Majid Al Futtaim: Emirati business veteran who keeps building mega destinations

First, by creating Deira City Centre and bringing French supermarket brand Carrefour to Dubai, then the UAE, and then into the Middle East and Africa to boost retail. With Deira City Centre, Al Futtaim is laying the groundwork for Dubai’s rise as a world shopping destination. In fact, from the mid-1990s to the end of the last decade, Deira city centre was one of the most visited tourist attractions in the UAE.

“We remember how Mr. Al Futtaim kept making regular visits at the beginning of Deira City Centre’s opening,” said a retail executive who has worked closely with him. “But he’s just as interested in what Carrefour is doing – that’s the early days of the hypermarket destination. He wants to know every detail.”

Neither Deira City Centre nor Carrefour had a long gestation period to reach their goals – their initial success was a catalyst for the brands to enter some of the biggest markets in Sharjah, other emirates and the wider MENA.

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My dream is to create beautiful moments for everyone every day…

– Majid Al Futtaim

Majid Al Futtaim brand and influence is integral to the retail industry in Egypt, just like the UAE and some other countries Gulf Market. The mixed-use destination concept has been around in the UAE for the better part of 20 years, but one of the real pioneers in the field is Majid Al Futtaim, whether adding a hotel element, a cinema or any other place where you can take people to spend their time .

“Between the opening of Deira City Centre in 1995-96 and the Mall of the Emirates nine years later, he changed the concept of retail,” said a CEO who has known him since his Deira City Centre days. “When the group launched Ski Dubai in a desert climate, no one would believe it.

He was inspiring and a true visionary for the entire business world.

– Yussufali MA, Chairman of LuLu Group

That’s right – Majid Al Futtaim is considering combining leisure and entertainment with pure shopping Long before it became a necessity for all brick-and-mortar retailers to compete online. Arguably, in this part of the world, Ski Dubai is partly uncharted territory. The question for many is are consumers willing to spend their time in a sub-zero artificial environment? Even with snow and penguins.

Mall of the Emirates and Ski Dubai showed its audience. Although parts of the first few years bore the brunt of the 2008-09 global financial crisis.

Yussufali MA, Chairman of LuLu Group, said: “Majid Al Futtaim made landmarks into destinations – something everyone learned from him. He was directly involved in some key business areas – his passing is a huge loss.”

He will always be remembered for his contributions in building the foundations of this country’s auto industry, as well as for his contributions in countless other fields, such as his humanitarian work.

– Michel Ayat, CEO of AWR Automotive

Nowhere is this more telling than the opening of Al Zahia Mall in Sharjah earlier this year, before the retail industry embraced the devastation of COVID-19. The biggest mall in the emirate has opened and not many will say it wasn’t an overnight success.

That’s why those who knew him kept using the term “visionary”. Michel Ayat, CEO of local Nissan, Infiniti and Renault dealer AWR Automotive, said: “Majid Al Futtaim has played a key role in the development of the UAE and the region. He is a role model for all business leaders and those who work with him. I Deepest condolences to his family and the UAE for the loss of such a great man.”

Whatever Majid Al Futtaim created has really changed the dynamics of the market. “

– Firas Al Msaddi, CEO, Fam Properties

Mohammad Al Badri, director of the Eros Group, is another who does not hesitate to use visionary themes. “We are all saddened by this terrible news. Our prayers are with his family and the staff of Majid Al Futtaim.”

sometimes number Really helps illustrate the depth of the group’s influence. In the first six months of the year, it reported revenue of AED15.6 billion as the economy and the industry as a whole were still reeling from the pandemic. Of course, that’s a 10% drop – but it’s negligible for a group that plays a key role in ensuring stocks and deliveries for daily needs during the lockdown phase.

Dubai’s icon, trailblazer of mind and spirit – Majid Al Futtaim’s efforts to build the region’s private sector, retail and tourism ecosystem will never be forgotten.

– Rizwan Sajan, Chairman of the Danube Group

Equally important, the group has taken some actions that help its employees. Most notably, it absorbed some of the workforce that was directly affected by the blockade of Carrefour’s e-commerce business, which started to gain momentum. This decision saved jobs, and the easier option was to let go.

He was a visionary who helped transform the city [the] future and growth.

– Mohammad Al Badri, Director of Eros Group

Without a doubt, the Majid Al Futtaim Group was one of the first to go all out. Support for the UAE The government recently announced ‘elegant‘plan to create more Career Opportunities For talented UAE nationals in the private sector.

“The group is one of the most systemically important companies in the private sector in terms of job creation – for everyone,” said a human resources business consultant. “But more than that – the group has a diversity policy, ESG (environmental social governance) practices that are well above the norm in the region.”

The many achievements of the group that bears his name are a true testament to his vision and expertise, and a business model that future entrepreneurs can emulate.

– George Kunnappally, Regional Head of South African restaurant brand Nando’s

“As a tenant who has operated many of MAF’s assets for around 20 years, I’m sure everyone will agree with me that Mr Al Futtaim was well ahead of his time and will be remembered as the region’s organised retail sector Father,” said George Kunnappally, regional head of South African restaurant brand Nando’s.

living together Sustainability, the Group has also introduced “green financing” to capital needs. This means raising funds linked to specific environmental actions. Needless to say, it is far ahead of other businesses in the region in green thinking.

This green focus is well represented in another venture by Majid Al Futtaim – creating a self-sufficient residential community. Now, again one might ask, haven’t Dubai and the UAE already done all the work in real estate?

He saw an opportunity for people to see the sand. He dared to dream big.

– Ashish Panjabi, COO, Jacky’s

Firas Al Msaddi, chief executive of fam Properties, would not describe it that way. “Of course, a retail or leisure destination will feel more of Majid Al Futtaim’s legacy – but his community-themed projects are highly anticipated and sold out within hours and days. Whether the market is at its peak or coming out of a slump, the situation It’s all like that.

“As people come out of the lockdown phase, the first project in Dubai to feel an immediate turnaround is his Tilal Al Ghaf. Villas there – whatever is available – are sold immediately. The whole trend of buying villas started in Tilal Al Ghaf.”

And to create those “great moments”…