Tourism & Hospitality | Wednesday 28 January, 2015 5:17 pm |

The Gulf based gourmet food company and owner of the iconic gourmet date confectionery boutiques and premium cafes, is pleased to announce a new partnership with L Capital Asia, the Asian private equity fund sponsored by LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton S.A. (LVMH).

Bateel is a homegrown Saudi brand renowned globally for its gourmet quality dates, selling through Bateel Boutiques and international partners including Harrods and Fortnum & Masons. Bateel has market presence in 16 countries across Asia, Africa, Europe and the Middle East.

The L Capital Asia Team has been working with Bateel very closely over the last few years and plans to continue to do so and expand on the relationship to help Bateel achieve its potential worldwide. L Capital Asia highly values Bateel’s unique positioning, premium quality products and F&B experience with a best-in-class management team. This powerful brand proposition is reflected in the Company’s leading position in UAE. L Capital Asia, through its extensive retail resources and network, will be able to bring additional value to the Company by providing valuable insight into consumer markets, retail operations, and access to international markets.

Commenting on the transaction, Dr. Ata Atmar, Managing Director of Bateel said “The partnership with L Capital Asia is a very welcome development, coming at an important juncture in Bateel’s corporate life cycle. We have built a premium brand with a strong market position and robust growth prospects. With a well-defined and tested business model and a strong production and distribution infrastructure in place, we are poised to accelerate Bateel’s expansion beyond our current core markets in the Gulf. L Capital Asia is the perfect partner to help in this endeavor. Leveraging our partner and it's sponsor vast experience in marketing and management of iconic brands around the world will provide a strong platform to compete in the gourmet confectionery, and premium café markets. I have had the privilege of working closely with Ravi Thakran, Chairman & Managing Partner of L Capital Asia, and his team in recent years and look forward to leveraging their deep knowledge and passion for management of premium brands as we bring this wonderful brand to connoisseur of fine food around the world.”


Mr. Ravi Thakran, commented “We are excited to partner with Bateel to promote the next phase of growth. The Middle East region has for long been a key consumption market for most leading international brands, but there have been very few local brands that have developed a unique position in the market. Under Dr. Atmar’s leadership, Bateel has been a tremendous success with its origins in the Middle East. Not only have they created a unique branded packaged goods proposition for dates which were traditionally viewed as a commodity product, but also deliver a world-class café experience with a flavor of the Middle East through the Bateel cafes. With the world seeking healthier and newer options, we believe the Bateel franchise has tremendous potential, and we hope to work closely with the company to take the brand to more people across the globe.”

About Bateel

Established in 1990 in Al Ghat, a town in Central Arabia, favoured by nature with sweet water, rich soil and a climate ideal for date production, here is where Bateel's premium dates were first nurtured and the idea of gourmet dates was born.
The evolution to gourmet food production happened over the years, first by combining dates with gourmet chocolate, then by fusing dates with other delicacies, adding diverse deluxe treats and finally perfecting Bateel's integrated production assets and its network of luxurious boutiques and cafés. Bateel currently produces more than 20 varieties of dates of the finest quality from its own date groves.