Company Insights Chalhoub Group Retail Chalhoub Group Overview Chalhoub Group is the Middle East’s largest luxury goods retailer and distributor, with over 16,000 employees from 119 nationalities operating across 14 countries. Established in 1955 in Damascus, Syria, by Michel and Widad Chalhoub, the company relocated its headquarters to Dubai in 1990. Still owned by the family, Patrick Chalhoub became president in 2018 after his brother Anthony died. Chalhoub Group specialises in luxury, fashion and beauty, managing more than 750 retail stores and 65 e-commerce platforms. It partners with brands like Louis Vuitton, Dior Couture, Sephora and OTB Group (Diesel, Maison Margiela). Chalhoub also operates retail franchises such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Swarovski and owns concepts like Level Shoes and Ghawali. Milestones include a 2018 joint venture with Farfetch for online luxury and buying Threads Styling in 2022. The Group also champions innovation, with Christofle entering the metaverse through its NFT collection. Chalhoub Group says it is committed to sustainability, targeting net zero emissions by 2040. It says that women hold 35 percent of management roles and 30 percent of Executive Committee positions, and that partnerships such as the Ruby Career Fair help to enhance Emirati workforce development. Chalhoub Group News Video length: 07:34 Analysis Retail Retail staff shortage dents GCC shopper satisfaction Shoppers across the Gulf Cooperation Council countries are being put off their purchases by a shortage of skilled staff in the region’s retail sector, as prices of products continue to rise. Annual retail sales in the six GCC countries are expected to grow to $300 billion by 2028, a 37 percent increase from 2022. But […] August 21, 2024 Retail Chalhoub Group in venture with Italian luxury brand Luxury distributor Chalhoub Group has entered into a joint venture with Italian fashion conglomerate OTB Group to expand the brand’s footprint in the Gulf. OTB (which stands for Only The Brave) owns the Diesel, Jil Sander, Maison Margiela, Marni and Viktor&Rolf brands, the Staff International and Brave Kid companies, and holds a stake in the […] June 17, 2024 Finance Jadwa acquires stake in Gissah Perfumes Jadwa Investment, a Riyadh-based investment management and advisory firm, has acquired a 35 percent equity stake in Kuwait’s Gissah Perfumes Company, with plans for a listing on the Saudi Arabian bourse. The stake was purchased through Jadwa Retail Opportunities Fund, the companies said in a joint statement. Founded in 2018, Gissah has 80 stores in […] August 24, 2023 Video length: 03:22 VIDEO Employment Only 7% of GCC board seats are held by women Only 7 percent of board seats in the GCC are held by women compared to 20 percent globally, a report by Bain & Company says. “There is an issue in retaining, mentoring and supporting women to make it all the way to CEO positions and the board,” said Karen Khalaf, partner at Bain & Company […] July 14, 2023 MAKE IT HAPPEN Tech Become a master of the metaverse For a time last year, all anybody seemed to be talking about was the metaverse. Some Gulf businesses said they were already planning for it, while others were trying to work out what the fuss was about. The frequently asked questions included: when will it really arrive? How much does it cost? Who’s on the […] February 17, 2023 Manufacturing Gulf fragrance market strikes the right note Some of the Middle East’s biggest perfume makers, including Chalhoub Group and Ajmal Perfumes, are ramping up global growth plans as traditional Arabic scents gain in popularity abroad. Luxury brands franchisee and distributor Chalhoub is close to striking deals to export its own fragrance brand, Ghawali, to countries including the UK and France. The first […] February 14, 2023 Analysis Retail Global luxury fashion brands look to the Gulf for growth in 2023 The Middle East and North America are expected to have the highest growth potential for the fashion industry in 2023, as executives deprioritise countries like China in the short term. The war in Ukraine, rising inflation and supply chain pressures are the biggest threats to the fashion industry in the run-up to a challenging year […] December 2, 2022 Sustainability UAE rallies private sector to realise 2050 net-zero pledge The UAE has launched its first ‘Climate-Responsible Companies Pledge,’ in a bid to boost the private sector’s role in helping the country achieve its target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050 – dubbed the Net Zero 2050 Strategic Initiative. More than 21 UAE-based companies have so far signed up to the pledge, unveiled by […] September 1, 2022 Opinion Own your hyper realistic penthouse in the virtual world Buying real estate in the metaverse illustrates the concept of the shifting value of digital ownership August 18, 2022 Analysis Retail Luxury retail rebounds from Covid in the GCC The GCC’s luxury retail market has made a quicker than anticipated recovery following the coronavirus pandemic. An increase in local spending has been a major factor driving the upturn, together with the expansion of the personal luxury market in Saudi Arabia. Figures from Bain & Company show that the GCC luxury goods market shrank by […] July 21, 2022 Posts navigation
