Abu Dhabi: The Abu Dhabi Royal Family has acquired a 20 per cent share in Lulu Group led by Malayalee expatriate businessman M A Yusuff Ali. They invested about $ 1 billion (Rs 7600 crore) in Lulu group. Abu Dhabi-based Lulu Group International is one of the largest supermarket chains in the Gulf.
Royal Group owned by Sheikh Tah Nun Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the brother of Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan who is the son of United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed, and the Abu Dhabi crown prince and the deputy commander of the UAE armed forces has invested in the Lulu hypermarket chain. The Royal Group is a leading investment company in Abu Dhabi. Sheikh Tah Noon is also the Chairman of First Abu Dhabi Bank, a leading financial institution in the UAE.
The Royal Group is reportedly not involved in Lulu’s handling. Neither Lulu Group nor Royal Group has been officially commented on this stake exchange news. Lulu Group has 188 retail stores in 22 countries, including the UAE and India. Yusuf Ali and his team are trying to grow it to 250 stores within two years. Last year Lulu’s total sales value reached $ 7.4 billion.