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Allen Ambor

Restaurant founder and company builder

By South African Index Editorial Desk · Published · Updated · Last reviewed

Portrait of Spur founder Allen Ambor
Allen Ambor in Spur Corporation’s 2018 integrated report.: Spur Corporation · Source. Resized and converted to WebP for this site.

Allen Ambor opened the first Spur restaurant in Newlands, Cape Town, in 1967. [1][4]

Founder and executive

Ambor created the original restaurant proposition before public listing and multi-brand expansion. [1]

The 2018 report identified him as founder and executive chairman before his retirement. [4]

Key contributions

Ambor built a restaurant format that independent franchise entrepreneurs could reproduce under common standards. [2][3]

Life and career timeline

  1. Opened the first Spur in Newlands, Cape Town. [1][4]

  2. Led the business into its first JSE listing. [1]

  3. Retired from Spur after 51 years. [1]

Frequently asked questions

Who is Allen Ambor?

He is the founder of Spur Steak Ranches. [1][4]

When did Allen Ambor open the first Spur?

He opened it in Newlands, Cape Town, in 1967. [1]

When did Allen Ambor retire?

Spur records his retirement on 1 March 2019 after 51 years. [1]

Associated organisations

Related research

Sources

  1. Spur Corporation, Our history. Original source. Accessed 2026-11-10. ↩
  2. Spur Corporation, Business model. Original source. Accessed 2026-11-10. ↩
  3. Spur Corporation, Franchising. Original source. Accessed 2026-11-10. ↩
  4. Spur Corporation, Integrated Report 2018, 2018-06-30. Original source. Accessed 2026-11-10. ↩