We round up news from SPAR International partners in Austria, Gran Canaria and Russia as they invest in their store network and information technology. Austria: to open 20 new SPAR Express forecourt outlets In Austria, SPAR has announced it will open 20 new SPAR Express forecourt outlets across the country, over the next 14 months. The retailer has redesigned the layout of the new stores, w...

With the upcoming disposals of the Chinese operations and Real, Metro Group will be better placed to focus on its core wholesale business. Disposals underway The sales of Metro China has been confirmed, with partner Wumei taking a majority stake. Metro Group is expected to receive over €1bn in net proceeds once the deal is completed. Metro has also confirmed that it is in exclusive talks ov...

German hypermarket retailer Globus is planning to expand further across Russia. Steady expansion Since entering Russia 13 years ago, Globus has expanded its footprint and now operates 15 stores in the greater Moscow area. The German retailer has enjoyed success in the market with sales growing 6.4% in 2018/19 in local currency, to a turnover of RUB 107bn. Its stores are currently all locate...