Italian food brand to expand in GCC

Dubai - Eataly, part of the Azadea Group which is one of the world's fastest growing retail entities, will make a foray into Qatar and Saudi Arabia this year.

 Italian food brand Eataly on Sunday inaugurated its second outlet in the emirate at Dubai Festival City and plans to further expand its presence in the region.
Eataly, part of the Azadea Group which is one of the world's fastest growing retail entities, will make a foray into Qatar and Saudi Arabia this year.
"We would like to be present all over the GCC. We will be opening Eataly outlets in Doha and Riyadh in 2016," Eataly chief executive Luca Baffigo told Khaleej Times at the opening of the Dubai Festival City outlet.
Eataly opened its first store in Turin, Italy, in January 2007 and now has 28 stores globally. The food chain has 10 outlets in Italy, 13 in Japan, two in Dubai and one each in New York, Chicago and Istanbul.
Established in 1978, the Azadea Group is a premier fashion and lifestyle retail company that owns and operates more than 50 international franchise concepts across the Middle East and North Africa, Europe and Asia. The group owns a chain of stores representing leading international brands in fashion and accessories, food and beverage, home furnishings, sporting goods and multimedia.
Eataly's flagship store in The Dubai Mall has received a tremendous response, Baffigo said. "Our first store and flagship for Eataly in the Middle East has been perceived very well. People have responded very positively to our concept," he said.
To a question on opening more Eataly stores in Dubai, he said: "At present, we are only focusing on our openings outside the UAE. But, there is great momentum and interest, so we are actively considering to grow our successful proposition."
On why Dubai was chosen to host Eataly stores, he said the city is a melting pot of cultures where people are used to high-quality food and dining options.
"Dubai came as a natural choice to introduce our concept in the region. As we are opening such a distinctive and disruptive brand, we decided to have Dubai as our flagship store destination and be represented in the most renowned mall."
Speaking on the outlook for the restaurant industry in Dubai, he said: "We are very confident in our trade and anticipate to continue our strong performance."
He said the brand has a great assortment of Italian products, representing differences in Italian territory. "These are products we feel very proud of. We like to tell the story behind them, giving our customers the possibility to try and learn about them.
"In terms of dining, our cuisine is simple and highlights the raw materials we use. Most ingredients we use in our restaurant are available in our market. Eataly is for people seeking high quality at an honest price," Baffigo said.
Eataly is still expanding in Italy and already covers major cities. Eataly restaurants in Italy delivered an outstanding performance last year, he said.
"It is worth mentioning that our store in New York is performing so well that we are opening a second outlet there this year. Sao Paulo is also a great performer. Brazilians are passionate about everything Italian and they love the Eataly brand. We are very happy with the performance of all our international stores - each one has its own challenges and success factors," he said.
- muzaffarrizvi@khaleejtimes.com