Hubmart demonstrates confidence in economy, opens new retail outlet
A new entrant into the Nigerian retail business, Hubmart Stores Limited, has joined the league of investors in the country whose confidence in the country’s economy remains unshaken. This is despite the challenges of the recent past and the difficulty that defines the country’s business environment.
The company is today opening a new retail outlet at the Lenox Mall located on Admiralty Way, Lekki Phase 1, bringing to three the number of retail centres it has opened in just three years of business in Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial nerve centre.
“Retail is a good opportunity in Nigeria; it is the biggest employer of labour and we are happy to be in Nigeria, which is a growing country with young population,” Murat Bektaslar, the company’s managing director, said during a media tour of the retail facility that sits on 740 square metres.
The Lekki outlet, which is a collaborative effort between the company and Lenox Mall, is coming on the heels of the successful launch of the Ikeja outlet, which also followed the success recorded at its Victoria Island outlet. The company says it plans to open three more outlets this year.
The new retail outlet has been purposefully designed to create an environment that guarantees customers a comprehensive shopping experience and further enhances Hubmart’s reputation as one of the best destinations for shoppers in the country.
This new store is a firm statement that the company is in the retail business to be accessible to her teeming customers and, according to Bektaslar, the success recorded from patronage of their other outlets in Victoria Island and Ikeja was a testament that their customers have wholly embraced their offerings.
“We have continuously created an environment where customers can find everything they want under one roof, get the best quality of ultra-fresh produce, and have a delightful, fulfilling and exciting shopping trip.
“We are creating a movement – a fresh movement and as you can see, our customers are appreciative of the efforts we make to ensure all our products are served fresh,” he said, explaining that citing the mall in Lekki was imperative because Lekki had become a key commercial hub in Lagos.
He noted that the working and residential communities within Lekki and its environs made it imperative for the store to register its presence in the locality, adding that, apart from some of the community development efforts embarked upon, the business was poised to engage and positively impact the local community with the array of initiatives in the pipeline.
About 54 people have already been engaged to work in the mall, which has recorded about 45 percent occupancy rate. Expectation is that it will provide employment for over 100 Nigerians 60 percent of which would be sourced from the local community. This will be source of livelihood to many more through the extended circle of influence on the local communities.