The recently renovated Spar store on the M5 northbound, between junctions 7, boasts an impressive design catering to a diverse range of customer needs. The store features a variety of food-to-go options and shopper missions, making it the perfect stop for all passing travelers.
Strensham North has always been popular with M5 users, welcoming over 7,500 customers passing through the Motorway Services Area (MSA) daily. With the recent expansion and investment from Roadchef, the 1,900 sqft store now offers shoppers a retail theater in the chilled and food-to-go areas. The impactful design contrasts colors, materials, and neon lights highlighting the units. The food-to-go section also includes well-loved brands such as Chicago Town Pizza, Hudson Hotdogs, F’real Milkshake, and a Squishee machine.
Additionally, the store has two Costa Coffee machines and a bakery unit stocked with freshly filled croissants, pastries, and donuts. To tie the overall design of the store in with the food-to-go feature wall, Spar’s new Joy of Living Locally proposition branding has been included.
Strensham North’s focus remains on providing a comprehensive range of chilled and frozen foods that caters to shoppers’ needs. Essential shopper missions like Meals for Later and Making a Meal are well catered for, with an extensive range of frozen foods and COOK frozen food being recently introduced to the store.
Shoppers can still enjoy a large range of Spar own label products, offering them great value, choice, and quality. To further support sustainability efforts, Roadchef replaced all low-level refrigeration with more environmentally friendly high-level units located along the perimeter walls of the store. This has improved energy efficiency and the running costs of the store.
Strensham North prioritizes a seamless shopping experience with two self-checkouts and Electronic Shelf Edge Labels (ESELs) throughout the store. The EDGEPoS system provides live reporting on sales and margins while controlling a range of functionality, making it a valuable addition to the store.
Kevin Whitehouse, Roadchef’s retail, procurement, and supply chain director, expressed delight with the outcome of the partnership with Spar. “We originally chose Spar for their industry-leading store design and customer understanding, together with the strength of their brand and distribution platform,” he said. “The team continues to deliver on their expertise, and we are thrilled with the development of Strensham North.”
To celebrate the official launch of the store on 1 June 2023, customers were offered a complimentary 500ml bottle of Spar’s own label water with every sandwich purchased. Those who made a purchase over £10 were presented with a coupon at the till for a free pack of Spar Flapjack Mini Bites, redeemable at either Roadchef Strensham North or Strensham South Spar stores.
