Lulu Retail Q3 profit up 2.4% to $36 million on steady sales, revenue hits $1.89 billion

Lulu Retail has reported a net profit of $36 million for the third quarter of 2025, marking a 2.4 per cent year-on-year increase as revenue climbed 2 per cent to $1.89 billion.

The Abu Dhabi-headquartered retail giant said the growth was underpinned by steady consumer demand, the expansion of its store network, and a strong performance in its fast-growing online segment. Profit growth was supported by a 3.1 per cent rise in gross profit to $449 million, aided by higher sales in the fresh food.

Saifee Rupawala, Chief Executive Officer of Lulu Retail, said the third quarter reflected the company’s “resilience” in a challenging retail environment.

“Nine months into the year our store rollout programme remains on track and like-for-like sales are positive in all our countries except Bahrain,” he said.

During the third quarter alone, Lulu opened six new stores – one hypermarket, three express, and two mini markets – across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait. This brought total openings in the first nine months of 2025 to 13, with three more stores launched in October and four additional outlets planned before year-end, bringing the total to 20. Lulu, the largest pan-GCC full-line retailer, said its revised three-year expansion plan includes 50 new store openings, to be distributed roughly equally across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and other GCC markets.

“We are evolving our customer offering with a trend towards smaller stores and a disciplined rollout programme,” Rupawala noted.

Lulu also reported a 5 per cent rise in customer count during the quarter, though the average basket size was smaller, indicating more frequent but lower-value purchases. Private label products, which offer higher margins, saw 6.2 per cent growth, accounting for 30.6 per cent of total sales as price-conscious consumers sought better value.

Lulu’s nine-month revenue reached $6 billion, up 4.7 per cent year-on-year, while net profit rose 7.5 per cent to $163 million. EBITDA for the period increased 5.5 per cent to $598 million, with margin improvement of 8 basis points. The company maintained a strong financial position, with net debt of $2.6 billion.

The company’s online business continued to be a major growth driver, with e-commerce revenues rising 32.4 per cent year-on-year during the quarter. With 102 omni-channel-enabled stores, including 60 express outlets offering 30 to 45-minute delivery, the company is strengthening its fast-commerce capabilities.

“As customer preference for online channels continues to grow, Lulu is investing in our e-commerce offering which is scaling at a rapid rate,” Rupawala added.
Founded in 1974, Lulu Retail operates more than 260 stores across the GCC, serving over 690,000 shoppers daily from 130 nationalities. The group sources products from 85 countries through 19 global sourcing hubs.