M.H. Alshaya Co.

M.H. Alshaya Co. is a multinational retail franchise operator headquartered in Kuwait.[1] It operates 90 consumer retail brands across the Middle East and North Africa, Russia, Turkey and Europe.[2] In addition to its retail operations, the Alshaya group has holdings in real estate, construction, hotels, automotive and general trading, largely centred in the Middle East.[2]

Alshaya Group
TypePrivate (family-owned)
IndustryRetail
FoundedPart of Alshaya group of companies founded in 1890
HeadquartersKuwait City, Kuwait
Number of locations
over 4,500 stores
Area served
Middle East and North Africa, Russia, Turkey and Europe
Key people
ProductsFranchising, Retail
Brands~90
Owner
Number of employees
60,000+
DivisionsFashion and Footwear, Food, Health & Beauty, Optics, Pharmacy, Home Furnishings, Hospitality, Fitness, Leisure & Entertainment.
Websitewww.alshaya.com

History

In 1890, M.H. Alshaya Co. was founded in Kuwait in as a shipping company, initially trading with British India. In 1965, the company diversified by opening a Sheraton hotel in Kuwait City, the first Sheraton outside North America.[3] In 1983, Alshaya expanded its franchising business when it acquired the Kuwait franchise rights for UK retailer Mothercare.[3] H&M,[4] In 1999, Alshaya entered the food retail sector with a partnership with Starbucks.[5] Alshaya's acquisition of the Topshop franchise for Turkey in 2002 was its first expansion outside the Middle East. The company moved into Russia in 2005 with the acquisition of the Russian franchise rights for Mothercare.[3] In 2006, Alshaya launched international clothing retailer H&M in the Middle East, followed by a number of US-headquartered brands looking to expand into the Middle East: Dean and Deluca (2008), Express, P. F. Chang's,[6] Pinkberry and Payless ShoeSource[7] (all 2009). In 2010, Alshaya added American Eagle Outfitters, Pottery Barn and Pottery Barn Kids[8] to its portfolio. It also secured franchise rights for the first international outlets of Texas Roadhouse,[9] and opened its first Victoria's Secret Beauty and Accessories stores in the Middle East in Bahrain and Kuwait.[10] In June 2012, the first The Cheesecake Factory and IHOP restaurants outside North America opened in the UAE.[2] In November 2012, a further eight brands were added to Alshaya's portfolio: Harvey Nichols Kuwait,[11] Victoria's Secret, Jack Wills, COS, Teavana, Garrett Popcorn Shops, West Elm and Williams Sonoma.[8]

