A top-level delegation of procurement officials from retail giant Majid Al Futtaim Retail – regional franchisee of Carrefour – are meeing local, regional and international suppliers in the Dubai World Trade Centre and sourcing a diverse range of food products at three specialised food shows, that conclude today (October 29).

 

The delegation also hosted suppliers at an exclusive Carrefour Hosted Buyers Lounge, has identified DWTC’s trio of niche food events – The Specialty Food Festival, Sweets & Snacks Middle East and Seafex – as key platforms to access a contingent of more than 600 local, regional and international food suppliers from over 60 countries participating at the three events.

 

Miguel Povedano, senior vice president, UAE and interantional merchandise co-ordination, Majid Al Futtaim Retail, said: “As a brand, our value proposition is to offer the best value for money. We always negotiate best prices and amazing promotions. Also, we work to be the most local of all the international retailers.

 

“Differentiation is the key to success in the retail sphere and we have identified these highly-specialised food shows as strategic platforms to meet as many suppliers as possible for products suited to key customer groups.”

 

Franck Boissinot, VP UAE Marketing and Digital, said: “We’ve developed a procurement strategy based on analysis from sales information and we’re sourcing products and ranges suited to all our customer groups. We’re also exploring healthy, gluten-free and organic products that fit with the evolving purchasing habits of our customers.”

 

With an objective to double the number of its UAE stores in the next five years, Povedano revealed Carrefour is leveraging the three food events to engage suppliers and share the chain’s aggressive expansion plans.

 

“We are winning market share in the UAE and our business is performing very, very well. Our investment in the Hosted Buyers Lounge area at the food shows underlines our commitment to nurse relationships, open new business avenues, develop our product range and meet more local and GCC suppliers – it is a procurement opportunity to work more closely with both existing and new business partners,” said Povedano.

 

“Our programme with DWTC allows us to meet the right suppliers and partners to ensure our customers can choose from the most diverse range of products available in the market,” said Boissinot. 

 

“Importantly, the programme covers all shows relevant to the products available in Carrefour stores – from food products to technology solutions,” he said. 

 

With DWTC’s three specialised food events hosting their largest-ever pool of exhibiting companies and more than 15,000 influential buyers, senior procurement delegations from Jumeirah Group, Dubai Duty Free, Emirates Flight Catering, and many others joined Majid Al Futtaim Retail on multi-million dollar product sourcing excursions at this week’s events. - TradeArabia News Service