Al Futtaim to open Carrefour Franchise Hypermarket in Iraq

19th February 2010: The UAE company with the licence to operate the Carrefour SA franchise in the Middle East is looking to open its first store in Iraq as part of a wider expansion plan in the region. Majid Al Futtaim (MAF) Retail manages a joint venture in the Middle East with France's Carrefour, the world's second-biggest retailer by revenue after Wal-Mart Stores.

In the past three years, the joint venture opened 14 hypermarkets, bringing its total to 37 in the Middle East. MAF is now turning to countries such as Iraq, Yemen, Oman, Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Libya and Lebanon to open new Carrefour stores in a bid to tap growing consumer appetite in the Middle East and North Africa. MAF will open the store in Arbil, one of Iraq's largest cities, probably towards the end of 2010. "The north of Iraq is a very promising market and a stable area," Muhammad Naeem, an executive at MAF Retail, told Reuters on the sidelines of a treasurers conference.

"We studied the economy, the infrastructure, we see no uncertainty and no security issues in that part of the country," he said. Northern, predominantly Kurdish, Iraq has emerged relatively unscathed from the violence that affected the rest of the country. MAF, owned by billionaire UAE businessman Majid Al-Futtaim, traditionally enters markets with Carrefour as anchor tenant of its malls and recently opened a local version, under a different brand name, of the hypermarket in Iran's capital Tehran. 

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Hamleys To Expand Further Into Middle East

Hamleys, the world-famous toy retailer, intends to broaden its reach into the Middle Eastern markets to sustain a record year-end festive-season performance which saw the company increase its like-for-like (LFL) sales by 11.6 per cent over 2008 within the six-week period leading to January 2, 2010. From the second quarter leading up to the last quarter of 2009, Hamleys’ LFL sales were up 7.2 per cent on 2008. The buoyant performance and cost benefits derived from a restructuring programme completed in 2009 combined to significantly boost company profits, with Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization (EBITDA) advancing 42.8 per cent over the same period last year. 

Hamleys’ productive run extended to the Middle East, where its franchise store in Dubai (at The Dubai Mall) run by partner Retail Arabia International reported a festive-season LFL sales increase of 54 per cent – boosted in part due to the fact that Hamleys at The Dubai Mall was the exclusive regional retailer of Ben 10 Alien Force merchandise.

Commenting on the performance, Gudjon Reynisson, CEO of Hamleys, said: We are delighted with the performance of the business during this important trading period and for the whole financial year. The festive-season sales figures were very strong with our flagship store in Regent Street having its best season on record and we are also very pleased with the strong performance in our new flagship store in the St.Enoch Centre in Glasgow where sales significantly exceeded our expectations.”

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C House Italia signs franchise deal for Middle East

17th February 2010: C House Italia signs franchise deal for Middle East Italian restaurant and lounge franchise C House Italia has signed an agreement with Nicolas Jebran Houte Couture (NJHC) to expand the brand across the Middle East. The deal covers a 15 year partnership and will see the first Middle East C House Italia open in Beirut in May 2010. Owned by fashion designer Nicolas Jebran, NJHC will also open C House Italia franchises in Europe.

Business Development Manager for C House Italia Cristiano Iezzi said: “The long-standing partnership between C Hosue Italia and Nicholas Jebran Houte Couture is one that we value and that will provide unique opportunity to expand properly in Middle East countries. It’s a pleasure and honour to work with Nicolas. Specifically this relationship and programme will demonstrate the great synergy that exist between Nicolas’ fashion and C House trendy lounge and cocktail bars.”

Nicolas Jebran, owner of NJHC, said: “I really liked the idea of becoming the first Middle East Fashion Designer to have his own lounge and cocktail bar chain. From the beginning I felt comfortable to work with C House Italia and of course Beirut will be our flagship store and we have already planned other openings, including the one in Italy, Milan.”

