ADNOC Distribution and Géant sign landmark retail agreement

ABU DHABI, 17th March 2018 (WAM) - ADNOC Distribution has unveiled a partnership with global retail brand Géant, in a clear signal that the UAE’s largest fuel and convenience store retailer is becoming more customer-centric in an effort to boost its financial performance. Under the agreement with Urban Foods, which operates Géant in the UAE, ten existing ADNOC Distribution convenience stores will be converted into Géant branded outlets with a new design and layout. Géant will oversee category management, supply chain and logistics while ADNOC Distribution will continue to own and staff the convenience stores. A statement from ADNOC Distribution indicated that customers would soon see new fresh food, grocery, snacks and confectionery options at the ten newly rebranded Géant stores, located in Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Ajman. ADNOC Distribution’s Acting CEO, Saeed Mubarak Al Rashdi, said: "ADNOC Distribution is determined to improve our convenience store offering as we transform into a more customer-centric company. Therefore, I am delighted that the Géant brand, which is well known globally and in the UAE for quality products and service, will soon feature at ten of our sites. Bringing the ADNOC Distribution and Géant brands together, through our agreement with Urban Foods, will improve choice, convenience and service for our customers." The latest move by ADNOC Distribution mirrors what customers find in Europe or the United States, where service station operators often partner with world-famous retail brands to increase footfall and revenue. Currently, more than twenty million people visit ADNOC Distribution’s network service stations every month, according to the company’s website. The Géant brand is part of a global French conglomerate that operates some 13,000 convenience stores around the world. Urban Foods’ Senior Vice President of Operations, Mark Lack, commented: "We are delighted to collaborate with ADNOC Distribution which has a market-leading service station network across the UAE. We strongly believe that by bringing the Géant brand to ADNOC Distribution, we will be jointly introducing a compelling proposition for consumers in the UAE." Improving the performance of its convenience stores - which currently represents a relatively small part of overall revenue, according to ADNOC Distribution’s prospectus released in December - is a key priority of the company’s management. Earlier this year, ADNOC Distribution announced plans to open 13 new service stations in 2018 including – for the first time – stations in the Emirate of Dubai and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. At the time, the company said it had cut capital expenditure on all new sites and plans to reduce it by as much as 40% by 2019, without compromising safety or the experience of customers.