The Al-Futtaim Group () is an Emirati conglomerate based in

Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...

, United Arab Emirates.

History

The group was founded in the 1930s and expanded rapidly in the 1940s and 1950s becoming an integrated commercial, industrial, and services organization. The Al-Futtaim family split its business interests in 2000 with

Abdulla Al Futtaim Abdulla Al Futtaim (Arabic: عبدالله الفطيم) is an Emirati businessman, billionaire, investor, philanthropist and owner of Al-Futtaim Group, and cousin of fellow billionaire Majid Al Futtaim. As of October 2021, his net worth was e ...

controlling the automotive and mainly retail business, and his cousin Majid controlling a property development business (now known as

Majid Al Futtaim Group Majid Al Futtaim Holding () is an Emirati holding company based in Dubai. The family-owned conglomerate owns and operates shopping malls, retail, and hotel establishments in the Middle East and North Africa. The firm was established by M ...

). In September 2013, the group bid $86 million to take full control of the

Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...

-based car retailer CMC Holdings.

Operations

Al-Futtaim Group employs over 44,000 people and operates eight divisions comprising automotive, electronics, insurance, services, real estate, retail, industries, and overseas. Sheikh

Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum (; born 15 July 1949) is an Emirati politician and royal who is the current ruler of Dubai, and serves as the Vice President of the United Arab Emirates, vice president and Prime Minister of the United Arab ...

mediated a settlement between Abdulla Al Futtaim and his rival, cousin Majid Al Futtaim, in 2000 which split the assets, liabilities and operations of the then-larger Al Futtaim Group. The CEO of the group was Robert Willett until he suddenly resigned in January 2011. After that, Omar Al-Futtaim became a board member, CEO and vice chairman. In September 2022, the group was listed by ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

'' in the Middle East's Top 100 Arab Family Businesses, ranking third.

Businesses

Al Futtaim Motors: Established by the group in 1955, it is the exclusive distributor of

Toyota is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...

Lexus is the luxury vehicle division of the Japanese automaker Toyota, Toyota Motor Corporation. The Lexus brand is marketed in more than 90 countries and territories worldwide and is Japan's largest-selling make of premium cars. It has ranked amon ...

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trucks and Toyota Material Handling equipment in the UAE. Robinsons & Co.: In April 2008, the Al-Futtaim Group bought 88% of the shares of Robinsons & Co. at S$7.20 per share. IKEA: The group holds the franchise rights to operate

IKEA IKEA ( , ) is a Multinational corporation, multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in Sweden that designs and sells , household goods, and various related services. IKEA is owned and operated by a series of not-for-profit an ...

stores in UAE,

Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

and

Oman Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...

. It operates four IKEA stores in UAE, Qatar and Egypt. Ace Hardware: First opened in Dubai in 1991 by the group,

Ace An ace is a playing card, die or domino with a single pip. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol (a heart, diamond, spade, or a club) located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the ...

now trades in six locations in the United Arab Emirates including Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Ras Al Khaimah, and Al Ain. Each of the six stores are also certified as ‘Ace Helpful’ in keeping with global Ace standards. Plug Ins: Consumer electronics store in the UAE. Orient: Founded by Al-Futtaim in 1982, Orient is the largest

insurance company Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to protect ...

in the United Arab Emirates by

financial capital Financial capital (also simply known as capital or equity in finance, accounting and economics) is any Economic resources, economic resource measured in terms of money used by entrepreneurs and businesses to buy what they need to make their prod ...

, with up to 500 million AED (approx. 136.1 million

USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introduced the U.S. dollar at par with the Spanish silver dollar, divided it int ...

). Headquartered in Dubai, it works with major clients in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, and Ras Al Khaimah, as well as Oman and Bahrain. Toys "R" Us: The firm opened the U.A.E.'s first

Toys "R" Us Toys "R" Us is an American toy, clothing, and baby product retailer owned by Tru Kids (doing business as Tru Kids Brands) and various others. The company was founded in 1948 in Washington, D.C.; its first store was built in April 1948, with i ...

store in 1995, and owns and operates 19 Toys "R" Us and Babies "R" Us stores across Bahrain, Egypt, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. Its stores were unaffected by the franchiser's 2018 bankruptcy in the United States. Al-Futtaim's businesses also include Kolber Geneve and Westar. Marks and Spencer: In 2018 the group acquired the franchise rights to Marks and Spencer locations in Hong Kong and Macau. In July 2008, Associated Motorways (Private) Ltd in Sri Lanka came under the management expertise of Al-Futtaim Engineering (AFE), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Al-Futtaim group.

References

External links

* {{official website, http://www.alfuttaim.com/home 1930s establishments in the Trucial States Companies based in Dubai Companies established in the 1930s Conglomerate companies of the United Arab Emirates Financial services companies of the United Arab Emirates Multinational companies headquartered in the United Arab Emirates Retail companies of the United Arab Emirates