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American Organic Burger Chain Signs Middle East Franchise Deal

Elevation Burger finalizes multiunit agreement in the Middle East

Arlington, VA, February, 2010- Elevation Burger, the wildly successful Northern Virginia based chain known for its tasty organic burgers and patented fresh cut fries cooked in olive oil has signed a multi-unit franchising deal with investment banker, businessman, entrepreneur, and Kuwait native Ali Ashkanani. The innovative burger concept is already expanding rapidly throughout the United States, with five locations open in Falls Church, VA; Arlington, VA; Austin, TX; National Harbor, MD and Baltimore, MD and over fifty new locations in development across Texas, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Northern Virginia, Washington, D.C., New York and Florida.

Fransmart, the company that helped launch the ultra successful Five Guys Burgers & Fries chain, is leading the franchise development plans for Elevation Burger. "I am proud that Elevation Burger has rewarded me with their very first international franchise. It is exciting for us to team up and bring their tasty and healthier burgers to the Middle East. We look forward to serving the 'better burger' and to contribute to the success of Elevation Burger and its unique concept."

Ali is currently identifying strong retail real estate in Kuwait for his first location, and expects to have his first store open by mid-2010.

Says Hans Hess, Founder and CEO of Elevation Burger: "We are obviously very excited about our expansion to Kuwait and the Middle East region, and we're pleased to be working with Mr. Ashkanani in this endeavor. We believe the people of Kuwait will love our fresh, high-quality products and sustainable approach to business, and we look forward to serving them."

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British Fitness Club Energie Franchise powers Gulf health stream

The first énergie Fitness Club franchise in the Middle East has been launched this week in Doha, Qatar. Located on Airport Road, the stunning new £2m facility boasts state-of-the-art Precor cardiovascular and resistance equipment, dedicated boxing/combat studio, locker rooms, private personal training studio, a VIP locker room, as well as dedicated customer amenities and services. The club opening will also bring énergie’s unique émpower programme to the Middle East, which offers a six week results guaranteed fitness solution as a means of introduction to a fitness club.

The club opening is part of a number of new clubs being opened in Qatar and across the Middle East during 2010. The expansion plans for énergie Group in the Middle East are headed by Operations Director Nad Miyan; “The response to the energie fitness club concept in Qatar has exceeded our expectations and budget! We opened the club with 750 members and enquires are at unprecedented levels”.

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The Little Gym USA Signs Master Franchise Agreement For Middle East

19 Jan 2010 - The Little Gym International, franchisor of gyms providing curriculum-based, non-competitive motor skills development programs to children aged 4 months to 12 years old, has entered into a master franchise agreement with an existing franchise owner in Kuwait City, Kuwait, to develop at least 15 and as many as 50 locations in the Middle East over the next decade.

Husband-and-wife team Adel Al-Bader and Khaldah Al-Ghanim, who opened their first The Little Gym in Kuwait City in 2003, will continue operating that location and developing more sites throughout Kuwait. In addition, they will now seek prospective single- and multi-unit franchise owners to develop The Little Gym locations in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Egypt, Bahrain, Syria, Oman, Qatar, Iran, Cyprus, Jordan, Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania, Tunisia, Libya, Sudan, Iraq and Yemen. They will also assist those who join the franchise in opening and operating their locations, providing business training, site-selection and site-design assistance, operational consulting, market adaptation, marketing support, translation assistance and other ongoing services, with support from The Little Gym International.

Both individuals have significant business and franchising experience. Mr. Al-Bader has a degree in Business Administration and worked in human resources for Kuwait Airways for 14 years and was a branch manager for Quality Tools Franchised Co., a SNAP-ON franchisee, for five years. His wife, Khaldah Al-Ghanim, has a degree in English Literature and taught English at Kuwait University until 2000. Both have been full-time franchisees since joining The Little Gym in 2001.

