5 new branches of Union Coop during the next three years,

AED 1 Billion, the volume of Union Coop investments over the past seven years,

23 Union Coop branches raise the percentage of their stock of consumer goods by 60% during 2021,

More than AED 308 Million have been allocated for promotional offers to delight consumers since the beginning of this year

Translated By: Benoi Nair  

Source: Al Bayan

Dubai, UAE:

H.E. Khalid Humaid Bin Diban Al Falasi, CEO of Union Coop, revealed that the value of the lands that were purchased and invested during the past seven years exceeded AED 1 Billion, indicating that Union Coop has become affiliated with 23 branches spread throughout the Emirate of Dubai. The strategic commodity stock for food and consumer products in the Union Coop has increased by 60% by opening 3 new branches during July, which is capable of meeting the needs of the Emirate of Dubai for 6 months if requested to do so.

He stressed that Union Coop has set within its plans the opening of two new branches this year, and five new branches during the next three years, according to well-studied strategies of geographical expansion to facilitate the process of delivering products and goods to members of society and contribute to the distribution of services more and better, in a way that ensures the achievement of a commodity balance in the Emirate Dubai and building a sustainable strategic food stock for the country.

Regarding the new branches, he pointed out that it is planned to open them in the upcoming years to keep pace with the growth of consumer demand in the Dubai markets, and it will double the cooperative’s stock of various commodities, indicating that food security is an integrated system whose success is defined by the concentrated efforts of the concerned authorities and community members.

He added that the Covid-19 pandemic made Union Coop reformulate its strategic objectives and prioritize to suit the rapid changes that occurred in the country and the world at large, to ensure the smooth supply of goods and products, address and overcome challenges, and to contribute to supporting the policies of the Emirates Council for Food Security (ECSF) and the relevant authorities and ministries, as it introduced an Integrated system to support goods and provide them to citizens and residents according to many options, and harnessed all possibilities to serve the country and the citizen irrespective of material goals.

He pointed out that Union Coop has been keen, since its foundation, to establish partnerships and strong ties with countries of the world through the efforts of its teams and its competent employees and its strong relations with suppliers in exporting countries and local suppliers, explaining that the purchasing power and institutional reputation of Union Coop in the local and regional market contributed to its continued provision of goods, where she summarized the current pandemic and demonstrated that health and food go beyond economics and politics in terms of priorities.

More than AED 308 Million have been allocated for promotional offers to delight consumers since the beginning of this year

He pointed out that Union Coop has spent more than AED 308 Million to implement 43 promotional campaigns to reduce the prices of many basic food and consumer goods from the beginning of this year until August, as part of its attractive and high-value marketing programs that benefit shareholders and consumers, and to develop its services, in a way that contributes to providing them with the best according to the latest international standards and to maintain balance in local markets, in addition to supporting and serving the community and to serve the country’s economic and social objectives.

In the field of Emiratization, Al Falasi stressed that the cooperative pays great attention to localizing jobs, as part of its efforts to support and enhance the aspirations of the wise leadership through the recruitment and training of national cadres, to support the progression of success and excellence in the country, as it is considered one of the vital strategic goals that the Union Coop puts at the forefront of its leadership objectives in the field of retail trade.

About Online shopping, he confirmed that Union Coop’s smart web store currently includes more than 60,000 food and non-food products, and the number is further expected to reach more than 65,000 by the end of the year 2021. This comes within Union Coop’s framework to keep pace with the recent developments of retail trade and fulfil consumers’ needs at competitive prices, indicating that the Union Coop operates within the international standards of health and public safety, and is keen to deliver fresh, chilled and frozen products as they are in the branches to shoppers.

In response to the rumors that recently spread about offering shares in the financial markets, he indicated that Union Coop had previously confirmed that the issue was premature, but there is a law that is being prepared for cooperatives by the Ministry of Economy and the concerned authorities. The law will be studied by the cooperative in terms of its pros and cons on society and its shareholders. It will also focus on the interests of the state and cooperatives from an economic and social point of view.