Clyde & Co advises Cenomi Retail on million-dollar sale of franchise rights to Abdullah Al-Othaim

Clyde & Co has advised Cenomi Retail, a Saudi listed company and pioneering retail brand partner, on the SAR219 million sale of its franchise rights (and related assets) for five brands to Abdullah Al-Othaim Fashion Company (a wholly owned subsidiary of Abdullah Al-Othaim Investment Company).

The brands include Aldo, Aldo Accessories, La Vie En Rose, Pedro and Charles & Keith. The transaction is expected to complete in Q2 of 2024 with the Aldo/Aldo Accessories franchise rights (and related assets) having transferred to Abdullah Al-Othaim Fashion company on May 7, 2024. The divestment forms part of Cenomi Retail’s ongoing transformation strategy to focus on champion brands within the fashion, electronics and food and beverage sectors.

The transaction is supplementary to a transaction concluded with Abdulla Al-Othaim Fashion Company earlier in Q1 of 2024 which involved a sale of franchise rights (and related assets) for 16 brands by Cenomi Retail who we advised as sell-side counsel.

Cenomi Retail is the largest franchise retailer in the Kingdom and the only listed business of its type in the Middle East. Founded by renowned businessman and property developer Fawaz A. AlHokair in partnership with brothers Salman and Abdulmajeed, Cenomi Retail has grown considerably since opening its first store in 1991 and is now active in over 900 stores across 108 shopping malls in 9 countries across the MENA and CIS regions. Abdullah Al-Othaim Fashion Company, is a subsidiary of Abdullah Al Othaim Investment Company, the operator of malls and entertainment centres in the Kingdom, the GCC, and Egypt.

Clyde & Co acted as lead counsel to Cenomi Retail. Clyde & Co’s cross-practice and cross-jurisdictional team was led by partner Chadi Salloum (corporate), legal director Amun Bashir (corporate), and trainee Urmika Mani (corporate). They were further supported by partner Sara Khoja (employment), senior associates Abdulaziz Alharthy (corporate) and Majed Alzaben (corporate), and associates Elodie Chalhoub (employment) and Jassar Aljohani (employment).