2 days ago
Spar South Africa CEO resigns amid financial challenges to lead McDonald's
Spar South Africa CEO Max Oliva will assume his role as McDonald's South Africa CEO on 1 July 2025.
Spar South Africa CEO Max Oliva has resigned from the group, just days after the retailer announced a decline in profits and a R4 billion loss.
The retailer said Oliva resigned after 30 years at Spar on Tuesday.
'It has been an honour to serve Spar for the past three decades. While this was not an easy decision, I am confident that the business is in capable hands. Angelo has my full support, and I am excited to see how the team continues to build on the momentum we've created,' he said.
Spar SA's next CEO
The retailer said Spar Group chief executive officer, Angelo Swartz, will replace Oliva.
'To ensure continuity and maintain the strong momentum Spar South Africa is currently experiencing, Swartz will assume operational leadership of the Southern Africa region.'
He has been with Spar for 16 years and was appointed Group CEO in 2023. Before Spar he was at Woolworths.
'I have had the privilege of working closely with Oliva for many years and have immense respect for his leadership and the legacy he leaves.
'Thanks to the strong foundation he has laid, I approach this next phase with confidence that, together with our talented team, we will continue to push forward and deliver on our growth ambitions for Southern Africa,' said Swartz.
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Spar SA CEO leaves to lead McDonald's
Spar wished Olivia well as the CEO of McDonald's South Africa. He will assume his role on 1 July 2025.
The retailer said Oliva's time at Spar helped the Group navigate some of the most challenging periods, including the Covid-19 pandemic, the implementation of SAP, and the broader adoption of new technologies across the business.
McDonald's said the appointment comes at a time when the fast-food chain is evolving in a rapidly changing consumer landscape.
'He was selected following a rigorous executive search process aimed at identifying a leader with the vision, discipline, and commercial acumen to guide the business into its next phase of transformation.'
R4 billion hit
Spar's financial results for the 26 weeks ended 28 March 2025, released last week, showed that it has taken a hit of more than R4 billion after exiting its operations with Spar Switzerland and the Appleby Westward Group (AWG).
'These businesses recorded aggregate post-tax losses of R4.4 billion, including impairments of R4.2 billion.'
However, the loss was anticipated as the exit of the operations is part of Spar's strategy aimed at strengthening its balance sheet and recovering margins.
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Profits nosedive
The financial results also revealed its operating profits nosedived by 5.7% to R1.35 billion, compared to R1.43 billion during the same period in 2024.
Spar has also concluded the disposal of Spar Poland in January 2025. Which was one of the five key focus areas for Spar. The second key focus area that has been achieved is the completion of the Group's debt restructuring in March 2025 and May 2025.
It's not all bad; the Group's revenue from continuing operations remained steady at R66.1 billion, while gross profit increased to R7.1 billion. In Southern Africa, wholesale turnover increased by 1.7%. Combined grocery and liquor wholesale revenue rose by 1.1%, while retail revenue increased by 1.9%.
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