Majid Al Futtaim (MAF), the retail operator of Carrefour in Egypt and Kenya, is the lead bidder for the acquisition of the Geant Hypermarket chain, owned by French retailer Casino.
MAF is a privately-owned Dubai-based firm which has business beyond retail, mainly in the hotel industry. In what concerns its retail portfolio in Africa, it currently operates 9 hypermarkets and nineteen supermarkets in Egypt and 2 outlets in Kenya, in the Two Rivers Mall and in The Hub Karen. Beyond the continent, it has 95 outlets in an additional 13 countries.
The move to acquire a controlling stake of Geant should be seen as MAF’s increasing focus of the on the MENA region, in opposition to greater investment in Africa, especially. In fact, should the acquisition go through, the retailer will own 13 new outlets across the UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.
