Samsonite embarks on major GCC expansion plans

US luggage maker Samsonite has embarked on a major expansion plan for the GCC region and aims to open a number of outlets of Samsonite and its recently-acquired company Hartmann over the next three years, said its Chief Operating Officer in Dubai.

Ramesh Tainwala told Emirates 24l7 in an interview that the group is “aiming to open 25 stores of Hartmann in the Gulf region over the next three years.”

He said around 10 stores of Hartmann and 15 stores of Samsonite will be opened this year.

Samsonite, according to Tainwala, is present in virtually every point of sales in GCC with 50 outlets. The new stores will come up in new malls in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

The group will be hiring roughly 125 employees for new outlets as five people are required to run each outlet, he said, adding that “Dubai will get first store. We will not open store anywhere else in GCC before we open in Dubai. Because you end up giving wrong message to customers if you don’t have first in Dubai. You can’t go to Qatar and Kuwait first and then Dubai. You can’t go reverse.”

He said the group will be investing over $10 million (Dh36.7 million) in 25 new stores in the region.

Samsonite’s 2013 profits jumped 18.6 per cent to $176.1 million (Dh646.3 million) from $148.4 million (Dh 544.6 million) in the previous year while sales reached record $2 billion (Dh7.34 billion), up 15 per cent.

The UAE – particularly Dubai – boasts presence of the world’s top brands.

CBRE in its new report rated UAE among the world’s top 22 markets targeted by global retailers. Titled “How Active Are Retailers Globally”, the report said around 10 per cent of global retailers are targeting the country in 2014.

It said most sought-after markets for European retailers outside their own markets are UAE, China and Saudi Arabia which are being targeted by 15 per cent, 12 per cent and 12 per cent of retailers, respectively.

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