Savola held a high-profile celebratory event to mark this milestone achievement.
More than 400 people including board members, the management team, key executives from across the region, employees and other guests took part.
Abdulrauof Mannaa, managing director, expressed his gratitude for the efforts of everyone at Savola whose teamwork had contributed to the milestone.
He said: “On our road to becoming one of the most successful enterprises in the entire Middle East — a road on which we have traveled for 33 years — we have grown from a single company that was established with a paid up capital of SR40 million into a diversified group that is now worth SR5 billion. And from a company that started with 200 employees in 1979 to a corporation that employs more than 17,000 employees inside and outside the Kingdom.
Mannaa added: “Working together as a team we have delivered the targeted results by adopting the simple strategy of building on our core sectors — food, packaging and retail — and maintaining our investment in other strategic businesses, including Herfy, Al-Marai and Kinan.
“By focusing on our core strengths we are continuously enhancing our capability to deliver a healthy return on shareholder equity and maintain sustainable growth for the benefit of all our stakeholders - and now that we are clearly focused on one direction it is the strength and quality of our people that gives us the confidence to keep on growing and adding value for our shareholders, our community and our employees.”
Savola’s operations are based on honesty, piety, righteousness and support. These values whave placed The Savola Group at the top in transparency and corporate governance in the Kingdom as well as in the entire Middle East, Mannaa said.
Abderrahim Maaraf, chief executive officer of Savola Foods, said: “Savola’s success goes beyond the excellence of its products and companies, its impressive market share and strategic expansion — it is a Saudi success story resulting from the Savolan spirit that is reflected in dedication, loyalty and team work at every level of the organization.”
Mahmoud Abdul Ghaffar, chief of corporate affairs and board secretary of the Savola Groups, said: “Savola was able in a very short time to transform itself from a regional player into an international conglomerate due brilliant strategic planning based on a far-seeing realization of market needs supported by massive investment in its core sectors.”
