DUBAI – Danube Building Materials announced on Monday its plan to expand operations to Africa and strengthen its presence in the Middle East through dealer and franchise networks.

The new forays, part of its Dh200-million expansion drive unveiled recently, comes on the heels of the opening of the first Danube Buildmart branch in India, which is also its 22^nd global store.

“With the global economy entering the recovery phase and investors starting to regain confidence in the regional market as a result of massive government actions to revive the construction and real estate industries, we are expecting the demand for building materials in the Middle East and Africa to witness a significant increase this year,” said Rizwan Sajan, chairman, Danube Building Materials.

The company will also be expanding to Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Oman, as well as in China, where it currently has one of its major manufacturing plants.

“We have made massive investments towards additional manufacturing hubs to boost our production and sufficiently address the expected rise in demand, and now our focus is to establish highly convenient ‘Danube BUILDMART’ stores in the most strategic locations within our target regions,” said Sajan.

Danube Buildmart offers a wide range of products from reputed vendors and provides expert product and design advice. Today, there are a total of nine Buildmart stores in operation, which the company hopes to take to 16 by 2010. Including other stores, Danube has a total of 22 global retail facilities —16 in the UAE, two in Oman, one each in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and two in India. The company has also invested Dh50 million in a new 1.3 million square feet manufacturing facility in TechnoPark, which will be functional by early 2011.

Danube has also launched a Dh 15million Buildmart in Ibn Battuta Mall, Dubai. “Staying true to our commitment to being the pioneer in the industry, we are taking major strides to acquire major market share thought the MENA region in the next five years. We believe that this is the perfect time to expand to be able to place ourselves in a strategic position to fully leverage the opportunities once the market fully recovers,” said Sajan.

Rizwan Sajan, chairman, Danube Building Materials, and Adel Sajan, director, Danube Buildmart, at the opening of a Buildmart branch in Mumbai last Friday. Danube Building Materials, retailer of construction, building materials and shop-fitting industries, said yesterday it opened its first Danube Buildmart branch at the Oberoi Mall in Mumbai, India, on June 25.

The Dh10 million, 6,000 square foot retail facility is the company’s 20th global store.At present, there are nine Danube Buildmart branches in operation, as a result of the company’s Dh200 million expansion plan to grow its flagship retail brand to a total of 16 branches by the end of 2010.Present during the event were Rizwan Sajan, chairman; Anis Sajan, managing director, both of Danube Building Materials; Adel Sajan, director, Danube Buildmart, and other senior officials.Danube said it will be bringing its products to the Indian market, including its high-end sanitaryware, chandeliers, wallpapers, parquet flooring, curtains, carpets, ceramic floor, wall tiles, home decor and many lifestyle products.In addition, free in-house home interior designing consultancy services will be made available for customers in the new branch.

The opening of the new Buildmart branch complements recent reports that India’s economy is expected to grow by 7.5 per cent from 2010 to 2011 and by eight per cent the following year.”We are very excited with the opening of our Buildmart branch, which not only represents our initial foray into India but also poses excellent opportunities given the Indian economy’s rapid growth and strong consumer market,” said Rizwan Sajan.”This milestone underlines the success of our massive expansion plan, and sets a precedent to our future investments in other progressive markets across the globe.”After the launch, we will be undertaking steps to entrench our presence further into other GCC construction hotspots, including Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Oman.”In addition to the new facility in India, there are 15 other Danube retail facilities in the UAE, plus two in Oman, one each in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia and the company has procurement offices in China and Canada.It has also invested Dh50 million in a new 1.3 million square foot manufacturing facility in TechnoPark.which will be functional by early 2011.

 

Dubai quality awards H. H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of of Dubai, presented the certificate for the ‘Dubai Quality Appreciation Programme’ (DQAP) to Danube Building Materials, on April 07, 2010, at the Grand Hyatt Dubai. The company’s Chairman, Rizwan Sajan & Anis Sajan – Managing Director has received the award, which recognizes Danube’s ‘excellence model’, which covers the organization’s activities as well as its achievements, and is the criteria by which the awardees are judged upon. It is also marks a new record for Danube of being the first building materials company in the Middle East to get this prestigious award.

Securing the DQAP certification for the first time, Danube credits its excellent leadership, dynamism in strategy, growth in terms of people and partnerships, as well as it expanding resources for bagging the award. Within the last five years, Danube has registered exponential growth in revenues, which has exceeded AED 1 billion in 2009, an investment of AED 100 million in the expansion of the ‘Danube BUILDMART’ concept across the GCC, and the addition of 350 staff during the height of the recession.

H.E. Majeed bin Mohsen Al Alawi, Minister of Labour of Bahrain, inaugurated ‘BUILDMART’ – an AED 50 million state-of-the-art retail complex, located in Salmabad, which offers over 15,000 different products. The first-of-its-kind customer-friendly retail complex has been set-up to cater to a diverse target audience including interior designers, consultants and homeowners in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, all the products in the retail complex are installed as a live home set-up, thereby allowing customers a more convenient way to shop for building materials, fixtures and other household items.

