Spar’s new lick of paint
Store set to re-open with deals
WHEN you ask John Wilson how he has stayed in business for 18 years, fighting against the likes of Coles and Woolies, the answer is pretty simple. “Hard work,” he said. His Spar supermarket at Southtown has been around since 1956 - not much has changed in that time.
To this day, they still pack your groceries up and even carry them to the car for you.
Yesterday marked a celebration with a plethora of in-store deals announced after a significant renovation.
Today, as part of the grand re-opening, Spar is holding a free sausage sizzle from 9am to noon, goodie bag giveaways, and dance and karate performances from 11am to 2.30pm.
“This was just a bit of a mini makeover,” Mr Wilson said of the upgrades.
Operating outside of the Toowoomba CBD has its issues, coupled with the surging market dominance of Woolworths and Coles, it hasn’t been easy for the Centenary Heights business in recent years.
“The big fellas are getting bigger and we have just got to survive,” he said.
His store was the first to be built outside the CBD 63 years ago and was the home of the original Super Rooster.
Mr Wilson hopes the new renovations would help him compete against the bigger chains dotted across Toowoomba.
“We are a modern, full-sized supermarket now but still offer old-fashioned service to our customers,” he said.