The Little Gym currently has 301 locations in 19 countries worldwide, including 261 in the United States. Widely recognized as the leading developer of motor skills in young children, the chain was recently named #1 in the children's fitness category for the second consecutive year by Entrepreneur (January 2008), capping off a year of milestones and accolades that included being named a "Hot Retailer" by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) and one of Inc. magazine's 5,000 fastest-growing private companies in the United States (September 2007). The company also recently opened its 250th U.S. location, 300th worldwide gym and first site in Manhattan.

With a presence in Asia for the past 13 years and a solid foundation throughout Europe, The Little Gym now has a strategic vehicle in place to expand in another key region of the international market, according to Vice President of Franchise Development Ruk Adams.

"This is a very significant development for us on the international stage," said Adams. "It places an experienced entity with a vested interest in growth and a proven success in our system in the Middle East to oversee the selection, recruitment, inauguration and ongoing support of additional franchise owners there, and will allow our development efforts to move forward with full force. In fact, we have already contacted some 20 prospects who previously expressed interest in The Little Gym in Saudi Arabia, Dubai/United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Oman and Cyprus, and we plan to meet with some of them early in 2008."

The Little Gym faces a warm reception throughout the region, said Ms. Al-Ghanim. "The Little Gym is unique in its structure, use of music, individual focus on each child, and the way its themes and fun lead to increased self-esteem. Parents in Kuwait believe in The Little Gym because they noticed a difference in their children, and we're confident that feeling will spread to other locations as we fulfill our development agreement," she said.

The Little Gym Franchise is yet to expand in the Indian subcontinent. Childcare Franchising is on the rise in India, which began initially with preschools like Bachpan and many others. 

Dubai Conference helps International food chains franchise in Middle East

25 Jan 2010: Uno Chicago Grill, Pizza Hut, Round Table Pizza and California Pizza Kitchen are just a handful of food franchise brands that have recently researched expansion in Dubai and other key Middle Eastern markets. Now their executives and others looking to get in on the hot nontraditional market have both a trade show and interactive conference tailored to the area’s food and beverage sector. In response to overwhelming demand, Gulfood, Dubai’s largest trade exhibition for food, drink, food service and hospitality equipment, is launching the inaugural Gulfood Conference, according to a company statement.

 

The Conference, titled “Global Trends in Food, Beverage and Processing,” will run alongside Gulfood, which takes place from Feb. 21 – 24, 2010, at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.“Gulfood is the largest trade exhibition in the Middle East and is the gateway for penetration into the entire Middle East, North Africa and India regions,” according to Tara Rogers, spokesperson. “The highly developed infrastructure in Dubai in terms of logistics, trading platform, minimal bureaucracy, low taxation and geographical proximity makes the city an attractive and highly successful hub.”

The Middle East market offers several franchise and opportunities for Indian Entrepreneurs especially for education and food franchise brands. The four-day conference and knowledge exchange forum will offer delegates unprecedented access to the experts, analysts and visionaries who are shaping the business and developing the marketing strategies that will lead food, beverage and hospitality businesses into the next decade. “In addition to being the most important trade exhibition in the region for the food, beverage and hospitality industry, which showcases the latest products, services and technological breakthroughs, the Gulfood Conference has enormous value for companies who want to meet and learn from the experts, business leaders and the market analysts,” said Helal Saeed Almarri, CEO, Dubai World Trade Centre, organizer of Gulfood. “Not only will the Gulfood Conference provide valuable industry insight to allow companies to build a more profitable business, it will also offer practical tools for invigorating, expanding and launching new business channels.”

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McDonald’s Middle East Franchise reports a 3.4 percent surge in sales

Jan 25th, 2010

McDonald’s has reported a 3.4 percent increase in sales in the Middle East and Africa, reflecting a year of strong worldwide growth in which the fast food giant served 60 million customers a day - two million more than in 2008. Growth in the MEA region was greater than that in the US, where sales rose by 2.6 percent. Turnover in Europe grew by 5.2 percent in 2009, far exceeding the average global rise in sales of 3.8 percent. News of the fast food giant’s increasing popularity is likely to raise some concern among professionals gathered at the Arab Health 2010 exhibition, which starts today.

