Virgin Megastore MENA not affected by UK and Irish buy-out

They have confirmed that all Virgin Megastore branding in the Middle East will remain intact; however the 125 UK and Irish outlets will be re-branded in line with the recent management buyout.

Commenting on the announcement of Richard Branson's sale of the Virgin Megastore, Nisreen Shocair, President of Virgin Megastore for the Middle East Region has confirmed that this move will have no effect on local business in any way at all.

"The Middle East and North African operations, amongst others, excluding the UK and Ireland, are under license to the Lagardere Group for an indefinite period, so consumers will not see any changes in Virgin Megastore and business will continue as usual.

'We aim to hold our position as the largest entertainment retailer in the Middle East region, with more than 60% share of the market by continuing to bring consumers the latest offerings in music ,movies, multimedia, and books throughout the region.'

In 2001, the Virgin Megastore worldwide was split between the Virgin Group and the Lagardere Group. The Virgin Group kept the UK, Ireland, USA and Japan outlets while the Lagardere Group obtained the shops in France and travel retail locations globally including Australia, China, Greece, Middle East and North Africa.

Virgin Megastore is currently the largest entertainment retailer in the Middle East region, with more than 60% share of the market. They employ more than 700 people regionally, receive an average of 15,000 customers daily and operates a total of 9 retail stores in the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Egypt and is set to open two new outlets in Jordan and Sharm El Sheikh in September and November of this year respectively.