Dubai: Woolworths in the Middle East is planning to expand its reach in the UAE, a senior company official told Gulf News.

Saleh Sharaf, retail division director for the Sharaf Group which operates Woolworths in the UAE, said there is no connection at all between Woolworths in the UK and Woolworths in the UAE.

"Woolworths Middle East is part of the franchise of South Africa. In fact there is no connection. [Woolworths in the UK] is a discount store, it's general trading. There you can buy a Coke, you can buy a DVD, it's just a discount store, whereas Woolworths South Africa is a department store, it's up-market while this [Woolworths UK] is lower market. Woolworths is a common name. You have Woolworths UK, Woolworths Australia, Woolworths USA, they all have the same name but they are all different.

"If you visit Australia, Woolworths is a supermarket there, it has the same name, the same spelling but it is just a supermarket. They are all totally different concepts. The logo is different, the store design is different, the product is different. They are totally separate concepts. There is no link," he said.

The global economic downturn has not yet had an effect on the group, Sharaf added.

"Our performance this year is up compared to last year. So far there is no sign of any decline; there is only growth for us. There might be an effect in 2009 but I don't think it will be very serious.

"I think 2009 might be a challenging year, but that doesn't mean that we will get hurt. There might be some slowdown early in the year but I am sure that by the end of the year it should be fine," he said.

Despite a less upbeat outlook for 2009 caused by the world economic climate, Sharaf said the group was considering moving into new markets, taking various brands under its umbrella into South East Asia.

Sharaf Retail brand manager Volente Studdard said she was inundated with queries about whether the part sale taking place at Woolworths in the UAE at present was due to the store closing down.

Clarification

"There is no problem with our stores here. We are having a sale now and people want to know if that is part of this [the UK stores shutting]. It is not. That is the clarification that we need to get across," she said.

Sharaf said Woolworths SA is an African and Middle Eastern franchise. The Sharaf Group operates the UAE and Oman stores and another party operates the Bahrain stores.

The first Woolworths store in the UAE opened in 1995 at the Deira City City and there are now branches in the Ibn Battuta Mall, Marina Mall, Abu Dhabi, Manar Mall, Ras Al Khaimah, Sharjah City Center and in Muscat. The flagship store at DCC recently underwent a $2 million refurbishment.

"Woolworths DCC was the first department store in the region, the first one. We are now considering opening other branches and because of the demand from South Africans always asking for Woolworths foods we are also working on bringing Woolworths foods into the market. There are no problems with our stores here," Studdard said.