(Paris Gallery corrected the turnover figure in paragraph two
to about $1 billion, not 1 billion dirhams, in the story
transmitted on Sept 13.)
* Company in talks with Dubai bourses about listing
* Retailer studying growth into Europe and the Far East
* CEO sees year revenue growth of more than 10 percent
DUBAI, Sept 13 (Reuters) - Dubai group Paris Gallery, which
stocks a $300,000 perfume among its luxury products, is planning
an initial public offering it said would provide a "safety net"
for the family-owned business and help it expand beyond the
Gulf.
Chief executive Mohammed Al-Fahim told the Reuters Retail
and Consumer Summit that the firm, which had 2011 turnover of
about $1 billion, had held talks with the Dubai Financial Market
and sister bourse Nasdaq Dubai about a potential
listing.
"I would not put a timeframe but, as an objective, I say
yes, for the benefit of the organisation in the future. One of
the rationales (of an IPO) would be the continuity of the
company," said Fahim, whose father founded the firm.
"Globally, family businesses rarely last beyond the second
or third generation. So, an IPO is a sort of safety net for us
to make us more transparent, more structured and more
accountable."
Fahim would not comment on the likely value of the IPO or
what size stake the firm might sell - the Nasdaq Dubai and DFM
have different listing requirements. The fear of losing control
and being opened up to greater scrutiny has led many
family-owned retail businesses to seek other ways of raising
money.
Dubai's retail and hospitality sector accounted for 34.7
percent of the emirate's economy in 2011, more than real estate
and financial services combined, which themselves make up the
bulk of the weighting on the DFM share index.
This has led to a disconnect between the bourse - down 75
percent from a 2008 peak following a property price crash that
also roiled lenders - and the wider economy, which grew 3.4
percent last year.
Dubai has not completed an IPO of note for more than four
years. Paris Gallery's plan followed an announcement last week
from Al Habtoor Group, a family-owned Dubai conglomerate, that
wants to raise $1.6 billion through an IPO next year.
BEYOND GULF
Fahim said Paris Gallery would expand outside its Gulf base
where it employs 3,500 across 80 stores.
"We are studying Europe and the Far East. We are in the
middle of negotiations to open new stores in Iraq, Turkey,
Moscow, St Petersburg and many other cities among the Arab
world."
Half the company's stores trade under the Paris Gallery
label, selling about 500 brands including Chanel, Dior
, Yves Saint Laurent and Lancome. Also on display is
Imperial Majesty No. 1 perfume, a creation by Clive Christian
Perfumes of which only 10 bottles were made. Each bottle is
priced at over $300,000.
The remaining stores are franchises for the likes of
Burberry, Cartier, Ferrari and Roberto Cavalli.
"We expect to grow (revenue) more than 10 percent this
year," he said. "In 2009, we did some consolidation. 2010 was
better, 2011 was our best ever year," Fahim said.
The UAE provides more than 60 percent of Paris Gallery's
revenue and Saudi Arabia about 35 percent, with the remainder
from other Gulf countries.
($1 = 3.6730 UAE dirhams)
(Editing by Dan Lalor)