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Moe’s Southwest Grill has signed an agreement to take the Fresh Mex chain into international territory. Moe’s has sold a master franchise agreement to develop the concept in Turkey with master licensee David Ergisi. He plans to open the first of 40 Moe’s locations in September in Istanbul’s Sapphire Towers, the city’s tallest building.

Moe’s president Paul Damico said Turkey is one of several international markets the company had planned to target. Ergisi, a Turkish native, lived in the United States for about 20 years before recently moving back to his home country.

“He watched over the last 10 years the Moe’s brand grow exponentially in the town of Jacksonville,” Damico said. “And when he got back (to Istanbul) he was blown away by the proliferation of brands across the country. It’s always a risk when signing a new franchisee, and we’re making a bigger risk by taking it to Turkey. But he understands the supply chain, and he understands the market.”

Damico said Moe’s should do well in Turkey because of the variety of ingredients the chain has to offer. Moe’s gives its customers a selection of burritos, tacos and other fare featuring six protein varieties and 25 other ingredient options.

While some of the Moe’s menu items will be enhanced with local flavors, “the core concept will stay the same and our core ingredients will not change,” Damico said. “You can start to see these types of menu items establish themselves in Turkey. They are also on menus in other restaurant concepts.”

Moe’s, operating under the FOCUS Brands umbrella, has targeted 11 countries overall for its franchise growth. Those countries include Lebanon, Omar, Qatar, Singapore and Malaysia.

“The leading indicator of success is that the franchise partner makes money and that happens if the economic model of brand is successful,” Damico said. “Today, we know exactly what makes the economic model of our brand work.”

Moe’s joins a slew of other fast casual brands heading for international territories.

Camille’s Sidewalk Cafe, FreshBerry, Elevation Burger and Baja Fresh also have all announced plans this year to open in international markets.

LONDON, FEBRUARY 4, 2009. Stella McCartney continues its expansion in the Middle East region

with the opening of the first store in Dubai, which follows the stores recently opened in Bahrain and

Kuwait. A location in Qatar will follow in two weeks, while Jeddah and Riyadh are due to open later

this spring, totalling six stores in the Middle East by the middle of 2009.

Stella McCartney’s presence in the Middle East first started in 2003 with Villa Moda, Kuwait. Further

growth in the region was developed with key wholesale accounts such as Harvey Nichols, Riyadh and Al

Rubaiyat, Jeddah. The first freestanding store in the Middle East opened in June 2008 in Bahrain’s

Moda Mall under a franchise agreement between Stella McCartney Limited and Almana, soon followed

by a location in Kuwait’s Al Thuraya Mall in January 2009 with Al Ostoura Intl. Company as franchisee.

The store in Qatar opening at the Pearl, the country’s first international urban development venture, later this month will be the second store to open under the arrangements with Almana.

The Dubai store is located in currently the world’s largest mall, the Dubai Mall which opened in

December 2008. The Dubai store is the first of three freestanding stores under Stella McCartney

Limited’s franchise arrangements with Al Tayer along with the upcoming stores opening in Jeddah’s

Stars Avenue Mall and Riyadh’s Centria Mall.

The 148 square meter Dubai store design mirrors the most recent Stella McCartney store concept.

Simple material combinations, including maple wood, brass and marble are sculpturally contrasted with

a unique play on spacing used to illustrate Stella’s signature style combination of sharpness and

femininity. The store reflects an intimate, personal and architectural atmosphere housing Stella

McCartney’s ready-to-wear, accessory and lingerie collections.

About Stella McCartney

Stella McCartney launched her own fashion house under her name in 2001 in a joint venture with

Gucci Group. A lifelong vegetarian, Stella McCartney does not use any leather or fur in her designs. The

brand’s luxury women’s ready-to-wear, shoes, bags, fragrances, eyewear, accessories, organic skin

care ranges and performance range with adidas are also available through its 11 other flagship stores

including London, NY, Los Angeles, Shanghai, Tokyo, Beijing, Hong Kong and Paris as well around

600 wholesale accounts in key cities worldwide.

About Al Tayer

Al Tayer Group is a diversified regional business established in 1979 with its headquarters in Dubai,

UAE. Since its inception, the Group has grown rapidly and currently operates in 12 countries in the

Middle-East and beyond, with over 6500 employees of 85 nationalities. It has built leading operations in

multiple sectors, including automotive, contracting, distribution, publishing, retail, and services. The

Group is currently comprised of 5 companies. Their luxury retail arm, Al Tayer Insignia, includes

representation of major brands such as Harvey Nichols, Armani, Gucci, Pucci, Bulgari, and Boucheron

About Almana

The Almana Group is one of the largest business houses in Qatar. Under its subsidiary, Al Mana Luxury

Company, the group covers a diversified portfolio of industries from mass to luxury fashion, jewelry,

automotive, real estate, restaurant, Media companies and others. Al Mana Luxury Company carries a

large number of luxury and high end fashion brands, and is positioned as the unique carrier of the most

prestigious international fashion houses.

