Thai furniture store to open 10 GCC stores

Index Living Mall, a home retail chain with 17 stores in Thailand, plans to roll out 10 outlets across the GCC within the next three to five years, after opening its first international store in Dubai.

The company?s local partner, Retail Is Detail LLC, said its expansion plans were unaffected by a decline in consumer spending across the Gulf.

?The plan is to open in Abu Dhabi, Qatar, Bahrain and Saudi. Logistically, it would be much easier to go to Abu Dhabi next, and that?s what?s in the pipeline,? said Sanveer Gill, director of operations and merchandising. An influx of expatriates during Dubai?s six-year economic boom boosted retail sales but the market has slumped amid slowing tourism and a wave of layoffs in the emirate?s real estate and financial sectors, which analysts believe could lead to an 8 percent population decline this year.

Home furnishing firms typically benefit from a downturn in the property market as more people redecorate their existing homes instead of buying a new one.

Index?s 50,000 sq ft outlet in The Dubai Mall is smaller than the big box retailer?s outlets in Thailand, which range from 80,000 sq ft to 220,000 sq ft in size.

?We took a 50,000 sq ft space because we got a location in The Dubai Mall,? said Gill.

?We thought that with the amount of traffic this mall brings in?it?s a great way to showcase Index not just to the Middle East but to the rest of the world.?