SANA embarks on massive expansion plan with 100 stores set to open by 2020 across the region

Investments worth AED 200 million over the next 2 years to firmly establish the brand on the regional fashion industry map

Dubai – UAE, May 18, 2015: SANA, region’s oldest fashion retailer offering clothing for entire family at affordable prices revealed its ambitious plans for the next 5 years, aiming to become one of the largest value retail fashion brands in the Middle East with a network of 100 stores. SANA’s current geographical network includes 16 stores across UAE, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain with 9 more expected to open by mid-2015.

The fashion brand known for its quality, value-for-money announced an initial investment of AED 200 million over the course of the next 2 years to expand its retail business offering towards, store expansion, renovation and resource building.

“After months of research, planning, deliberations and financial planning, the decision to refresh SANA and to embark on this massive expansion plan was undertaken with a clear objective of re-establishing us as one of the largest value fashion retail networks in the region.”, said Shivam Sharma, CEO of SANA.

Strategic decisions over the last 12-18 months have involved bringing in experienced retail professionals with vast retail experience on board. Over 500 new team members have been employed across different departments including IT, projects, logistics and operations to achieve the company’s expansion targets and ambitions. New ERP system has been deployed to extend back-office systems and improve customer experience. A state of art logistics center has been setup in Jebel Ali to improve efficiency, and experienced procurement professionals have been hired to transform the entire buying process.

“Our success over the years has been our focus and commitment towards offering quality products at value price. This still remains the soul of SANA. Today we are creating new experiences for our customers and hence apart from expansion, the entire brand has been invigorated including the existing stores. The emphasis has been on re-energizing the brand elements, modernizing and revitalizing the stores, offering a wider range of merchandize that is trendy and vibrant, and enhancing customer service”, added Mr. Sharma.

In endeavor to bring fashion, quality and value, SANA has brought onboard a team of buyers and designers who create ranges of clothing for men, women and kids. Products then are sourced from all over Europe, Turkey, Asia and partly from USA.

“Our key focus is on keeping the retail model simple and cost-effective allowing us to pass the benefit to the customer. If you walk into one of our existing stores that have all been recently renovated in line with our new brand concept, you will see and experience the difference. The simple yet modern, vibrant and customer-friendly concept has been extremely well received by our customers, corroborating our efforts and encouraging us to standardize this as a benchmark store concept at least for the next 5 years”, further added Mr. Sharma.

SANA has also confirmed that it will be opening stores in developments of Majid Al Futtaim Hypermarkets LLC., New Mall Limited (Nakheel), Line Investments & Property LLC., Abu Dhabi Co-operative Society and Deerfield’s Townsquare Shopping Centre LLC. to name a few.