iErbil Exclusive: CARREFOUR OPENS IRAQ STORE ON DEC 27 AT ERBIL'S FAMILY MALL

By Mariwan Salihi
Sunday, 11 December 2011

ERBIL – Carrefour, the renowned French hypermarket chain, opens its first outlet in Erbil, capital of northern Iraq's Kurdistan Region, on December 27 2011.

 

Carrefour's Erbil store will open at the city's prestigious Family Mall, located on 100 M. Road.  "After many months of hard work, we're finally close [to the opening day]…which we have planned now for December 27," reveals a source from Family Mall exclusively to iErbil, on conditions of anonymity.


The source, who is not allowed to make media statements, says the reason why the opening was postponed for more than a year was "because of logistic issues." The opening of the hypermarket was announced more than 18 months ago, and was delayed for unknown reasons until now. "They [Carrefour] also needed more time for recruiting staff," he adds.

Carrefour is the world's second largest and Europe's largest retailer. The company's entrance into the Iraqi market is expected to promote significant economic development in the country and region. Carrefour's Iraq store is managed by United Arab Emirates-based Majid Al Futtaim (MAF) Retail; MAF Retail manages a join venture in the Middle East with Carrefour.

"The north of Iraq [Kurdistan Region] is a very promising market and a stable area," Muhammad Naeem, an executive at MAF Retail, tells the media in March, 2010, when revealing the hypermarket's venture into the country. "We studied the economy [and] the infrastructure--we see no uncertainty and no security issues in that part of the country," Naeem explains.

Kurdistan Region is the only area in Iraq that has emerged relatively unscathed after the American invasion in 2003. The predominantly Kurdish north attracts most foreign investments, and is the country's most prosperous region, with an expected per capita income of nearly $7,000 for 2012.

Carrefour will become the second foreign hypermarket chain to enter the lucrative Iraqi market. In November 2009, Kuwait-based City Centre opened a 13,000-square-meter hypermarket at Majidi Mall in Erbil, considered then the largest hypermarket in Iraq. The new Carrefour store, spread on two floors, is expected to be much larger.

 

 

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