Supermarket franchisee Spinneys Dubai plans IPO in 2024

Rothschild & Co SCA

24/09/2023 11:40

By Hadeel Al Sayegh
       Sept 24 (Reuters) - Spinneys Dubai LLC, the franchisee
of the supermarket chain in the United Arab Emirates and Oman,
is planning an initial public offering of the business in the
second quarter of 2024, three sources with direct knowledge of
the matter said.
    Albwardy Investment, the franchise's 100% owner, hired
Rothschild & Co to advise on the planned IPO, the sources said,
requesting anonymity as the plans are not public.
    It invited banks this week to pitch for roles in the
offering, expected to be up to 30% of the company, the sources
added.
    Spinneys, Albwardy and Rothschild did not immediately
respond to Reuters' requests for comment.
    The potential IPO of Spinneys Dubai, planned on the Dubai
Financial Market, would add to the small but growing regional
food retail sector.
    Americana Restaurants, the Middle East and North Africa
franchisee of fast food restaurants KFC and Pizza Hut, as well
as a seller of frozen foods, debuted in a dual listing in Abu
Dhabi and Riyadh in December.
    Lulu Group, a hypermarket and mall operator, expects its IPO
in the first half of 2024, its chairman said earlier this month,
adding that it hired Moelis & Co to advise it, confirming an
October 2022 Reuters report.
    IPO activity in the Gulf is expected to pick up after the
pace slowed from an exceptional 2022, when Saudi Arabia and the
UAE led new listings, raising nearly $22 billion - more than
half the total for the wider Europe, Middle East and Africa
region, Dealogic data shows.
    Middle Eastern companies still raised $5.3 billion in the
first half of this year through 23 market debuts.
    Spinneys Dubai operates more than 65 stores across the UAE,
its website says. In addition, it operates at least seven stores
in Oman, Albwardy's website says.
    Albwardy, which says it has annual turnover above $1
billion, also owns the franchise rights to upmarket British
supermarket chain Waitrose.
    Founded in the mid-1970s, it has a hospitality portfolio
that includes several Four Seasons hotels and food distribution
investments that include Nestle UAE.
    Other sectors in Albwardy's portfolio are industrial and
engineering, commercial and insurance, agribusiness and
properties.

 (Writing by Yousef Saba; editing by Barbara Lewis)
 ((Yousef.Saba@thomsonreuters.com; +971562166204; https://twitter.com/YousefSaba))