Spanning a total of 300,000 sq. ft., ‘BUILDMART’ offers individual shoppers with the benefit of shopping in a single location that houses the widest range of products they might require. Comprised of a 50,000 sq. ft. covered warehouse and a 25,000 sq. ft. showroom, the retail complex features building materials that cater to every budget and make a host of design options possible. Products offered are classified under 20 sections, including kitchens, bathrooms, tiles, shower rooms, jacuzzis, flooring for ceramic and wood, ceilings, doors, wallpapers, designed glasses, marble, granite, wall panelling, different finishes of laminates, veneers, mouldings, paints and luxury paints. In addition, the complex also features a ‘Design Centre’, where customers can get expert advice on the best products and other design-related inquires.

Mazen Bin Mohammad Batterjee inaugurates AED 55 million ‘Danube BUILDMART’ retail complex in Jeddah

200,000 sq. ft. retail complex to cater to interior designers, contractors and homeowners 

July 09, 2009

Mazen Bin Mohammad Batterjee, Vice President – Jeddah Chamber of Commerce & Industry, inaugurated yesterday (July 08, 2009) ‘Danube BUILDMART’, an AED 55 million retail complex in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, which will carry the high quality products of Danube Building Materials, the leader in construction, building materials and shop fitting industries. Strategically located in Makkah (Madina) Highway in Sulemaniya area, the customer-friendly retail complex is a first-of-its-kind facility that caters to interior designers, contractors and homeowners, which also marks Danube’s largest expansion initiative into the Kingdom. Also present at the ceremony were H. E. Sayeed Ahmed Baba, Consul General of India in Jeddah; and Rizwan Sajan, Chairman, Danube Building Materials, in addition to other senior company officials, dignitaries and representatives from leading construction majors in Saudi.

The 200,000 sq. feet facility, which also includes a 30,000 sq. feet warehouse, is part of the ‘BUILDMART’ chain of retail complexes, which was initially launched in the UAE and Bahrain.  It offers an unparalleled range of over 15,000 products within twenty four different sections – from chandeliers, Venetian blinds, light fittings, kitchens, bathroom, tiles, shower rooms, jacuzzis, to flooring for ceramic and wood, ceilings, doors, wallpapers, designed glasses, marble, wall panelling and different finishes of laminates, which are displayed in an actual home setting for an easy and convenient shopping experience. With the growing demand from both end-users, suppliers and contractors, Danube has also announced plans to further expand its presence in the Kingdom through two new dedicated factories for gypsum ceiling tiles and melamine pressing units. 

“Driven by our numerous successes in the rest of the GCC, we are confident that our stronger presence in the Kingdom will provide a significant boost to the local building materials market,” said Rizwan Sajan. “The growth potential for us in this market is remarkably high given the non-stop construction of large-scale projects across the country, thereby propelling the demand for high quality construction materials. This new retail complex is our response to this demand, which is also matched by the standard excellent service we provide to our customers across the region.” 

Danube is working towards playing a role in the construction of six mega-economic cities across the Kingdom, which will rise near the areas of Tabouk, Medinah, Rabigh, Jazan and the Eastern Province. In addition, the company is also expanding its clout in the Kingdom, with aims of becoming one of the partners supporting the Saudi Government’s 8^th Development Plan, which involves the construction of 2 million residential units that will solve the current housing shortage amidst the leading economy’s growing population.

 “Our desire to truly penetrate the Saudi market and capitalise on its extensive construction activities is matched by our commitment to comply with the Saudi Governments’ regulations pertaining to the supply of construction materials to its most important projects. We have high expectations in our foray to strengthen our presence in this market, as part of our strategy to establish ‘Danube BUILDMART’ as the premier building materials brand throughout the region,” concluded Sajan

October 23, 2009

H. E. Eng. Hamad Buamim, Director General, Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry, inaugurated (Thursday, 22^nd October) the AED 10 million ‘Danube BUILDMART’ in Dubai Festival City, which marks Danube Home Interior’s first retail showroom to be based within a mall. This latest venture will cater to individual homeowners and designers, and is part of the construction, building materials and shop fitting industries leader’s AED 50 million expansion plan for its retail complex chain, which also involves the opening of additional branches in Ibn Battuta Mall in Dubai and Bawadi Mall in Al Ain by the end of 2009. Mr. Hassan Al Hashemi, Director, External Relations, Dubai Chamber, was also present at the event along with Danube officials.

Spanning an area of 4,500 sq. feet, ‘Danube BUILDMART’ in Festival City offers products from a host of reputed international and regional vendors under a single roof, including chandeliers, wall paper collections, luxury sanitary ware, Venetian blinds, wooden flooring, home decor among others. The store also has a ‘Design Centre’, where customers can take floor plans of their houses and benefit from expert advice from consultants on which products suit their needs, as well as from consultation and after sales services dispensed by Danube’s interior design experts. Furthermore, all products in the retail complex are installed in an actual home set-up, thereby allowing customers to enjoy a more personalised shopping experience with excellent service and complimentary design assistance.