SPAR’s 2025 Results: Resilience Amid Rising Costs and Restructuring.

Loading player...
Reeza Isaacs, CFO – The SPAR Group

SPAR has delivered a mixed set of full-year results showing resilience in a tough retail environment, but also revealing the financial pressures still weighing on the business. For the 52 weeks to 26 September 2025, the supermarket group grew headline earnings per share by 3%, lifted by a stronger second half and disciplined cost control. Turnover from continuing operations edged up 1.6% to R131.5 billion, while gross profit rose 3.3%, with margins improving to 10.8%.

But higher financing costs and a rising tax rate squeezed the bottom line, leading SPAR to withhold a dividend for another year as it continues to repair its balance sheet. The group made big progress on that front slashing net debt from R9.1 billion to R5.4 billion, helped by the disposal of its loss-making operations in Switzerland and Poland.

Southern Africa remains the group’s earning engine, with operating profit up 6.8%, offsetting a softer performance in Ireland. With streamlined operations, reduced leverage, and a renewed focus on execution, SPAR says 2026 will be a year of reset and rebuilding.
8 Dec 2025 3PM English South Africa Business News · Investing

Other recent episodes

SA’s Draft AI Policy: The Cost of Getting It Wrong

Free SA spokesperson Gideon Joubert discusses the organization's concerns about South Africa’s Draft National AI Policy—including expanded bureaucracy, duplicated institutions, and barriers for startups.
21 Apr 4PM 5 min

Legal AI Time Bombs

Pinsent Masons’ Geoffrey Allsop explains why employers are already legally liable for AI‑driven decisions under South African law. We explore discrimination risks from foreign‑trained models and what the Draft AI Policy signals for workplace regulation.
21 Apr 4PM 9 min

Understanding SA’s Draft AI Policy

Werksmans’ Ahmore Burger‑Smidt unpacks South Africa’s Draft National AI Policy. This includes the proposed new AI institutions, privacy blind spots, and the implications for business.
21 Apr 4PM 21 min