In December 2012, Alshaya opened the Alshaya Retail Academy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, providing retail training and employment on graduation for young Saudi women.[12] In February 2013 Alshaya opened up the 160th location of The Cheesecake Factory in The Avenues (Kuwait).[13] In April 2014, Alshaya announced it would open two more Alshaya Retail Academies in Saudi Arabia, in Jeddah and Dammam.[14] Alshaya moved into the Leisure and Entertainment sector in June 2013 with the opening of KidZania Kuwait, at The Avenues (Kuwait).[15] Sprinkles Cupcakes, Veranda and Muji[16] also opened at The Avenues in the same year. Katsuya by Philippe Starck[17] launched in Kuwait and the UAE, and in December 2013, six Alshaya restaurant brands were introduced to Saudi Arabia—The Cheesecake Factory, IHOP, Texas Roadhouse, Shake Shack, P. F. Chang's and PizzaExpress.[18] In 2014, Icing, a popular US retailer of jewelry and accessories, made its debut in Kuwait as part of the Alshaya portfolio. The opening represented the brand's first expansion outside the Americas.[19] 2015 saw the Middle East debut of fast-food chicken restaurant Raising Cane's [20][21] in Kuwait. In 2016, Alshaya launched its loyalty programme, Privileges Club,[22] in Kuwait, with plans to roll the programme out across its GCC markets. The company also opened the first store by American chocolatier Bridgewater Chocolate in the Middle East.[23] Lebanese restaurant Babel opened its first outlet outside Lebanon, in Kuwait.[24] In 2017, several new brands made their Middle Eastern debut, including Bouchon Bakery;[25] Charlotte Tilbury;[26] NYX Cosmetics;[27] 400 Gradi;[28] and & Other Stories.[29] The company also opened the Four Seasons Hotel Kuwait at Burj Alshaya in downtown Kuwait City. Burj Alshaya features the 22-story Four Seasons in the Eastern Tower and will house the new corporate headquarters of the company in the 43-story Western Tower. The Western Tower is due for completion in 2018 and will complete the development.[30] 2018 saw several brands make their Middle Eastern debut. Korean beauty brand Etude House launched in Dubai,[31] while organic beauty and skincare brands Aveda [32] and Tromborg opened in Kuwait.[33] Also making their regional debut at Kuwait's new Avenues Phase IV extension were Swedish fashion brand Monki,[34] Blaze Pizza [35] and Cleo Mediterráneo[36] Spontini,[37] and new entertainment concept TekZone.[38] Luxury Home Fragrance brand Dr. Vranjes Firenze [39] made its first Middle East foray later that year. In January 2019, Alshaya opened its own brand Amiti Noura,[40] a restaurant that offers traditional Kuwaiti cuisine at Kuwait's largest shopping mall, The Avenues followed by the opening of contemporary New York city-based fashion brand alice + olivia by Stacey Bendet, in April.

Later that year, Alshaya Group partnered with Hilton on a master development agreement to open 70 Hampton by Hilton Hotels in nine countries the Middle East, North Africa, Turkey and Russia. In December 2019, Alshaya signed an agreement with Equinox Group, to bring three unparalleled fitness brands to the region: Equinox Fitness Clubs, SoulCycle and Blink Fitness, with initial opening plans focused on Dubai in late 2020.  They also announced plans to bring the Canopy by Hilton hotel brand to Kuwait.

In early 2020, Alshaya introduced Milan’s best loved café and bakery destination Princi to Kuwait while Dubai saw the opening of beauty brand innisfree, Korea’s number one beauty brand.

Operations

The company currently operates more than 4,500 stores in seven sectors—Fashion & Footwear, Health & Beauty, Food, Optics, Pharmacy, Home Furnishings and Leisure & Entertainment—and employs more than 60,000 people.[41] Other brands managed and operated by Alshaya include Raising Canes,[42] Mothercare, American Eagle Outfitters,[43] Debenhams,[44] Harvey Nichols Kuwait,[11] Payless ShoeSource,[7] Topshop,[4] Starbucks,[5] Shake Shack,[45] The Cheesecake Factory,[2] Pinkberry,[2] P. F. Chang's,[6] Le Pain Quotidien,[6] Katsuya by Philippe Starck,[17] The Body Shop, Make-up Art Cosmetics (MAC), Victoria's Secret,[10] Boots pharmacy, Vision Express, Pottery Barn, Williams Sonoma,[8] and KidZania Kuwait.[15] Its hotel division owns the Sheraton Hotel in Kuwait and the Oberoi Hotel in Medina, Saudi Arabia.[46]

