Dubai's Hotbrands International (HBI), a leading food services company in the Middle East, has opened its first two QSR (Quick Service Restaurant) outlets in Saudi Arabia under a joint venture with top Saudi retailer, Al-Sawani Group. The two quick service restaurant units, Shamiana and Santino's, have been opened at Al-Hayat Mall in Riyadh, and will be followed by the launch of 15 more HBI outlets in the Kingdom in the next three months. HBI plans to open over 50 outlets in Saudi Arabia over the next 18 months. Under the agreement, the joint venture company Al-Sawani Hotbrands LLC will hold the franchise rights to operate well-known quick service restaurant units of HBI like Shamiana (Indian food), Magic Wok (Chinese), Santino's (Italian), Sugoi (Japanese) and Sala Thai (Thai), as well as casual dining restaurant Pane Caldo (Italian) and Da Shi Dai, which serves Chinese food. The new units in Saudi Arabia will be located in Riyadh, Jeddah, Madinnah, Dammam, Al-Khobar and Al-Hasa. HBI's entry into the Saudi market follows the recent opening of three more outlets in India, as part of the company's rapid expansion strategy. In India, HBI is currently operating a total of 12 units under a strategic alliance that it has forged with Amit Burman of Darbur Foods. As a marketer and distributor, Al-Sawani Group holds the exclusive distribution rights to over 30 world-renowned brand names covering fashion, accessories and home collection goods. Al-Sawani Group has also established a powerful retail network encompassing various concepts and incorporating over 450 free standing and department stores across the 14 Middle Eastern countries. International brands under the Al Sawani Group include Esprit, GUESS, United Colours of Benetton, Max Mara, Go Sport, Red Earth, Replay, G2000, La Perla, Sfera, XOXO, US and Levis. Avinash Bal, Vice Chairman and CEO of Hotbrands International (HBI), said: “As a home-grown success story out of the Middle East, HBI is expanding internationally rapidly, moving into new locations that have tremendous potential, in line with its vision to become a world leader in the multi-brand ethnic restaurant industry. As we continue to grow our presence throughout the Middle East and across the world, we will seek to identify strong partners. There is huge potential for growing our business in Saudi Arabia, and in Al Sawani Group, we have found the perfect partner to support this growth. Both companies will be able to further combine and consolidate their synergies as a result of this significant tie-up. Our strategic partnership with Al-Sawani Group, a renowned and respected business house, will also enable us to relate, and be more responsive to the changing dynamics and needs of a massive market”. Mohammed A. Hafiz, CEO of Al-Sawani Group, said: “By entering into a joint venture with Hotbrands International (HBI) , a reputed food services company in the region, the Al-Sawani Group has underlined its commitment to providing its customers access to a diversified basket of authentic retail products and brands. We are looking forward to offering our experience and expertise to market the unique range of ethnic cuisine concepts from HBI.” __
