LuLu Group has opened its first mall with hypermarket in Malaysia, where the UAE-based retail major plans an investment of $300mn and 10 hypermarkets in the next five years. The group will also invest another $500mn in setting up the largest shopping mall in Malaysia.
The 250,000-sq-ft hypermarket was inaugurated by the Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak in the presence of Dr Ahmed Zahid Hamidi, Deputy Prime Minister, other senior officials, the UAE ambassador, Indian high commissioner among other dignitaries.
LuLu group said, “The new hypermarket is ideally located in the CapSqaure, Jalan Munshi area of Kuala Lumpur and is expected to be one of its kind in the country and will attract large segments of population from all walks of life with its attractive product offers and range. The new hypermarket is spread in three levels and combines everything from grocery and supermarkets products to fashion, household and latest electronics and gadgets. Hot food from around the world, fresh seafood and locally grown produce are some of the key highlights in the supermarket area.”
Razak said, “We are very pleased to welcome the LuLu brand to Malaysia as this will pave way for more international brands to come and invest in Malaysia. I am also hopeful that LuLu will surely open many more hypermarkets and malls not only in Kuala Lumpur but also in other parts of Malaysia.”
Yusuffali MA, LuLu Group chairman, said, “With an initial investment of $300mn in the first phase, we plan to open 10 hypermarkets by end-2021 and a central logistics and warehousing facility in Malaysia. These projects are likely to generate more than 5,000 job opportunities for Malaysians.” “We also plan to set up contract farming to ensure continuous supply of high quality products and to support the Malaysian agriculture sector,” he said.
“Today the whole world knows about Malaysia’s economic stability, investor friendly approach, liberalised policies and world-class infrastructure. We are confident about our success here and our hypermarkets encompass both supermarket and department store formats and we intend to bring a whole new world of shopping to the residents of Malaysia,” Yusuffali said.
During his official visit to the UAE in 2014, Razak had visited LuLu hypermarket in Abu Dhabi and expressed keen desire to have LuLu in Malaysia.
The LuLu Group currently operates some 126 stores across the GCC, Egypt, India, Indonesia and employees more than 38,000 people from different nationalities and is also one of the largest retail chains in the Middle East.
It is also ranked by Deloitte as one of the top 10 fastest growing retailers in the world.