Abidjan, 29 June 2017

PRESS RELEASE

OFFICIAL OPENING OF THE SECOND PLAYCE SHOPPING CENTRE IN ABIDJAN, CÔTE D'IVOIRE: PLAYCE PALMERAIE MARKS A NEW MILESTONE IN THE CFAO RETAIL ROLL-OUT

PlaYce Palmeraie, the second shopping centre designed and operated by CFAO Retail in Côte d'Ivoire, officially opens today in Abidjan's Cocody-Riviera Palmeraie - Génie 2000 district.

The ceremony will be presided by His Excellency Mr Amadou Gon Coulibaly, Prime Minister of Côte d'Ivoire.

PlaYce Palmeraie spans 29,000 square metres, with a carpark, green spaces and the shopping centre, which houses a 2,400-square-metre Carrefour Market supermarket. Among the 24 brands at the shopping mall are partners from the CFAO Retail Club of Brands - San Marina, Jules, La Halle, Beauty Success, Vib's (Cache-Cache and Bonobo) and Brioche Dorée - as well as fashion outlets and stores offering services. New brands have also joined PlaYce Palmeraie, including Ciss St Moïse, Startimes, Optic 2000, Photomaton, Bollé Store, Clean Pressing, La Périgourdine and Real Kebab.

Xavier Desjobert, Chief Executive Officer of CFAO Retail, explains: "This second opening illustrates how we are rolling out our Retail strategy in Africa. The first PlaYce was successful from day one. Consumers were seeking a quality, wide-ranging offering with reasonable prices. PlaYce Palmeraie and the other shopping centres we are opening in Africa are bringing PlaYce's high standards and quality to the consumer's doorstep."

Less than two years have passed since the first PlaYce shopping centre opened in Marcory, in December 2015, and PlaYce has already become a leading name in Côte d'Ivoire. The brand owes its success to its modern facilities, wide array of stores and the high-quality service provided to customers. Carrefour Market at PlaYce Palmeraie is taking advantage of the supply chain developed by Carrefour Marcory for imports and local products from the agriculture, meat and textile industries. A delivery service for household appliances is also up and running.

"More than 200 suppliers from Côte d'Ivoire have listings at Carrefour. It is very important for us to build and support the development of value chains in the country. PlaYce Palmeraie and Carrefour Market will provide our partners with fresh opportunities," says Jean-Paul Denoix, Managing Director of CFAO Retail Côte d'Ivoire.

A full food court with three major brands - Brioche Dorée, Burger King and Real Kebab - rounds out the services offered at PlaYce Palmeraie, with a fourth restaurant set to open toward the end of the year for even more options.

PlaYce Palmeraie has already created 320 direct jobs. The new hires, who have received a total of 9,000 hours of training, include 80 former logistics, customer relations and business management trainees from PlaYce Marcory. Another direct outcome of the CFAO Retail development plan in Côte d'Ivoire is the promotion of about a hundred employees at the two sites to positions with greater responsibilities.

PlaYce Palmeraie is the latest example of CFAO Retail's continued growth in eight sub-Saharan African countries. Future openings are planned for Côte d'Ivoire, Cameroon and Senegal.

About CFAO

CFAO is a key player in specialised distribution in Africa and in French overseas territories, and is a partner of choice for major international brands. The Group is a market leader in automotive and pharmaceutical distribution, and continues to grow in consumer goods and new technologies. CFAO has a direct presence in 36 African countries and provides a gateway to 53 of the 54 countries that make up the African continent. The Group is also active in seven French overseas territories and in Asia. It employs 15,200 people.

CFAO generated consolidated revenue of €4,228 million in 2017. CFAO is a subsidiary of the TTC Group (Japan). www.cfaogroup.com

About PlaYce Palmeraie

Club of Brands members: VIB's (Cache-Cache and Bonobo), San Marina, La Halle (Clothes and Footwear), Jules, Beauty Success and Brioche Dorée.

Independent brands: Orange, MTN, Timebox, BICICI, Pathé'O, Woodin, AssekeOro, Canal +.

New brands: Startimes, Bollé Store, Ciss St Moïse, Optique 2000, Bacio Nero, Real Kebab, La Périgourdine, Clean Pressing, Photomaton.

Contacts

35°Nord PR agency

CFAO Communications Department

CFAO Retail Côte d'Ivoire

Romain Grandjean

Françoise Remarck-Le Guennou

Priscilla Doguiet Yao

rg@35nord.com

Vice President Communications &

Communications & Marketing Manager

+33 6 73 47 53 99

Institutional Relations

pdoguiet@cfao.com

fremarckleguennou@cfao.com

+225 21 00 79 05 - + 225 79 76 40 97

+ 33 1 46 23 58 70

Wendel SA published this content on 29 June 2017 and is solely responsible for the information contained herein.
Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 03 July 2017 07:29:04 UTC.

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