Spar Logo PNG
The Spar logo represents the company’s values. The emblem is filled with comfort and homely warmth. Every visitor to the shops feels at home. A friendly attitude and an abundance of offers await customers.
SPAR began on June 28, 1932, in Zoeterwoude, South Holland, when wholesaler Adriaan van Well gathered 16 local grocers. During the Great Depression, independent shops were losing ground to larger retail houses, so Van Well proposed joint purchasing instead of isolated competition.
The name first appeared as DESPAR. It referred to “de spar,” the Dutch word for spruce, used as the brand’s tree symbol, and to the motto “Door Eendrachtig Samenwerken Profiteren Allen Regelmatig.” Members paid to trade under one sign and gained access to shared buying terms and service standards. In 1934, the first joint office opened in the Netherlands, and by 1937, about 2,000 grocery stores used the De Spar name.
In the late 1940s, DESPAR was shortened to SPAR for easier use abroad. In 1947, licenses went to operators in Belgium and West Germany, where the model helped independent retailers compete with chains such as Edeka. In 1953, Van Well founded SPAR International in Amsterdam. Expansion followed: Austria and Denmark in 1954, France in 1955, Spain and the United Kingdom in 1959.
By the late 1950s, SPAR operated through partners in nine countries. In 1968, Raymond Loewy created the simplified green spruce logo still used today, and EUROSPAR was developed as a larger supermarket format. INTERSPAR followed in 1969 as a hypermarket format. By 2022, SPAR International covered 48 countries, ran over 14,000 stores, and reported turnover of 43.5 billion euros.
Meaning and History
The Spar company has a rich history, so it is not surprising that, as the brand has developed, its logo has also been modernized. Its creators took current trends into account, and therefore, the supermarket chain has always been in demand among the target audience. The key message in the logo’s formation was to draw buyers’ attention to Spar’s main values, namely its quality and heritage. It should be noted that the company’s identity differed in some countries at certain times. For example, since 1960, slightly modified logos have been used in Italy and Austria.
What is Spar?
This is an international organization. The geography of the company’s activities is impressive. At the same time, given the volume of sales and the chain’s market authority, the management of a chain of stores needs to approach the creation of an identity with great responsibility.
1932 – 1940
The first version of the logo was unveiled when the company was founded. Its basis was the use of lettering technology, drawing letters and not writing them. The key element was the branded Christmas tree placed inside the circle. Spar’s name and slogan are depicted in white letters on a red background. For inscriptions, the author used bold capital letters.
1940 – 1950
The original logo remained in the same style for eight years. Already in 1940, the contours of the emblem were refined. The authors removed the slogan, which was imprinted in the logo frame. In turn, the company name, De Spar, remained the same, in bold capital letters. Minimizing the text load made it possible to increase the tree directly, making it appear more voluminous and powerful to the target audience.
1950 – 1960
In 1950, the company’s management decided to change the name, removing “De.” As a result of these actions, the logo was also redesigned. In addition to shortening the name, the tree’s image has also changed. It was created using a geometric method, straight lines, sharp corners, and somewhat enlarged dimensions. However, the change in the scale of the main image was compensated for by increasing the company name on the logo, so the frame also thickened. The color scheme remained identical.
1960 – 1968
During this period, the authors significantly reduced the size of the tree, whereas the framework, by contrast, saw a significant increase. The font of the name “Spar,” in turn, has become thinner, and the spacing between the letters is more pronounced. Thus, the company logo at this stage looks fresher compared to previous versions.
1968 – today
The most notable redesign in the company came in 1968. Until this period, the green tree was the key element of the logo, consisting of only one triangle and a green border. To the left of the image is the company name, written in white letters on a red background. It takes up approximately 70% of the logo’s total size. The name and the tree are independent elements from each other.
Font and Colors
The logo of the international Spar chain of stores is made in a font as close as possible to Consulo Bold and Nedian Bold. As a rule, bold capital letters were used, and the lines were slightly pointed at the end. In this case, the contours in the letters “P” and “R” are open.
White, green, and red backgrounds were used as the color scheme. The changes at each stage were minor, but they adapted the company logo to modern realities.