Dubai: Marka, a Dubai-based retailer which listed on the emirate’s bourse last year, expects earnings of Reem Al Bawadi, a restaurant chain that it acquired earlier this month for Dh315 million, to grow by more than 25 per cent annually in the coming years.
Khalid Al Muhairi, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director at Marka, said the company plans to open four more Reem Al Bawadi stores in the next 18 months, including in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and finalise three franchise agreements by the end of the current year, according to a statement on Sunday on the Dubai Financial Market (DFM).
Reem Al Bawadi, which serves Middle Eastern food, has six outlets in the UAE, two in Saudi Arabia and one in Bahrain, according to its website.
Marka currently operates four fashion outlets and 15 sporting goods stores.
More acquisitions
Al Muhairi also said in the statement that Marka expects to close three more acquisitions by the end of the current year.
The company completed two acquisitions last month, including Retailcorp, a subsidiary of Istithmar World, for Dh220 million, and a 60 per cent stake in Cheeky Monkeys Playland & Sweet Surprises for Dh30 million.
The company’s shares were at Dh1.27 on Sunday, up 1.60 per cent from the previous closing.