References
  1. "Master of eastern retail turns westward". The Financial Times. Nikkei.
  2. Beth Kowitt (12 February 2013). "M.H. Alshaya: The mystery company importing Americana to the Mideast". Fortune.
  3. "Alshaya Group spreads web of familiar brands through eastern Europe". The Financial Times. Nikkei.
  4. "The Family Firms Ruling Fashion in the Gulf States". The Business of Fashion.
  5. "Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) - UPDATE: Starbucks Issues Highlights from Annual Shareholder Meeting, Introduces Cross-Channel, Multi-Brand Loyalty Program, Reaffirms Outlook". Benzinga.
  6. "P.F. Chang's to expand into Mideast". Arabian Business.
  7. "Payless adds store in Middle East". CJOnline.com.
  8. Renée Frojo (30 November 2012). "Williams-Sonoma accelerating global growth". San Francisco Business Times.
  9. "Kuwait's Alshaya to launch MidEast's first Texas Roadhouse". Arabian Business.
  10. "5 things you didn't know about Victoria's Secret". Retailgazette.co.uk.
  11. "Harvey Nichols to open in Kuwait (Vogue.co.uk)". Vogue UK.
  12. "Alshaya Retail Academy for Saudi youth opens in Riyadh". Saudi Gazette. Archived from the original on 2015-04-02.
  13. Kowitt, Beth (February 12, 2013). "M.H. Alshaya: The mystery company importing Americana to the Mideast". Fortune. Retrieved July 7, 2019.
  14. "Alshaya to open two more retail academies in Saudi Arabia". Gulf News.
  15. Rebecca Mead (19 January 2015). "When I Grow Up". The New Yorker.
  16. "Kuwait's Alshaya inks deal with Japanese retailer". Arabian Business.
  17. "Alshaya to bring new restaurant brand to Gulf". Arabian Business.
  18. "Alshaya brings 6 world-class restaurant brands to Le Mall". Arab News.
  19. "Page Not Found - ZAWYA MENA Edition". Zawya.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019. Cite uses generic title (help)
  20. Timothy Boone. "Raising Cane's to open its first overseas restaurant in Kuwait City". The Advocate. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  21. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-11-14. Retrieved 2016-11-13.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  22. "PRIVILEGES CLUB". Alshaya.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  23. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-11-14. Retrieved 2016-11-13.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  24. "Kuwait urges Security Council to act" (PDF). Arabtimesonline.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  25. Brito, Claudia De. "Thomas Keller makes Dubai debut with Bouchon Bakery". HotelierMiddleEast.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  26. "Charlotte Tilbury makes dazzling Middle East debut" (PDF). Arabtimesonline.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  27. Benjamin Fitzgerald. "Nyx enters the Middle East with Abu Dhabi store". FashionNetwork.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  28. "400 Gradi launches its handcrafted Italian cuisine in Bahrain". Bizbahrain.com. 29 November 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  29. "A Swedish fashion brand with a story to tell". Gulfnews.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  30. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2017-02-07. Retrieved 2017-02-06.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  31. "Korean Beauty Brand ETUDE HOUSE Partners With Alshaya To Debut In The Middle East". Khaleejmadame.com. 6 March 2018. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  32. Aveda
  33. "The Times Kuwait". Timeskuwait.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  34. "MONKI IS COMING TO KUWAIT". Bazaar.town. 10 October 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  35. Pizza, Blaze (22 March 2018). "Blaze Fast-Fire'd Pizza Opens First Middle East Location at The Avenues in Kuwait". GlobeNewswire News Room. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  36. "sbe Opens First Cleo Mediterráneo in the Middle East, Eighth Globally". Prnewswire.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  37. "Spontini partners with M.H. Alshaya Co. to open restaurants across the Middle East and North Africa region". Eprretailnews.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  38. "PressReader.com - Connecting People Through News". Pressreader.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  39. "Home Fragrance Brand Dr. Vranjes Firenze to open first flagship store in the Middle East". Zawya.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  40. "Original Kuwaiti flavors from the restaurant "Amati Noura" now in the Avenues". Alanba.com.kw (in Arabic). Retrieved 2019-01-30.
  41. "Facts & Figures". Alshaya.com.
  42. "Raising Cane's". Alshaya.com.
  43. "American Eagle Outfitters to open three UK stores". Retailgazette.co.uk.
  44. "Franchising helps Debenhams expand overseas". Thefranchisemagazine.net. Archived from the original on 2016-07-02. Retrieved 2015-07-21.
  45. "Alshaya to roll Shake Shack out across Middle East". Arabian Business.
  46. "GCC's Most Admired Executives-Mohammed AlShaya". Arabian Business.
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