Home Centre reveals 50 store expansion, Dhs 1bn investment

Landmark-owned furniture retailer Home Centre has announced plans for 50 new stores over the next five years as part of a Dhs 1bn investment.

The sum, taken from the brand’s own funds, will expand on its 90 stores across 10 countries in the region.

CEO Mederic Payne said a “disproportionate share” of the investment would be spent in the UAE, where the brand is launching four new stores in the next few months and has plans to move its headquarters to Dubai’s TECOM area.

He also revealed around 20 of the new stores would be built in Saudi Arabia, adding to Home Centre’s local footprint of 29.

As part of the investment, the brand is also refitting 40 existing stores in the region and exploring expansion opportunities in Kazakhstan, Morocco, Kenya, Algeria, and Angola.

It will also add around 3,000 employees to its 6,000 strong workforce and is exploring Indonesia as an additional consolidation point for its sourcing operations, on top of China and India.

Other parts of the investment include new products lines, like modular furniture, and enhancements to its warehouse facilities.

In addition, Home Centre is bringing its UAE stores online in the coming days. From September 20, the brand will offer more than 2,500 items for sale on its website, with next day and cash on delivery options.

Payne said the brand would initially try to engage with customers online, expecting sales to pickup in 2018 to 2019.

“We believe that e-commerce as an avenue has strong growth potential and this is an important step towards our goal of offering our customers a complete omni-channel experience,” he said.

Home Centre’s current footprint includes India, the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Lebanon. It claims annual footfall of 30 million people.