Dubai: Cravia, parent company of brands like Cinnabon and Seattle’s Best Coffee, plans to double its turnover by 2016 by opening new stores and increasing same-store sales to take advantage of a growing food and beverage market.
“Today, we have 71-72 restaurants, predominantly in the UAE. We feel we have reached the economies of scale to allow us to build on that with very minimal cost and also to benefit from the growth in the market both in the UAE and Saudi Arabia,” said Walid Hajj, chief executive of Cravia, in a phone interview on Sunday.
He expects the company’s turnover to grow from Dh200 million this year to Dh400 million in 2016. Its same-store sales are anticipated to grow by 10 per cent this year over the previous year. Revenue for the year is likely to grow by 30-40 per cent in 2015 from Dh170 million in 2014, he said.
Cravia aims to open seven to eight stores across the UAE in 2015 and another seven to eight next year across four of its five brands including Cinnabon, Seattle’s Best Coffee, Zaatar w Zeit and The Steak Bar.
Some of the locations it is eyeing are Yas Mall and the financial district in Abu Dhabi.
Cravia already operates in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain this year. The UAE is by far the company’s largest market, accounting for 80 per cent of its sales.
“In the UAE, although with a major increase on competition, we believe that we have established very strong brands and those brands have established their clientele and reputation. When you get to that level, that’s when you start reaping the benefits of the economies of scale,” Hajj said.
Meanwhile in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, the company plans to open between three and four stores this year and between nine and 12 next year under the Zaatar w Zeit and Five Guys brands.
It is investing “Dh20-40 million a year” for the expansion, Hajj said.
He said that Cravia does not plan to expand its portfolio of brands in the next 12 to 18 months. It will focus instead on expanding the presence of the Five Guys brand.
It is not looking at entering new markets at present.
