Waitrose Speeding Up Expansion Drive

UK-based mass grocery retailer (MGR) Waitrose has announced that it will launch its first store in Bahrain in 2012 at the state-of-the-art US$800mn Villamar development in a move BMI agrees with. The premium-end retailer is reportedly planning to open around 20 supermarkets across the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) region by 2010. The retailer has lost market share in the UK as belt tightened consumers have moved to its cheaper rivals (BMI has forecast the UK economy to contract by 3.5% in 2009).

To read the full article, please choose one of the following options: