Kiwi

Kiwi, also known as Kiwi Minipris and stylised as KIWI, is a Norwegian supermarket chain operating primarily in the grocery and everyday-needs retail sector. The chain is associated with a value-oriented supermarket format and serves Norwegian consumers through a large network of stores located across the country. The referenced material describes more than 700 Norwegian outlets and approximately 14,000 employees, making Kiwi a substantial national retail network. The chain’s assortment combines mainstream and premium branded goods with lower-priced private-label merchandise, including products sold under the First Price label. Its typical offer covers food and household necessities rather than a narrow specialist category. Kiwi’s market proposition is therefore based on convenience, broad everyday availability and competitive pricing within the supermarket segment. The brand’s positioning can be described as mass-market grocery retail, while its assortment also accommodates customers seeking recognised premium brands. Kiwi has also participated in the Nordic Nøkkelhullsmerket, or Keyhole Mark, programme. The programme is supported by health and nutrition authorities in Norway, Sweden and Denmark and identifies qualifying food products as healthier choices within their respective categories. Participation connects the retailer with a regional effort to make nutritional information more visible at the point of purchase. The chain has had a cross-border history in Denmark. There, Kiwi operated through a joint venture involving NorgesGruppen and Dagrofa, with stores concentrated mainly in Jutland and Funen and a smaller presence elsewhere. It opened its first store in the Copenhagen capital region in June 2010, in the Østerbro district. In April 2017, it was announced that all Danish stores would cease operating under the Kiwi name. Thirty of those stores were scheduled to continue under the SPAR or Meny banners, ending Kiwi’s Danish retail presence while leaving the brand principally identified with Norway. The company’s leadership history includes Norwegian businessman Per-Erik Burud, who owned and operated the chain. Following Burud’s death, Jan Paul Bjørkøy was appointed or constituted as the chain’s new leader. The available reference material does not establish the exact founding year, current chief executive, current ownership structure in detail, or a separate legal corporate identity for the brand. Kiwi is associated with NorgesGruppen, but those corporate relationships should be distinguished from the retail brand itself. Today, the available sources support describing Kiwi as an active Norwegian supermarket brand with a nationwide store network, an everyday grocery assortment, participation in the Keyhole nutrition-marking initiative and a completed Danish chapter. Exact current store counts, employee numbers, executive appointments and ownership details may change over time and require verification against current company disclosures.

Kiwi is a Scandinavian supermarket brand whose principal operating market is Norway. The chain is also known as Kiwi Minipris and uses the stylised name KIWI. Its Norwegian business developed into a large national network, with the available reference describing more than 700 outlets and approximately 14,000 employees. The brand’s retail format focuses on routine grocery shopping and household necessities, offering both established premium brands and lower-priced private-label products such as First Price. The available reference does not state Kiwi’s founding year or provide a detailed chronology of its early development. It does, however, identify Per-Erik Burud as the Norwegian businessman who owned and operated the chain. Following Burud’s death, Jan Paul Bjørkøy became the chain’s leader. The source does not provide dates for either Burud’s period of control or Bjørkøy’s appointment, and it does not establish whether Bjørkøy remains in that role today. Kiwi’s business also extended into Denmark through a joint venture between NorgesGruppen and Dagrofa. Danish operations were concentrated mainly in Jutland and Funen, although the chain also maintained a limited presence in other parts of the country. In June 2010, Kiwi opened its first store in the Copenhagen capital region, in the Østerbro area. In April 2017, the withdrawal of the Kiwi name from Denmark was announced. Thirty Danish stores were expected to continue under the SPAR or Meny brands, ending the brand’s Danish retail operation. In Norway and, more broadly, in the Nordic grocery context, Kiwi has participated in the Nøkkelhullsmerket programme. Known in English as the Keyhole Mark, this initiative is supported by health and nutrition institutions in Norway, Sweden and Denmark. It identifies food products that meet specified nutritional criteria, allowing shoppers to recognise healthier options within comparable product categories. The available material supports a picture of Kiwi as an active Norwegian supermarket chain with a broad store footprint, a value-oriented assortment and a history of limited international expansion. It does not provide sufficient evidence to state a precise founding date, current store count, current executive roster, detailed financial performance or the exact present-day legal ownership of the brand. Those details require confirmation from current company or corporate-group sources.

1. 2017Danish stores scheduled to leave the Kiwi brand

   The company announced that all Danish stores would cease operating under the Kiwi name, with 30 locations expected to continue as SPAR or Meny stores.

   Source
2. 2010First Kiwi store opens in Copenhagen’s capital region

   Kiwi opened its first store in the Copenhagen capital region, in the Østerbro district, as part of its Danish expansion.

   Source

Mass-market, value-oriented supermarket retail with convenient access to everyday groceries and household goods.

• Kiwi supermarket storesSupermarket retail

  Kiwi stores provide a general grocery assortment for everyday shopping. The available reference describes a mix of food and household necessities, supplemented by premium branded products and lower-priced private-label merchandise. The format is designed for broad consumer access rather than specialist retail, and the Norwegian network extends to more than 700 outlets according to the cited reference.

• First PricePrivate-label groceries

  First Price is a private-label range carried by Kiwi alongside premium and other branded products. It represents the lower-priced end of the chain’s assortment and supports Kiwi’s value-oriented supermarket positioning. The available material does not specify the range’s launch date, full product coverage or current size.

• Keyhole-marked food productsHealth-oriented food assortment

  Kiwi participates in the Nordic Keyhole Mark programme, which identifies qualifying food products as healthier choices within their categories. The mark is connected to nutritional criteria supported by institutions in Norway, Sweden and Denmark. It is a product-labelling initiative rather than a standalone Kiwi product line.

• Keyhole Mark participation

  Norway · Sweden · Denmark

  Kiwi participates in the Nøkkelhullsmerket, or Keyhole Mark, programme, enabling qualifying healthier food choices to be identified through a Nordic nutritional labelling scheme.

  Outcome. The programme provides shoppers with a recognised nutritional signal; the available source does not quantify its commercial or health impact.

  Source

• 2017Exit from the Danish Kiwi formatStrategy

  Kiwi operated Danish stores through a joint venture involving NorgesGruppen and Dagrofa, with locations concentrated in Jutland and Funen and a smaller presence elsewhere.

  What changed. The company announced that all Danish stores would stop operating under the Kiwi brand. Thirty stores were expected to continue under the SPAR or Meny banners.

  Aftermath. The decision ended Kiwi’s Danish brand presence while preserving some locations within other retail banners.

  Source

• 2017Kiwi to leave the Danish market

  It was announced that Danish stores would stop operating under the Kiwi name. Thirty locations were expected to continue under the SPAR or Meny brands.

  Other
  Source
• 2010Kiwi opens its first store in the Copenhagen capital region

  Kiwi expanded its Danish presence into the capital region with a store in Copenhagen’s Østerbro district.

  Other
  Source
• Jan Paul Bjørkøy succeeds Per-Erik Burud as chain leader

  After the death of owner and operator Per-Erik Burud, Jan Paul Bjørkøy was constituted as the new leader of the chain.

  Leadership change
  Source

1. Kiwi (store)
2. Kiwi Norway official website