Khimji’s Mart - now open at MQ
The Madinat Qaboos outlet of Khimji’s Mart opened today.
On Day One of the opening, the store has tremendous goodwill from the people in and around the area.
For one thing there is no other store close by. Omanization put an end to all the small stores that used to operate in the region.
Secondly they have a big captive audience in the Hay Al Rahba Complex itself – the store is located on the fringes of this residential complex.
Hay Al Rahba houses some 200 flats, 40 townhouses and 40 independent villas. The residents can walk down to the store in less than 5 minutes.
Will the store succeed? . Al Fair apparently used to operate a store in the complex many years ago but they shut shop when people did not buy anything other than milk and bread from them.
Price the products high and everybody will make a bee line to Lulu.
Don’t get the product mix right and people like me will continue to drive all the way to Ruwi to Haridas Nensey for grocery items. And I might even have to continue to stop off at Lulus for my ‘white goods’ – milk, laban and youghurt because Lulu is the only place where I am assured of Al Marai’s skimmed milk.
For now however the Khimji’s appear to have a winner on their hands. Wishing them all luck!
posted by AkaRound Peg | 7:32 AM
3 Comments:
Good luck to Khimjis.It is time to have shopping convenience around residential area and prevent unneccessary traffic as also time
I can't believe you deleted my comment!
A couple months ago Al Fair announced a new strategy: they will be opening smaller stores in the middle of residential areas instead of focusing on large stores in shopping areas. Khimji Mart of course never were into the hypermarket business, but still the fact that they decided to expand now after years and years of not going for any new locations shows you quite clearly that the big guns are taking advantage of the fact that Omanisation has killed the neighborhood grocery store concept. The law forced Indians to close their minimarts. Omanis sadly did not rise up to the opportunity. Now the rich are going to become richer.
Wouldn't Tesco and Sainsbury love it if the UK govt suddenly decided that only UK citizens may own or work in cornershop grocers and news stands?
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