UoB would be nothing without Spar

I could have chosen our fantastic Guild of Students, the infamous Old Joe or the awesome Great Hall as my favourite thing about Birmingham. But it’s Spar that gets me through my library sessions. With the £3 meal deals and the undeniably fast moving queues right at the heart of the university campus, it’s my best friend. It has everything you need for the day in one space at the most reasonable price on campus.

I was served before you can complain about the long queue

They’re on our level, metaphorically, not literally

Even the entrance is ingenious. There’s no doors, which makes the whole shopping experience a hundred times quicker and smoother. It saves the awkwardness we used to have with the Arts revolving door. Remember when you had to decide between how much of a rush you were in to get to the class you were already late to, or how much of a polite and courteous student you were. See, we have never had that problem with Spar, they just get it. I’m a student, therefore I’m lazy and bad at decision-making.

Decisions, decisions

We are then spoilt for choice with the wide selection of sandwiches Spar provides. After finding ourselves in this shop most days though, we’ve learned to find our favourites quickly. Third Year English Literature and History student Charlotte said: “I know what I have, so it’s easy to grab and go.” It has a funny way of reminding you how well you know your friends. I don’t get that kind of buzz from Marks and Spencers when I pick up the classic ham and cheese for my mate.

Wasting my 5p because I couldn’t get my meal deal in my own bag

The staff are priceless too

You even find yourself talking to the staff, who are so friendly considering it’s a fast-paced environment. I’ll miss my Spar stop when I graduate, without the chatty service providing me just good old food at my kind of ‘student-y’ price. Spar lifts the weight of the stressful terror of every day budgeting. What will I do when I have to face the world of Waitrose? It might feel like we’re just poor students but let’s enjoy Spar. Count your lucky stars as you use your loan to buy those £1 digestives. Because before you know it, you’ll be paying back £27,000 worth of debt and trying to budget a M and S weekly shop.

the only way is BLT