KAMPALA – Majid Al Futtaim, the leading shopping mall, communities, retail and leisure pioneer across the Middle East, Africa and Asia has on Tuesday, January 14 held the official opening ceremony for the first-ever Carrefour Store in Uganda, marking the company’s entry into the Sub-Saharan African country.
Located at the popular Oasis Mall, the store covers 2,800 square meters, catering to the evolving customer needs in Uganda and responding to the growing demand for modern retail in Kampala. Carrefour offers shoppers great value and choice, through a combination of offers and promotions while delivering unbeatable prices, quality and its renowned customer service.
Majid Al Futtaim has recruited 130 Ugandan employees and has contracted 50 more from external local companies. The company has also engaged 260 local suppliers to stock the Carrefour store in Uganda. The company owns the franchise rights to operate the Carrefour brand in over 30 countries across the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Today it operates over 300 stores in 16 countries across that network.
Presiding over the official ceremony, Hon. Amelia Kyambadde, Uganda’s Minister for Trade, Industry and Cooperatives stated that the country’s growing population, coupled with a vibrant economy will support Majid Al Futtaim’s commitment to Uganda.
“The entry of a global retail brand like Carrefour goes a long way in ensuring that the expanding community is catered to. With rapid urbanization, there is an increased demand for superior and high-quality products offered at great value, and we are very confident that in Majid Al Futtaim, we have the right partner,” she said.
Kyambadde added that “By building the capacity of local suppliers, Majid Al Futtaim is encouraging value addition which will in turn help to boost household incomes. This supplements the Government’s job creation efforts.”
The minister further noted that by buying from local suppliers, Majid Al Futtaim is also helping to strengthen the Government’s ‘Buy Uganda, Build Uganda’ policy and that they will continue to support companies that promote inclusive growth in their operations.
Hani Weiss, Chief Executive Officer of Majid Al Futtaim – Retail explained that Carrefour’s first launch in Uganda is an integral part in the retailer’s long-term ambition of strengthening its presence in the East African region:
“We are committed to operating in Uganda for the long term and are happy for the opportunity to contribute to further developing the retail sector to the benefit of the community. Carrefour is here to modernize the grocery retail sector by bringing international best practices, and delivering the best value products to our customers, as we work to realize our vision of creating great moments for everyone every day.”
The store stocks up to 20,000 products, a mix of international and local brands, all certified by relevant government agencies, applying international hygiene standards in order to guarantee food safety to customers.
About Carrefour
Carrefour is one of the largest hypermarket and supermarket chains in the world. The brand was launched in the region in 1995 by Majid Al Futtaim, which is the exclusive franchisee to operate Carrefour in over 30 countries across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. Today, Majid Al Futtaim operates over 300 Carrefour stores, serving more than 750,000 customers daily and employing over 37,000 colleagues.
Carrefour operates different store formats, as well as multiple online offerings to meet the growing needs of its diversified customer base. In line with the brand’s commitment to provide the widest range of quality products and value for money, Carrefour offers an unrivalled choice of more than 100,000 food and non-food products, and an exemplary customer experience to create great moments for everyone every day.
About Majid Al Futtaim
Founded in 1992, Majid Al Futtaim is the leading shopping mall, communities, retail and leisure pioneer across the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
A remarkable business success story, Majid Al Futtaim started from one man’s vision to transform the face of shopping, entertainment and leisure to ‘create great moments for everyone, every day’. It has since grown into one of the United Arab Emirates’ most respected and successful businesses spanning 16 international markets, employing more than 43,000 people, and obtaining the highest credit rating (BBB) among privately-held corporates in the region.
Majid Al Futtaim owns and operates 26 shopping malls, 13 hotels and four mixed-use communities, with further developments underway in the region. The shopping malls portfolio includes Mall of the Emirates, Mall of Egypt, City Centre malls, My City Centre neighbourhood centres, and four community malls which are in joint venture with the Government of Sharjah. The Company is the exclusive franchisee for Carrefour in a number of markets across the Middle East, Africa and Asia, operating a portfolio of over 300 outlets.
Majid Al Futtaim operates more than 400 VOX Cinemas screens and 36 Magic Planet family entertainment centres across the region, in addition to iconic leisure and entertainment facilities such as Ski Dubai, iFly Dubai and Ski Egypt, among others. The Company is parent to the consumer finance company ‘Najm’, and a Fashion and Home retail business representing international brands such as Abercrombie & Fitch, AllSaints, lululemon athletica, Crate & Barrel and Maisons du Monde. In addition, Majid Al Futtaim operates Enova, a facility and energy management company, through a joint venture operation with Veolia, a global leader in optimised environment resource management. The Company also owns the rights to The LEGO Store and American Girl in the Middle East and operates in the food and beverage industry through a partnership with Gourmet Gulf.
