Montres Appella SARL, manufacturers of the leading Appella brand of Swiss watches, Thursday announced that it has consolidated its global logistics operations into a centralised hub located at the Jebel Ali Free Trade Zone in Dubai.
The move is the latest in a series of strategic market initiatives embarked upon by Appella to strengthen its presence in Dubai, and the broader Middle East region. Earlier, in June this year Appella had moved its regional headquarters to Dubai’s Jebel Ali Free Trade Zone, which was followed by an effort to bolster its distribution network in the region, through an exclusive Middle East wide agreement with Brandz International, a leading distributor of luxury products.
Mr. Wazir Ali Daredia, Managing Director, Appella International SA, said: “With the global marketplace becoming increasingly competitive, we have taken a strategic decision to discontinue our earlier logistics model of centralised global hubs in favour of a larger region centric hub based in Dubai. The benefits accruing from such a move will include substantial cost-savings, greater distribution efficiencies and much quicker time-to-market responsiveness, the benefits of which will favour our customers.”
Elaborating on the company’s choice of Dubai as the location of its regional hub, Mr. Daredia further said: “With its strategic location at the crossroads of the East and West, Dubai is in an ideal position to service and access a diverse range of markets spanning the Middle East, North and South Africa, the Asia Pacific and the CIS.”
“Moreover, Dubai occupies a time zone that gives it an unparalleled advantage in connecting markets as disparate as the Far East and Europe. In addition Dubai has developed a world-class infrastructure, provides easy access to qualified manpower, and offers convenient air connections and state-of the-art port facilities, making it an extremely well-connected and business-friendly destination,” he added.
Mr. Daredia further said that with the relocation of its logistics centre to Dubai Appella has joined the club of select few global watch companies to set up such a fully functional facility in the region. “In pursuit of regional scalability, Appella has made excellent acquisitions and forged key partnership agreements, thereby enhancing its position as one of the market leaders within the Swiss watch segment in the region.”
The custom-built 20,000 square feet facility, located adjacent to the company’s regional headquarters in Jebel Ali Free Trade Zone, also integrates a large warehousing area which allows for indefinite stock holding. (menareport.com)
© 2004 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
