While many independent retailers feel let down by England’s dismal showing at the World Cup, Spar retailers are toasting a sporting success story through the group’s sponsorship of the GB athletics team.

Sales in Spar stores are estimated to have risen11% in the week of the European Championships in Barcelona.

Spar, which sponsored the games as well as the GB team, has received a week of primetime TV and media coverage, with its logo plastered on the chests of the athletes as well as on advertising hoardings within the stadium.

The championships were also supported in-store by Spar, which ran a Summer of Sport campaign that included promotions on beer, soft drinks and snacks, with marketing material featuring a Taste The Atmosphere logo designed especially for the event.

Spar’s website featured ‘button-bashing’ athletics games, which helped attract 80% more visits to the site than normal over the week of the games.

“The success of the championship exceeded all our expectations,” said Spar marketing manager Rebecca Whitmore. “The World Cup was obviously the biggest sporting event of the summer and every retailer tried to take advantage of it. But Spar was in a unique position to benefit from the games, which turned out to be an unexpected hit, helped by the success of the GB team.”

Spar was “really proud” to see GB athletes performing so well at European ­level, she said. “With our sponsorship of UK Athletics set to continue, it bodes well for the Olympics in 2012.”

GB athletes had their best ever European Championships with 19 medals, including golds for heptathlete Jessica Ennis and triple-jumper Phillips Idowu, while Mo Farah won both the 5,000m and 10,000m. Spar brand ambassador ‘Pocket Rocket’ Jenny Meadows took bronze in the 800m.

“Jenny did brilliantly, recovering from injury earlier this year so our huge congratulations to her and the GB team,” said Whitmore.

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