World's envy, UAE's pride: LuLu, Majid Al Futtaim

dubai - Three retailers from the GCC rank among the top 250 global retailers

Three retailers from the GCC, including the UAE's Lulu Group International and Majid Al Futtaim Holding, ranked among the top 250 global retailers whose combined revenues reached $4.31 trillion in 2015, representing composite growth of 5.2 per cent, according to Deloitte's 250 global retailers report.

"The Middle East remains an attractive destination for retailers, with three retailers ranking in Deloitte's report of the 250 largest retailers around the world: Lulu Group, Majid Al Futtaim Holding and Savola Group. Together, the Africa/Middle East region's 19.1 per cent growth rate and 5.8 per cent net profit margin were the highest among the five geographic regions in FY2015," said Herve Ballantyne, partner and Consumer & Industrial Products Industry leader, Deloitte, Middle East.

Emke/Lulu Group, ranked 153rd globally, emerged as the top Middle East retailer with retail revenues of $6.2 billion. The group, which has operations in nine countries, also finds a place among the world's 50 fastest-growing retailers. Ranked 27 in the list of fastest-growing retailers, Lulu Group recorded a compound annual growth of 17.3 per cent for the 2010-2015 period.

MAF Holding was 160th in the global list with retail revenues of $6.01 billion and a CAGR of 8.2 per cent in the 2010-15 period. Saudi Arabia's Savola Group came third in the region and ranked 240th globally with retail revenues of $3.6 billion.

Yusuffali M.A., chairman of Lulu Group, said: "Today, it is completely a consumer-driven market and the shopper needs only the very best. We have been continuously innovating in all aspects of our business process, right from store layout to product offering and pricing structure. We see no slowdown in our industry and we intend to go ahead with our announced expansion plans. Currently, we have 133 stores which will reach 150 by mid-2018, with new stores coming up in almost all GCC countries."

Despite a slight dip in revenue, Walmart continued its long-held dominance at the top of the list with retail revenues of $482 billion at a five year CAGR of 2.7 per cent as the world's four largest retailers maintained their positions on the industry's leader board, but acquisitions, divestitures, and exchange rate volatility shuffled the rest of the top 10.

"Slow economic growth in major developed economies, high levels of debt in emerging countries, deflation or low inflation in rich countries and a protectionist backlash against globalisation were among dynamics which contributed to a challenging economic environment for retailers," said Dr Ira Kalish, Deloitte global chief economist. "And yet people still need to shop, so the industry carries on. In some places and with some cohorts of shoppers, the outlook for retailers is favourable."

For the third year in a row, revenue growth for the Top 250 apparel and accessories retailers outperformed other product sectors. Historically, this category of retailers has also been the most profitable, and fiscal year 2015 was no exception. However, retailers of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) are, by far, the largest companies (average retail revenue of nearly $21.6 billion) as well as the most numerous (133 retailers accounting for just over half of all Top 250 companies and two-thirds of Top 250 revenue).

The top 10 include Walmart, US; Costco, US; The Kroger Co, US; Schwarz Unternehmenstreuhand KG (Lidl), Germany; Walgreens Boots Alliance, The Home Depot, US; Carrefour, France; Aldi, Germany; Tesco, UK, and Amazon.com, US.

The 10 largest e-tailers include Amazon.com, US; JD.com, China; Apple, US; Walmart, US; Suning Commerce Group, China; Otto, Germany; Tesco, UK; Vipshop, China; Liberty Interactive Corporation, US, and Macy's, US.

- issacjohn@khaleejtimes.com