By James Atkinson

Supermarket group Supabarn has entered into an agreement to align its liquor business to Independent Liquor Retailers (ILR), the company behind the Local Liquor and Countrywide Liquor banner groups, effective from July 1.

Owned by the Koundouris family, Supabarn has 13 stores in the ACT and NSW that will be able to benefit from ILR’s specialist focus on liquor, ILR managing director Michael Sirr told TheShout.

“I think they bring quite a lot to the table, in terms of experience in an FMCG environment, so it increases the experience pool available to the group,” he added. [continues below]

Sirr said both parties will benefit from aggregation of their purchasing volumes, as well as operational synergies around printing, marketing and other functions.

Supabarn managing director Theo Koundouris is confident that the new partnership will deliver mutual benefits. 

“We’re looking forward to working with ILR to deliver a competitive channel for independent liquor and I’m confident that the direction ILR is taking will assist retailers to compete more effectively and deliver sales growth,” he said in a statement.

Sirr said ILR now has 400 stores in its banner groups and is well poised for further growth with the expansion of its superstore format and the upcoming launch of a third banner group brand.

The Shout Team

The leading online news service for Australia's beer, wine, spirits and hospitality industries.

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