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Clothes giant plans female only store in Saudi Arabia

080519_hmsaudiarabia.jpg H&M, the Swedish retailer, will open the first women-only department store in Saudi Arabia as part of moves to bring more women into the country’s workforce. The store, which will be H&M’s first in the country, will be staffed entirely by women in what is understood to be a landmark concession by the Saudi Government. Saudi Arabia has strict laws that prohibit the public interaction of women with men other than their husbands. These extend to restrictions on working and driving. As the store will be staffed by women, the Government has insisted that only females will be able to shop there. Small female-run stores already exist in Saudi Arabia but H&M, otherwise known as Hennes & Mauritz, will be the first major retail outlet to be staffed by women. It will open in a shopping mall in Riyadh this year and will be operated by the Alshaya Group, a retail company based in Kuwait. Mohammed Alshaya, the chief executive, told delegates at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Sharm el Sheikh yesterday: “We will increase the number of women working for us and will have 40 in Saudi Arabia. H&M is embarking on an innovative development to open a store with women working in it. It will have challenges, but we have to do it as this is part of our social responsibility to women in Saudi Arabia.” Image source: myrtus.typepad.com. > Continue.

News selected by Covalence | Country: Saudi Arabia| Company: H&M | Source: The Times

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