Smoothie King to expand kingdom into the Middle East

Smoothie King, the Louisiana-based smoothie and nutrition chain, is expanding into the Middle East with 45 new locations set to open in the region in the next five years.

The company already has 700 locations worldwide and hopes to take that number to more than 1,000 by 2017. To make the expansion possible in the Middle East, Smoothie King has partnered with Al Ghurair Retail in Dubai.

Al Ghurair's commercial reach covers more than 20 countries including the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations. The company has a deep roster of interests including financial services, food and commodities, construction, education, technologies, printing and real estate.

Despite the varied portfolio of activity, Smoothie King will be Al Ghurair Retail’s first smoothie brand.

"I am thrilled to introduce Smoothie King as our first ever food and beverage brand and a meaningful new addition to Al Ghurair Retail's rapidly expanding portfolio of companies in the UAE," Laurent Cabioch, the company’s general manager, said. "Al Ghurair Retail has seen the increasing demand for healthy food and beverage products for those on the go, and Smoothie King will meet this demand as we take the concept from Dubai into the rest of the GCC."

Smoothie King’s products and business philosophy make it the perfect brand to fit that role for Al Ghurair. Since 1973, Smoothie King has carried a wide variety of smoothies made with fresh ingredients meant to help people lead healthy active lives.