Spinneys will pay SAR 18 million, about $4.8 million, to raise its stake in Spinneys KSA, legally Al-Ma'kulat Al-Fakhirah for Food Products, from 50 to 70 percent, buying the additional 20 percent from joint venture partner Al Hokair Holding Group. Completion remains subject to clearance from Saudi Arabia's General Authority for Competition. Al Hokair will retain 30 percent, down from 50.
A Stake Increase That Changes Nothing Operational
Spinneys has managed Spinneys KSA and fully consolidated it into its own financial statements under IFRS since the joint venture was established in 2022, despite owning only half of it. Chief executive Sunil Kumar said: “We have led the management of the business since Spinneys KSA was established in 2022, and this step aligns our economic interest with the role we already play.” The stake increase does not change who runs the business, sets its strategy, or shows up in Spinneys' own accounts. It changes who is entitled to the profit.
“We have led the management of the business since Spinneys KSA was established in 2022, and this step aligns our economic interest with the role we already play.”
Scale Behind the Deal
Spinneys operates 93 stores across the UAE, Oman and Saudi Arabia, 81 owned and 12 operated, including Waitrose-branded outlets, after opening nine new stores in the UAE and two in Saudi Arabia over the past year. Kumar frames the additional Saudi ownership as funding for further investment in Spinneys' fresh offering, aimed at what he calls a young, growing and increasingly affluent population. The Kingdom's premium grocery segment is the stated reason for the deal. The numbers behind that segment, for Spinneys specifically, are not part of what either company has disclosed.
Signal source: Gulf News, 30 July 2026; Zawya, 31 July 2026.