The Middle East has some of the highest worldwide rates of potentially fatal conditions such as obesity, diabetes and heart disease. Some have pointed to the growing popularity of fast food as being a factor in the looming health crisis in the region. Many fast food chains - including McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, Burger King - operate in the Middle East.

According to estimates, 71 percent of the Emirati adult population is obese - and the World Health Organization (WHO) forecasts that the number of obese Emirati women will rise to 81 percent by 2015. More than 50 percent of children in the UAE are obese. Diabetes prevalence in the Middle East is among the highest in the world. In Saudi Arabia, around 24 percent of the population is affected by diabetes. WHO figures suggest that more than 2.5 million people living in the Kingdom could have the disease by 2030. The WHO has said that the consequences of nutritional disorders in the region were “too grave to be ignored”, calling for urgent action to combat obesity and diabetes.     

Aside from diet, other factors - such as lack of exercise, smoking and genetic disorders - also contribute to health problems.

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Edible Arrangements Experiences Strong Growth in 2009, Considering India Expansion

21st January 2010: Edible Arrangements, the pioneer and leader in hand-sculpted, fresh-fruit arrangements, has experienced strong growth in 2009 with the opening of 74 new stores and franchise agreements for more than 85 locations in the U.S. and internationally. Currently, Edible Arrangements has over 940 locations with the goal to reach 1,000 units by the end of 2010. In addition to its strong franchise sales, Edible Arrangements also experienced an unprecedented year with double digit growth in the U.S. and Canada. The company's unit growth was concentrated in Texas and the Midwest with stores also opening in California, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia along with other markets across the country. In addition, development agreements have been signed with new and existing franchisees for the opening of more than 85 stores in the U.S., Rome, Hong Kong and Turkey.

"We celebrated our 10-year anniversary in 2009, and it is remarkable to see how much the company has grown in the past decade, particularly in a year in which many businesses struggled, our company was still able to prove its universal and widespread appeal to both franchisees and consumers," said Tariq Farid, Founder and CEO, Edible Arrangements, Inc. "Our proven franchise system and healthful high-quality products are the keys to our success, and we look forward to continuing to grow and evolve our company and brand in 2010."

As part of the company's aggressive growth strategy, Edible Arrangements is seeking to add several new development agreements in the Pacific Northwest, Midwest, and other areas of the United States, while expanding its presence to India, Brazil, Mexico, Spain and Canada. Most recently, Edible Arrangements announced a new enterprise development program and the company's evolution into multi-unit franchising. A central component of the new strategy is Frutation by Edible Arrangements®, a grab-and-go concept paired with the traditional Edible Arrangement concept, offering customers fresh-fruit smoothies and juices, dipped fruit, signature fresh fruit salads and a variety of other fresh-fruit products. To support the national launch of Frutation, Edible Arrangements hired a corporate chef to create new products, new production procedures and new recipes.

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New budget hotel brand for Middle East 

Middle East hotel brand Layia Hospitality is set to roll out a budget hotel chain called Day & Night Hotels, Travel Daily UK can reveal. The Dubai-based firm has already signed an agreement with CAPM Investment PrivJSC to roll out five of the three-star properties in Abu Dhabi over the next five years. Layia Hospitality CEO Daniel Hajjar said the firm was currently seeking investors to roll out properties across the Middle East, with the expectation of opening 12-15 Day & Night Hotels in the next seven to eight year. “We are already talking to a company about opening a property in the Jadaf area of Dubai,” said Hajjar. 

“We are also looking at Saudi Araiba, Kuwait, Egypt and Syria.” Hajjar said the three-star concept would adhere to five-star standards in terms of the quality of beds, fixtures and fittings. “We won’t be stingy regarding the size of the room – it will be around 25m² to 32m²,” he said. “Plus we’ll have good-sized work stations, good showers and ergonomic chairs.” The target market, he added, was young trendy executives in the 25 to 40 age bracket who wanted to “come into the room and plug in their iPods”. 

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