LuLu Hypermarket is at the forefront of a smart city revolution sweeping Saudi Arabia and has opened the first Express Store in the NEOM Community. The new store features all the conveniences of LuLu Hypermarket offerings in terms of wide varieties of grocery as well as quality and affordability. The store was inaugurated Monday in the presence of Antonio Valenzuela — sector head, senior executive director NEOM operations, Hamad Alsulaiman — director, NEOM Operations Support, Keith Mitchell — senior manager: Engagement & leisure services NEOM Operations — Community Services and Mr. Mahmoud S Lasheen, lead, NEOM Community Retail. Also present were Shehim Mohammed, director, LuLu Hypermarkets , Saudi Arabia and Rafeek Mohamedali, Regional Director, LuLu Hypermarkets, Western Province, Saudi Arabia. Lulu Express Neom, runs on renewable solar energy, and is proud to declare that it will have paperless transactions, zero consumption of single-use plastic, and continues ongoing efforts to maintain sustainability and eco-friendly business processes. Commenting on the new launch Yusuffali MA, chairman of Lulu Group said, "First of all I want to thank the leadership of this country for giving us this opportunity to set up the first LuLu store in the futuristic NEOM City. We are very excited by the immense prospects which are opening up in KSA and we are firm in our commitment of further investments and expansion in the Kingdom." The single-level shop, built over 8,476 square feet has green checkout counters for customers to complete their ecofriendly shopping. Fresh fruits & vegetables, grocery, meat & poultry, and fresh & frozen food sections are main focus of the store with greater emphasis on quick service. "We are excited to be a part of the NEOM project — it is a futuristic steppingstone and LuLu sees this as the start of a new retail experience in Saudi Arabia," said Shehim Mohammed. "Though hypermarkets continue to be our primary focus area, we also intend to open more of these express stores to cater to the growing demand of suburbs and gated communities. The strong brand loyalty and location advantage will surely help LuLu Express become a dominant player in this sector also." — SG