Video length: 07:34 Analysis Retail Retail staff shortage dents GCC shopper satisfaction Shoppers across the Gulf Cooperation Council countries are being put off their purchases by a shortage of skilled staff in the region’s retail sector, as prices of products continue to rise. Annual retail sales in the six GCC countries are expected to grow to $300 billion by 2028, a 37 percent increase from 2022. But […] August 21, 2024
Retail Chalhoub Group in venture with Italian luxury brand Luxury distributor Chalhoub Group has entered into a joint venture with Italian fashion conglomerate OTB Group to expand the brand’s footprint in the Gulf. OTB (which stands for Only The Brave) owns the Diesel, Jil Sander, Maison Margiela, Marni and Viktor&Rolf brands, the Staff International and Brave Kid companies, and holds a stake in the […] June 17, 2024
Finance Jadwa acquires stake in Gissah Perfumes Jadwa Investment, a Riyadh-based investment management and advisory firm, has acquired a 35 percent equity stake in Kuwait’s Gissah Perfumes Company, with plans for a listing on the Saudi Arabian bourse. The stake was purchased through Jadwa Retail Opportunities Fund, the companies said in a joint statement. Founded in 2018, Gissah has 80 stores in […] August 24, 2023
Video length: 03:22 VIDEO Employment Only 7% of GCC board seats are held by women Only 7 percent of board seats in the GCC are held by women compared to 20 percent globally, a report by Bain & Company says. “There is an issue in retaining, mentoring and supporting women to make it all the way to CEO positions and the board,” said Karen Khalaf, partner at Bain & Company […] July 14, 2023
MAKE IT HAPPEN Tech Become a master of the metaverse For a time last year, all anybody seemed to be talking about was the metaverse. Some Gulf businesses said they were already planning for it, while others were trying to work out what the fuss was about. The frequently asked questions included: when will it really arrive? How much does it cost? Who’s on the […] February 17, 2023
Manufacturing Gulf fragrance market strikes the right note Some of the Middle East’s biggest perfume makers, including Chalhoub Group and Ajmal Perfumes, are ramping up global growth plans as traditional Arabic scents gain in popularity abroad. Luxury brands franchisee and distributor Chalhoub is close to striking deals to export its own fragrance brand, Ghawali, to countries including the UK and France. The first […] February 14, 2023
Analysis Retail Global luxury fashion brands look to the Gulf for growth in 2023 The Middle East and North America are expected to have the highest growth potential for the fashion industry in 2023, as executives deprioritise countries like China in the short term. The war in Ukraine, rising inflation and supply chain pressures are the biggest threats to the fashion industry in the run-up to a challenging year […] December 2, 2022
Sustainability UAE rallies private sector to realise 2050 net-zero pledge The UAE has launched its first ‘Climate-Responsible Companies Pledge,’ in a bid to boost the private sector’s role in helping the country achieve its target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050 – dubbed the Net Zero 2050 Strategic Initiative. More than 21 UAE-based companies have so far signed up to the pledge, unveiled by […] September 1, 2022
Opinion Own your hyper realistic penthouse in the virtual world Buying real estate in the metaverse illustrates the concept of the shifting value of digital ownership August 18, 2022
Analysis Retail Luxury retail rebounds from Covid in the GCC The GCC’s luxury retail market has made a quicker than anticipated recovery following the coronavirus pandemic. An increase in local spending has been a major factor driving the upturn, together with the expansion of the personal luxury market in Saudi Arabia. Figures from Bain & Company show that the GCC luxury goods market shrank by […] July 21, 2022
