Carrefour buys Geant, its French competitor in the Middle East

Dubai-based Majid Al Futtaim Company announced on Thursday that it bought 26 Geant hypermarkets in the UAE, Bahrain and Kuwait by acquiring the Geant franchise owner Retail Arabia from BMA International for an undisclosed amount.

The deal will also include four Gulfmart supermarkets in Bahrain.

Majid Al Futtaim is the the Middle East operator of French retailer Carrefour, and the company declared that all the acquired stores, which include hypermarkets, supermarkets and convenience stores, will be rebranded as Carrefour and the current staff will remain in their positions.

The company wanted to increase the number of Carrefour stores to 80 from 67 in the UAE, 8 in Kuwait and 11 in Bahrain.

Major retail milestone

Alain Bejjani, Chief Executive Officer at Majid Al Futtaim – Holding, commented: “This acquisition is a major milestone for Majid Al Futtaim, one which further cements Carrefour’s position as the largest and most successful grocery retailer in the region and beyond. We are open to further prospects, through both organic growth and opportunistic acquisitions, and will pursue these in line with our disciplined strategic and financial approach. Our ambition is to expand our physical as well as our digital presence, and reinforce our omni-channel offering.”

Bejjani added: “Carrefour is a brand already synonymous with quality, affordability convenience and a diligence to offer exceptional customer experience. By extending its reach, we will deliver these promises to more customers in more locations...”

Fu-com joined hands with Groupe Casino - one of the world´s largest French hypermarket chains, to bring the 'Géant hypermarket' to Middle East for the first time in 2001, with a store in Bahrain and then opened Géant Hypermarket Dubai in 2005.

The company has stores in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

According to Reuters, Perella Weinberg Partners advised Majid Al Futtaim on the transaction.