Seven Carrefour stores are expected to open in Tashkent by 2021
UAE’s new agency ZAWYA says Majid Al Futtaim, the leading shopping mall, communities, retail and leisure pioneer across the Middle East, Africa and Asia intends to open its first Carrefour stores in Uzbekistan, marking the first entry of an international grocery retailer into Uzbekistan.
Seven stores are set to open over the next two years as part of the initial expansion phase, with three supermarkets and one hypermarket coming online in 2020 and an additional two supermarkets followed by one hypermarket in 2021. These stores will collectively contribute to 17,400 square meters of total retail area across Tashkent.
Majid Al Futtaim reportedly signed an agreement with AKFA Group, the largest private company in Uzbekistan with a diverse portfolio that includes construction, hospitality, telecommunications, financial services, and healthcare and food production. The AKFA Group also owns retail and real estate assets which will host all seven Carrefour stores.
Majid Al Futtaim is an Emirati holding company based in Dubai that as of 2015 owns and operates shopping malls, retail, and leisure establishments in the Middle East and North Africa, with operations in 13 countries. Established in 1992, the group manages three major operating subsidiaries: Majid Al Futtaim Properties, Majid Al Futtaim Retail, and Majid Al Futtaim Ventures. As of 2015 the holding company worked in 13 countries: UAE, Lebanon, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan, Pakistan, Iraq, Armenia, and Georgia.
Majid Al Futtaim Properties develops, owns and manages shopping malls and hotels throughout the MENA region. The hotels business unit focuses on the development and asset management of hotels connected to or close to the company's shopping malls and within its master-planned communities. It owned and operated twelve hotels as of 2015.
