Arab News: Majid Al Futtaim boss: ‘We’ll be everywhere’ in Saudi cinema expansion

A leading foreign investor in Saudi Arabia signaled his confidence in the Kingdom’s economy and investment prospects with a multibillion-dollar expansion program and a rollout of innovations in leisure and retail.

Speaking on the sidelines of the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Alain Bejjani, chief executive of Dubai-based Majid Al Futtaim (MAF), unveiled the latest stages of a $4 billion investment plan.

This includes the first Vox cinema in Jeddah — part of a rollout that will see 300 new screens in the Kingdom within 18 months — and a plan to introduce Saudi-only workforces in the Carrefour chain of supermarkets that MAF operates in the country.

“What Saudi Arabia has gone through in the past three years is unparalleled. It has a great story to tell. It’s a country dealing with its issues, and these won’t derail what’s happening,” Beijani said.

The Vox cinema will open in the Red Sea Mall later this month with 12 screens, of which three will be “gold” luxury venues, complementing existing Vox screens in the capital’s Riyadh Park. A further three locations will be opened elsewhere in the Kingdom in March.

“We promised we’d be everywhere in Saudi Arabia, and we’re keeping our promise,” Bejjani said. Leer más