Landmark Group to invest $1-bn to grow the business, open 400 stores

Regional retail conglomerate Landmark Group is celebrating its 50^th anniversary in the region and remains growth focused, value driven and community centric.

Dreams often reflect reality, and it’s all about turning them into reality, observed Renuka Jagtiani, Chairwoman, Landmark Group. If anything, Landmark Group’s journey is an example of how dreams can transform into reality.

The Group’s journey started with a single store in Bahrain in 1973 driven by Founder, Late Micky Jagtiani’s vision and dream to redefine retail in the region. Here’s a snapshot of its growth story:

50 Years of Landmark Group

• Group Revenue: $7 billion
• Retail Footprint: 2,200 stores I 22 brands I 17 countries
• Digital Footprint: 12 e-commerce sites I 20% of sales done online
• Sectoral Presence: fashion, home, footwear, electronics, grocery retail, F&B, hospitality, fitness, leisure & entertainment and shopping malls
• People Strength: 53,000+

Online, offline, supply chain, tech are key focus areas

Looking ahead, Landmark Group will invest $1 billion to grow the business over the next three years, opening 400-plus new stores across the GCC and India. The Group will also invest significantly to strengthen its e-commerce supply chain.

Notable in this context is Landmark Group’s 12 million sqft of warehousing and distribution capacity with high automation capabilities. This includes its $350 million flagship Mega Distribution Centre in Jebel Ali, which is “fully utilised.” 

Additionally, Landmark Group created Logistiq in 2022, a third-party logistics company that caters to clients outside the Group’s ecosystem.

“In just 18 months, we have rapidly scaled our last-mile delivery services to handle over 20,000 daily shipments across KSA and the UAE for more than 50 clients, with a fleet of over 800 vehicles,” shared Kabir Lumba, CEO, Landmark Retail. “Looking ahead, our vision is to build a leading logistics business by developing our end-to-end supply chain offering, including freight, warehousing & cross-border delivery solutions, while expanding our coverage across the GCC.”

Towards the next 50

Asked how the Group has navigated pain points over the past five decades, while staying growth focused, Jagtiani quipped, “I’ve a habit of not remembering the pain points.”

“But I think some of our best learnings came from the pain points. For me personally, one big learning has been understanding the importance of being value-centric and consciously focusing on creating value-centric propositions. Sometimes such decisions can cause short term pain due to certain lost opportunities, but in the long-term it has been hugely beneficial for our business,” she elaborated.

“We’ve been in business for 50 years. It is impossible that every day and every year was good. There have been tough times that we navigated, which gives us the confidence that we are on the right track and will continue to grow,” Lumba added.

He also emphasised that the Group is “strong” financially, “comfortable” from a balance sheet standpoint and will continue investing to grow in a relevant manner.

Finally, and importantly, Landmark Group remains firmly committed to becoming a net zero entity by 2050 across its value chain in the region.