to open in Dublin this November.

The SPAR Convention was officially opened by Minister for Finance, Charlie McCreevy.

Other speakers included Maurice Pratt, President of IBEC Professor John Fitzgerald of the ESRI, Ailish Forde, Director General of RGDATA and well-known Career & Life Satisfaction Expert, Laura Berman Fortgang from the USA.