About Al Ostoura

Al Ostoura Intl. Company has been committed to providing their customers with the most designer and

luxury products available in the fashion, jewelry, accessories and modern furniture industries since 1985.Al Ostoura Company holds the highest market share of high-end luxury fashion in Kuwait. An

impressive number of international brands have chosen Al-Ostoura to be their exclusive reseller in the

Kuwaiti market including Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Jil Sander, John

Galliano, Lanvin, Marc Jacobs and recently Stella McCartney.

PRESS CONTACTS

Worldwide

Stephane Jaspar Arabella Rufino

Worldwide Communications Director Worldwide Public Relations

sjaspar@stellamccartney.com arufino@stellamccartney.com

FACT SHEET – DUBAI

OPENING DATE February 4, 2009

LOCATION The Dubai Mall

P.O. Box 191741

Dubai, UAE

RETAIL SPACE 148 square meters

LINES CARRIED Ready to wear

Sacoor Brothers has made branding modifications in keeping with local sensibilities, says Gonçalo Veloso. (DENNIS B MALLARI)

By David Tusing  on Friday, August 28, 2009

When Portuguese lifestyle brand Sacoor Brothers set up shop in Dubai a little over three years ago, its promoters and owners knew it was not going to be an easy market to break.

In a playing field already flooded with some of the biggest names from Europe and around the world, Sacoor Brothers, although already a household name in its home country, was going to have to face up to some tough competition.

It had to go for the jugular.

And that, according to Gonçalo Veloso, who spearheads Sacoor Brothers’ international operations, meant going back to fundamentals.

“We were very strong on our service style, that is what has defined us from the start. We knew that if we provided the best service, people would come,” he says.

There are now six Sacoor Brothers stores in the Middle East, of which four are in Dubai. Two more are scheduled for the region, a fifth in Dubai and a new one in Kuwait, which will bring the total number of global stores to 55 before the end of the year, says Veloso, whose company recorded an annual turnover of €50 million (Dh261.4m) last year.

“Part of our success is because there was a need for a brand such as ours in the mix. There are few companies that offered the kind of service style, the quality and the retail environment and our price points,” he says.

Like its first store at Dubai Festival City, each Sacoor Brothers outlet features live classical music during peak hours, a “Sacoor Lifestyle Zone”, which includes a bar service offering tea and coffee and a dedicated tailor’s room service, so customers can walk in and walk out with fitted clothes.

A monthly audit system is employed to monitor all franchises and outlets around the world.

The service style in the UAE is slightly different from the brand’s Portuguese stores, says Veloso.

“It’s better and grander because we wanted to differentiate ourselves in a new market. We wanted to stand out by offering things other retailers didn’t.”

Globally, Sacoor Brothers has also invested heavily in advertisement, sponsoring famous Portuguese and Brazilian personalities.

Current campaigns include stars from hugely successful TV series CSI: Miami and Prison Break.

Started by four brothers in Lisbon in 1989, the brand covers a range of men’s, women’s and children’s ready-to-wear, including shoes and accessories. Starting off with Spain, Belgium and Romania, its international expansion in the Middle East has now become a priority to the brand, says Veloso, whose company has partnered with Bahrain-based Jawad Business Group in the region, which also owns the franchise of brands such as Mango, FCUK and Accesorize among others in the Middle East.

“The region is characterised by a very particular social and economic conjuncture and the acceptance of top European brands is a reality. Then there is the potential it has, making it a fantastic marketplace.”

Despite the travails of being part of the current international retail market, the UAE and the region has however shown strong growth numbers for the brand.

“Our store at Dubai Festival City posted a 23 per cent sales increase in July from the same period last year, while our Portuguese stores showed 14 to 15 per cent growth,” says Veloso, who recently supervised the opening of a new outlet at The Dubai Mall.

Another store is scheduled to open before the end of the year at a new mall in Mirdif.

The company has also adopted various branding modifications keeping in mind the sensibilities of the regional market and the customers it wants to win. “If you look at our Portuguese and European stores, our brand is usually associated with our logo, which is a greyhound, and which features prominently in all our properties. But in keeping with cultural and religious sensitivities, all our Middle Eastern stores feature the Sacoor name instead of the logo,” he says.

“I think this is a great example of just how important this market is to us and the faith we have in our customers here.”

Uncertainties in global markets have, however, halted other expansion plans for now, says the official.

“We only want to focus on the best projects and on markets that we are confident with. At this point in time, we don’t want to risk anything. We need to know and see to be sure.

“I think now the focus should be on building up the brand,” he says.

For now, Sacoor Brothers is finalising expansion plans in Poland and as markets heal, will look at entering Russia, Ukraine, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan. South East Asia is also on the road map.

“These are difficult times for everyone, the crisis is hitting us all, everywhere. I think the most important thing for us is to focus on current plans and build on what we have and aim to continue to give the best,” says Veloso