Tunisian-Moroccan group plans to build a hypermarket
1 April 2014
Read by 1856 persons
The Tunisian-Moroccan consortium "Mehdi Ben Ayed-Oubya" plans to build an "Intermarché" hypermarket, a French supermarket chain of the Mousquetaires group, on a 70-hectare site in the Manouba governorate.
This group is about to finalize a strategic agreement with the French group Mousquetaires, owner of this brand. Mehdi Ben Ayed, the owner of this initiative, underlined in a statement to the TAP agency that this group specialized in franchise operations plans to invest 100 million dinars to create this commercial space, which will also include a leisure area and a tourism area.
This project, according to its estimates, should create, once completed, around 2,000 direct and indirect jobs. He stated that the agreement concluded between the "Mehdi Ben Ayed-Oubya" consortium and the "Mousquetaires" group involves opening hypermarkets in North Africa (Morocco, Algeria and Libya) and developing an independent franchise network.
It also involves promoting a central purchasing platform for all of Africa and developing all the brands of the Mousquetaires group. Ben Ayed indicated that the completion of this mega-project, which will relaunch the country's economic activity, is dependent on obtaining authorization from the Ministry of Commerce.
He stated, in this context, that he is carrying out the necessary procedures to obtain authorization for the implementation of this project. Ben Ayed called for a review of the laws regulating hypermarkets, stating that they protect certain parties from competition.
In this regard, he noted that the liberalization of this sector would improve the growth rate and improve the range of choices in terms of quality, products and prices, particularly for the disadvantaged.
A source from the Ministry of Commerce and Crafts, who requested anonymity, underlined that the laws governing hypermarkets aim mainly to protect small businesses that provide income for around 450,000 people, by requiring hypermarkets to be located outside urban development plans.
He emphasized the ministry's concern to increase the contribution of hypermarkets and large commercial areas to the distribution trade, which remains low compared to advanced countries and does not exceed 18%.
The same source also indicated that the ministry granted, in 2013, authorizations for the establishment of three large commercial areas that met the conditions governing the sector, respectively in Ben Arous, Gabès and Monastir.
Requests for the establishment of large commercial spaces are studied, he said, by the national commission for commercial equipment, which includes representatives of the various ministries concerned in the field (equipment, commerce, social affairs, development, investment, tourism, etc.), as well as representatives of the Central Bank of Tunisia (BCT), according to the same source.
Di with TAP.
Directinfo.webmanagercenter.com
Published on March 30, 2014.
Posted online on April 1, 2014.
This group is about to finalize a strategic agreement with the French group Mousquetaires, owner of this brand. Mehdi Ben Ayed, the owner of this initiative, underlined in a statement to the TAP agency that this group specialized in franchise operations plans to invest 100 million dinars to create this commercial space, which will also include a leisure area and a tourism area.
This project, according to its estimates, should create, once completed, around 2,000 direct and indirect jobs. He stated that the agreement concluded between the "Mehdi Ben Ayed-Oubya" consortium and the "Mousquetaires" group involves opening hypermarkets in North Africa (Morocco, Algeria and Libya) and developing an independent franchise network.
It also involves promoting a central purchasing platform for all of Africa and developing all the brands of the Mousquetaires group. Ben Ayed indicated that the completion of this mega-project, which will relaunch the country's economic activity, is dependent on obtaining authorization from the Ministry of Commerce.
He stated, in this context, that he is carrying out the necessary procedures to obtain authorization for the implementation of this project. Ben Ayed called for a review of the laws regulating hypermarkets, stating that they protect certain parties from competition.
In this regard, he noted that the liberalization of this sector would improve the growth rate and improve the range of choices in terms of quality, products and prices, particularly for the disadvantaged.
A source from the Ministry of Commerce and Crafts, who requested anonymity, underlined that the laws governing hypermarkets aim mainly to protect small businesses that provide income for around 450,000 people, by requiring hypermarkets to be located outside urban development plans.
He emphasized the ministry's concern to increase the contribution of hypermarkets and large commercial areas to the distribution trade, which remains low compared to advanced countries and does not exceed 18%.
The same source also indicated that the ministry granted, in 2013, authorizations for the establishment of three large commercial areas that met the conditions governing the sector, respectively in Ben Arous, Gabès and Monastir.
Requests for the establishment of large commercial spaces are studied, he said, by the national commission for commercial equipment, which includes representatives of the various ministries concerned in the field (equipment, commerce, social affairs, development, investment, tourism, etc.), as well as representatives of the Central Bank of Tunisia (BCT), according to the same source.
Di with TAP.
Directinfo.webmanagercenter.com
Published on March 30, 2014.
Posted online on April 1, 2014.
