And Emaar’s digital shopping spree continues…
On the heels of Amazon’s highly publicized acquisition of Souq about two months ago, esteemed developer Emaar has decided to enter a joint partnership with emerging markets leading e-commerce fashion platform Global Fashion Group (GFG), as they gear up to buy 51% of one of it’s best performing ventures, online clothing retailer Namshi.
The aforementioned stake will be purchased for $151 million in an all-cash transaction to take place within 3 months. GFG will retain the remaining 49% stake, with both companies actively collaborating to further the development of the platform. Which is sure to put a smile (and some apparel) on the faces of online shoppers in the Middle East.
Romain Voog, CEO of GFG, stated ”With the complementary strengths of Emaar Malls and GFG, Namshi is now more than ever uniquely positioned to be the best long term partner for fashion brands and customers in the region” He added ”GFG’s partnership with Emaar Malls follows the Group’s strong performance in 2016 and is another step in our journey to create sustainable, profitable fashion e-commerce leaders in each of our regions.”
Launched in 2012, Namshi is now home to over 50,000 products across 600 local and international brands. Shoppers may expect the extensive catalogue to expand even further, as Emaar, who’s responsible for the world’s largest mall among other iconic structures, will open the doors to additional fashion brands as well contribute to the development of existing logistics infrastructure. And of course, they will continue to benefit from GFG’s extensive knowledge and success in fashion e-commerce and now shared resources in IT and innovation.
From the acquisition of stake in Aramex to a joint venture with Yoox Net-A-Porter, the decision is just the latest of several over the past year by Emaar and Symphony Invetsments chariman Mohamed Alabbar, who has expressed his interest in the online retail space on numerous occasions.
In a statement, he added “The acquisition of a majority stake in Namshi underlines our digital-driven strategy to leverage the growing e-commerce market in the Middle East and North Africa region. Namshi offers a perfect fit for Emaar Malls in accelerating its focus on multi-channel retailing, and creating long-term value for its stakeholders.”
What does for online shoppers? In a nutshell, a lot more options, and faster and continually improving service from click to door. I like the way that sounds. What are your thoughts?