MAGRABi to buy UAE's Dubai Optical, adding 15 stores
What's the deal? MAGRABi Retail GroupDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, the Middle East's largest eyewear retailer, has agreed to acquire 100% of Dubai OpticalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, one of the UAE's longest-established premium optical chains. The deal value was undisclosed. It adds 15 Dubai Optical-branded stores across four emirates — Dubai, Sharjah, Fujairah, and Ajman — while the seller's OptivisionDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → outlets are excluded.
Who's involved? Founded in 1978, Dubai Optical was among the pioneers of the UAE's organised optical retail sector. MAGRABi plans to fully integrate it while retaining its brand identity.
What's the endgame? MAGRABi is pursuing a regional roll-up. The purchase follows its 2024 combination with Rivoli Vision, the acquisition of Kuwait's Kefan Optics, and a May 2026 agreement to take a majority stake in Egypt's Baraka Optics — the latter still pending clearance from the Egyptian Competition Authority.
What did they say? "Our strategy is not simply about adding scale. It is about investing in strong local businesses with distinctive identities," said Yasser Taher, chief executive officer of MAGRABi Retail. He said the group would build on the brand's strengths while preserving the qualities that earned customer trust.
Chairman Amin Magrabi called the UAE a key priority alongside the group's Saudi home market, citing its role as a hub for retail, tourism, and talent.
What could go wrong? Completion depends on customary closing conditions, including merger-control clearance from the UAE Ministry of Economy.
The signal: The deal marks a targeted expansion of MAGRABi's UAE footprint rather than a new-market entry. Stacked against its Rivoli, Kefan, and Baraka moves, it underlines a steady consolidation push across the region's eyewear retail market.
Read more: dubaistandard.com
Image credit: Generated with Gemini
