Israel’s largest supermarket chain, Shufersal, has signed an agreement with the Netherland-based SPAR international retail giant that will still need to be approved by Israel’s Competition Authority.
SPAR has 13,623 stores and operates in 48 countries around the world.
“The agreement we signed is another layer in Shufersal’s activity to reduce the cost of living in Israel, by introducing a wide range of products at international standards and marketed at fair prices, in order to increase competition in the food and consumer goods market,” Shufersal CEO Uri Watermann said in a statement.
Under the agreement, Israeli business mogul Amit Ze’ev will become the CEO of a newly-created joint corporation that will enter a franchise deal to operate stores under the SPAR brand.
Ze’ev will hold 80.1 percent of the shares in the joint venture, and Shufersal will hold the remaining 19.9 percent.
“The signing of the agreement is a significant milestone in the arrival of SPAR in Israel, which will bring with it international standards, freshness, innovation and an abundance of products in a wide range of segments, which will enable competition for the heart and pocket of the Israeli consumer,” said Zeev, who will serve as CEO of the joint company.
As part of the deal, Shufersal will invest NIS 28 million ($7.6 million) into the venture, which will bring a chain of SPAR stores and more than 10,000 imported SPAR-branded products into the country.
The newly created joint corporation will be entitled to exclusively import and market products sold under the SPAR brand and purchase logistics services.
Last month, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich brought joy to Israelis when he announced that he had invited the US discount retail giant, Costco Wholesale Corp., to enter the Israeli market. However, there has been no indication that Smotrich received a reply to his letter, nor whether it was a positive response if one was received.
