When Wassim Arabi talks about retail, the word that keeps surfacing isn’t “disruption” or “transformation” — it’s trust. It’s a deliberate framing for a region where retail is evolving faster than almost anywhere on earth, where Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 is rewriting the consumer playbook in real time, and where the line between a digital touchpoint and a store visit is fast disappearing.

As president of Retail at Al-Futtaim — one of the Middle East’s most diversified family businesses, with a portfolio spanning IKEA, Marks & Spencer, ACE, and a recent strategic stake in Saudi Arabia’s Cenomi Retail — Arabi sits at the centre of that shift. His remit cuts across MENA and Southeast Asia, balancing the breakneck pace of the Gulf with the longer runways of emerging Asian markets, and stitching them together with a shared digital backbone, the Blue lifestyle app, and an AI agenda that he’s careful to frame as augmentation rather than replacement.

In this conversation with Gulf Business, Arabi shares how omnichannel has stopped being a layer and become the operating system; why the IKEA restaurant menu in Riyadh looks different from the one in Kuala Lumpur, and why that matters; where AI is genuinely moving the needle today versus where it’s still finding its footing; and what 15-plus years of leading through cycles has taught him about the one habit that doesn’t change — showing up on the shop floor.

Retail in the region has changed rapidly in recent years, moving from store-led to highly integrated omnichannel ecosystems. What have been the biggest structural shifts you’ve seen within Al-Futtaim Retail, and how has the organisation adapted to stay ahead?

The most important shift has been moving from a channel-led model to a truly customer-centric one. Omnichannel is no longer a layer on top of the business, it is embedded into how we operate end-to-end, from planning to execution. That has fundamentally reshaped how we structure teams, define performance, and build customer relationships.

Today, our focus is simple: ensuring customers can engage with us seamlessly, on their terms, across every touchpoint.

How is Al-Futtaim Retail approaching upskilling and workforce transformation at scale, particularly as digital tools and AI begin to reshape day-to-day retail operations?

Our transformation starts with our people. We view upskilling and AI adoption as one agenda—both are about enabling our teams to operate in a more data-driven, customer-focused environment. The priority is not technology in isolation, but how it enhances human capability. When our frontline teams are equipped with the right tools and confidence, it translates directly into better customer outcomes. That is where the real value is created.

Read: Al-Futtaim launches ‘One Family’ initiative with DFRE, rolls out year-long community experiences

Al-Futtaim Retail operates across multiple markets in the Middle East and Asia, with exposure to Saudi Arabia through its stake in Cenomi Retail. How does this interconnected regional footprint shape your overall strategy, particularly when balancing growth opportunities in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and other key markets?

What our regional footprint gives us is a genuinely different vantage point. Operating across MENA and Southeast Asia, and now with a strategic stake in Cenomi, we see different consumer behaviours, different retail cycles, and different growth dynamics at close range. That informs how we allocate capital and where we focus. Saudi Arabia as a market is moving quickly and the opportunity there is real. The UAE remains our core market and continues to perform well. The discipline is in not treating them the same – each requires its own approach, even when the operational backbone is shared.

When it comes to capability, we’re a retail powerhouse. We have a strong physical store network with advanced omnichannel capabilities, supported by centralised shared services, deep operational expertise, and scalable infrastructure. This gives us a competitive advantage when it comes to expansion, underpinned by our strategy of sustainable growth.

Saudi Arabia remains one of the fastest-evolving retail markets under Vision 2030, while other regional markets are moving at different speeds. How are these varying dynamics influencing how you approach localisation, scale, and portfolio decisions across your broader retail ecosystem, including Cenomi Retail?

What differs market to market is pace and consumer expectation. Saudi Arabia under Vision 2030 is moving fast and the retail opportunity continues to grow. Other markets require more patience and a longer runway. Our job is to read those dynamics correctly and respond accordingly.

Where we have one of the biggest advantages is in our ability to give global brands a genuinely local presence – not just logistics but understanding what a customer in Riyadh or Kuala Lumpur actually wants. From tailoring the dishes to suit local tastes at our IKEA Restaurants or adjusting how Marks & Spencer presents its range for local preferences. These aren’t small details – they’re what build lasting trust with a customer and with a brand.

For expanding our portfolio, we look at whether the business is scalable, has potential for sustainable growth and if it’s aligned with long-term consumer trends – it needs to make commercial sense.

There is a lot of talk about AI in retail, but practical adoption varies widely. Where is AI actually making a measurable difference across your business today, and where is it still in early stages?

AI is central to how our teams forecast demand, personalise the customer experience, and optimise inventory across our portfolio – giving our teams what they need for better decision making.

We’re not implementing AI to replace our people – that’s not what this is about. Where it’s making a real difference right now is in demand planning and inventory management, where the speed and accuracy of decision-making have improved. We’re also seeing it work in how we personalise customer engagement through Blue. There are areas where we’re still earlier in the journey than I’d like, but the direction is right and we’re continuing to accelerate our capability.

Loyalty programmes are becoming a key driver of retention and data-led personalisation in retail. How is Blue Rewards evolving to deepen customer engagement, and what role does it play in shaping long-term customer value across Al-Futtaim Retail’s ecosystem?

Our Blue lifestyle app deepens our customer insights to drive personalisation, relevancy and consistent experiences across Retail, and the whole Al-Futtaim ecosystem. Through the platform we’re able to recognise, engage, and reward customers in ways that feel genuinely personal, not transactional.

The data we have access to from Blue allows us to increase the lifestyle value, loyalty and frequency of our customers.

From a customer perspective, expectations around speed, personalisation, and experience have never been higher. How are you rethinking the retail journey to meet these evolving demands?

What I keep coming back to is that the basics haven’t changed: customers want to feel known, not processed. What’s changed is how many ways they can now tell you that you’ve got it wrong, and how quickly they’ll go elsewhere if you do.

So, the real work is in making sure every touchpoint, whether that’s online, in-store, or an app, reflects the same quality of experience and the same understanding of who they are. The customers who engage with us most are the ones who’ve already had a good experience. Our job is to make sure that first experience is good enough to earn the next one.

How has your leadership approach evolved during periods of sustained uncertainty and change in retail, and what do you see as the most important leadership priorities today, both personally and across Al-Futtaim Retail, when navigating challenging market conditions?

Both personally and professionally, I’ve lived through multiple periods of uncertainty – but they don’t last forever. It’s the businesses and people who stay grounded in their fundamentals, that always come out stronger. For us a business, that means staying close to our people and our customers.

Whether we’re experiencing a period of growth, or uncertainty – what has always remained important to me is spending time in our stores with our frontline colleagues, they are ultimately the ones who make or break the customer experience. These are often informal, being present with our people, listening and understanding their reality dealing with the day to day.

What does your expansion strategy prioritise more right now, deeper penetration in existing markets or entering new categories and formats, and why?

The overarching strategy is sustainable growth. We are taking a focused and disciplined approach, identifying clear opportunities across geographies, channels, and customer segments. Our aim isn’t to scale for the sake of it, but to capture untapped demand.