The growth of the UAE’s food industry in parallel with a rising population and expanding infrastructure is helping Massar Solutions diversify beyond the cyclical fleet management business amid lower corporate spending in the capital, its chief executive said.
The Abu Dhabi-based transport company, previously known as Al Wathba, this year postponed plans for an initial public offering because of a deteriorating stock market outlook with the drop in crude.
The vehicle management company operates the car rental brand Payless and provides fleet management, supply chain and distribution services. It has held its own since the end of last year even as lower oil prices have affected corporate spending in the emirate, the chief executive Paul Greenwood said.
Its strategy to diversify is already paying dividends, Mr Greenwood added. The company has secured “a niche in managing the cold chain” as it capitalises on the growing food industry in the UAE.
The company last month put 90 lorry drivers who deliver for the Brasil Foods-owned Sadia brand through training on keeping food at a consistent temperature from warehouse to restaurant – the so-called cold chain. It plans to train 100 more drivers in cold-chain management.
Massar has 1,600 drivers on its books in total, an increase of 400 for this year, said Mr Greenwood.
The supply-chain side of the business is driving growth, he said. Its car rental and fleet operations have been slower as companies delay spending.
“For fleet overall, we have held on to our position at the end of last year. We have held our own. Customer retention is at 95 per cent,” said Mr Greenwood. “There has been a little bit of a contraction in the market from a delay in projects, as a result of the world oil price drop. The spending is going to be there. There is just caution at the moment.”
The slowdown has been felt most on the bussing side.
“We had a massive fleet of labour buses. That has contracted 30 per cent,” he said.
However, new locations for Payless in the next few months will help to grow his company’s market share, he said.
The Massar-owned fleet numbers 10,000 vehicles, of which 1,100 are Payless cars. There are a further 6,000 that it does not own on the fleet management side of the business.
The company signed a new contract with Etisalat last month for three years of maintenance, tracking and telematics and dispatching for the telecoms operator’s vehicles.
But the most promise this year lies in food distribution, said Mr Greenwood.
“We have strategically diversified ourselves to move across the entire value chain. That strategy is starting to show dividends,” he said.
The company will soon announce two new business wins in the fledgling home grocery deliveries segment, which has been aided by Dubai’s resilience to falling oil prices.
The company will distribute online produce for two big supermarkets chains. Mr Greenwood declined to name them but said Geant was not one of them.
Geant, a French retailer, is expanding its online grocery deliveries into Abu Dhabi from September.
Massar expects to begin deliveries across the country for its new clients in two months’ time after the conclusion of a pilot project in Dubai.
“I am confident to say we have cracked the model,” said Mr Greenwood. “And am very bullish on the way they go forward.”
The company will field about 100 vehicles over the next 18 months for grocery delivery. On average, each will be able to make 40 home deliveries per day, he said.
Massar has first-mover advantage, Mr Greenwood said, unlike in its other businesses, where its rivals include long-established players such as Avis, Hertz and Emirates Transport.
The development of the Khalifa Industrial Zone (Kizad), where Sadia’s production is based, has been a boost for Massar’s growing food distribution business, Mr Greenwood said.
“As Kizad grows we will grow with it,” he said. “Food will become an important product out of Kizad.”
Kizad plugs straight into the logistics corridor stretching from Jebel Ali and Dubai World Central through Khalifa Port and on to Abu Dhabi International Airport.
Massar is “watching this and how it is developing”, said Mr Greenwood. The company is considering setting up a hub in that zone, most likely in Kizad, with a decision expected within the next 24 to 36 months.
It has also invested in a facility in Dubai Investment Park that will double as a cold-chain warehouse and a logistics hub for cross-border operations into Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kuwait.
malrawi@thenational.ae
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
RACE CARD
6.30pm Maiden Dh165,000 (Dirt) 1,200
7.05pm Handicap Dh165,000 (D) 1,600m
7.40pm Maiden Dh165,000 (D) 1,600m
8.15pm Handicap Dh190,000 (D) 1,600m
8.50pm Handicap Dh175,000 (D) 1,400m
9.25pm Handicap Dh175,000 (D) 2,000m
The National selections:
6.30pm Underwriter
7.05pm Rayig
7.40pm Torno Subito
8.15pm Talento Puma
8.50pm Etisalat
9.25pm Gundogdu
The specs: 2018 Nissan Altima
Price, base / as tested: Dh78,000 / Dh97,650
Engine: 2.5-litre in-line four-cylinder
Power: 182hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 244Nm @ 4,000rpm
Transmission: Continuously variable tranmission
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.6L / 100km
Company%20profile%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EYodawy%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Egypt%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKarim%20Khashaba%2C%20Sherief%20El-Feky%20and%20Yasser%20AbdelGawad%3Cstrong%3E%3Cbr%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EHealthTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETotal%20funding%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2424.5%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAlgebra%20Ventures%2C%20Global%20Ventures%2C%20MEVP%20and%20Delivery%20Hero%20Ventures%2C%20among%20others%3Cstrong%3E%3Cbr%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20500%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Fixture and table
UAE finals day: Friday, April 13 at Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
- 3pm, UAE Conference: Dubai Tigers v Sharjah Wanderers
- 6.30pm, UAE Premiership: Dubai Exiles v Abu Dhabi Harlequins
UAE Premiership – final standings
- Dubai Exiles
- Abu Dhabi Harlequins
- Jebel Ali Dragons
- Dubai Hurricanes
- Dubai Sports City Eagles
- Abu Dhabi Saracens
Try out the test yourself
Q1 Suppose you had $100 in a savings account and the interest rate was 2 per cent per year. After five years, how much do you think you would have in the account if you left the money to grow?
a) More than $102
b) Exactly $102
c) Less than $102
d) Do not know
e) Refuse to answer
Q2 Imagine that the interest rate on your savings account was 1 per cent per year and inflation was 2 per cent per year. After one year, how much would you be able to buy with the money in this account?
a) More than today
b) Exactly the same as today
c) Less than today
d) Do not know
e) Refuse to answer
Q4 Do you think that the following statement is true or false? “Buying a single company stock usually provides a safer return than a stock mutual fund.”
a) True
b) False
d) Do not know
e) Refuse to answer
The “Big Three” financial literacy questions were created by Professors Annamaria Lusardi of the George Washington School of Business and Olivia Mitchell, of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Answers: Q1 More than $102 (compound interest). Q2 Less than today (inflation). Q3 False (diversification).
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The biog
Name: Dhabia Khalifa AlQubaisi
Age: 23
How she spends spare time: Playing with cats at the clinic and feeding them
Inspiration: My father. He’s a hard working man who has been through a lot to provide us with everything we need
Favourite book: Attitude, emotions and the psychology of cats by Dr Nicholes Dodman
Favourit film: 101 Dalmatians - it remind me of my childhood and began my love of dogs
Word of advice: By being patient, good things will come and by staying positive you’ll have the will to continue to love what you're doing
