RIYADH, 28 November 2006 — The Al Faisaliah Group will open an academy in the near future to groom young Saudis for careers in retail business. Prince Mohammed K.A. Al-Faisal, the CEO and president of the Al Faisaliah Group, made the announcement on the occasion of the inauguration of the Bernardi showroom by Abdul Rahman Al-Jeraisy, president of the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Italian Ambassador Eugenio D’Auria was also present.
Prince Mohammed said the retail academy would set up training programs for Saudis to help them interact with customers. The Al Faisaliah Group will also invest SR500 million in the retail sector over the next five years to strengthen its presence. This is aside from their decision to open 30 Bernardi Department stores in the Kingdom in the next three years, in addition to expanding outside Saudi Arabia.
Bernardi, a leading Italian department store, has over 167 stores spread across Italy. It is its first showroom outside Italy and will operate in association with AFG as part of an ambitious plan to open stores all over the Middle East.
