Bengaluru: Abu Dhabi-based Lulu Group has announced its intention to invest ₹ 1,000 crore on building a convention centre, shopping mall and a five-star hotel in Lucknow, signalling the company’s interest in the Indian market beyond Kerala.

The Lulu Group is owned by Yusuff Ali M.A., a first-generation migrant to West Asia from Kerala’s Thrissur district.

Ali made the announcement at the Pravasi Diwas organized by chief minister Akhilesh Yadav’s government on Monday.

He said his connection to the state springs from the 2,000-plus employees from UP who work in his food processing companies.

Investment in the state will create employment for 3,000 people, Ali added, seeking the government’s support. “If everything is ready, we promise to begin construction."

Yadav endorsed Ali’s proposal, adding that the “government will make every effort to ensure land and any other aid is provided to him so that he can begin work".

The Lulu Group primarily runs hypermarkets by the same name in West Asia. Ali made his fortunes in retail and real estate in the mid-1990s. Lulu hypermarkets and department stores have a 32% share of the retail market in Gulf Cooperation Council countries—Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates—Egypt and Yemen. Ali has also invested in India’s retail market with a mall in Kochi, dubbed the country’s largest.

Ranked the 30th wealthiest Indian and the 737th richest person in the world by Forbes in 2015, with wealth estimated at $2.8 billion, Ali has been on an expansion spree. Last year, his company spent £110 million to buy the iconic Great Scotland Yard building in London with plans to convert it into a hotel.

Subscribe to Mint Newsletters * Enter a valid email * Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter.

Share Via