Under the 15-year contract, Pricerite will become the exclusive supplier to Artar, a privately owned firm involved in banking, contracting, properties and hospitals. Artar will invest in the operation and has the right to use the brand name Pricerite Saudi Arabia. In return, Pricerite would provide supply chain management services including sourcing furniture and household products, planning, development, merchandising,  quality assurance and logistics management.

Pricerite chairman and chief executive Bankee Kwan said the partnership with Artar "marks a major step for our globalisation" and was the first step towards positioning Pricerite not only as a retailer but also a supply chain management services provider.

He said: "Pricerite will use the build, operate, transfer model to establish its brand in Saudi Arabia and other major Arab cities. We are confident that this partnership will be a good starting point for the development of our international business."

Artar director Saad Al-Rashid said the firm would buy between US$20 million to US$30 million worth of household products from Pricerite in the first year of operation. He added that the firm was planning to expand into other Arab countries like Lebanon, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates in 2005 and Europe in 2006.

Pricerite is a member of the CASH Group, a Hong Kong listed service conglomerate with businesses in retailing, financial services and provision of technological solutions.

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