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DUBAI – The owner of UAE-based off-price retailer Brands For Less Group (BFL Group) is considering selling a minority stake in the company to investors, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.
BFL Group is working with deNovo Corporate Advisors, a Dubai-based boutique firm led by former Morgan Stanley banker May Nasrallah, the sources said.
BFL Group and deNovo did not respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
Founded by Lebanese entrepreneurs Toufic Kreidieh and Yasser Beydoun, Brands For Less opened its first store in Beirut in 1996 and expanded to the United Arab Emirates four years later, moving its headquarters to Dubai.
The group has several product lines, including Brands for Less (made up of fashion retail stores), Toys For Less, Homes For Less and Luxury For Less. It follows the low-price retail model, selling branded products at discounted prices.
The planned deal is expected to attract the attention of private equity investors and sovereign wealth funds as the business is expected to do well or outperform in a recessionary environment as people look to save, the sources said.
BFL Group also owns an online retail business, operating 85 stores in six countries, according to information on its website.
The Gulf region has been attracting a flood of foreign funds to set up operations over the past two years, lured by the low-tax environment and the chance to co-invest in larger deals in the region with sovereign wealth funds.
French private equity firm Ardian said in January it would open an office in the neighboring United Arab Emirates capital Abu Dhabi, while CVC opened an office in Dubai last year.
EY said in March that 2022 saw “unprecedented” M&A activity in the Middle East and North Africa, with 754 deals, a 13% increase in deal volume compared to 2021.
(Reporting by Hadeel Al Sayegh; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
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