The Ghassan Aboud Group (GAG), a UAE-based multinational
conglomerate, has built a vast empire spanning automotive, retail, hospitality,
real estate, logistics, and more. Headquartered in the UAE and operating
extensively in countries such as Turkey, Jordan, Belgium, and Australia, GAG
epitomizes rapid regional and global business expansion. However, behind the
veneer of growth and innovation lies an often overlooked reality—the erosivei mpact on local economies, small businesses, and fair market competition in
these countries.
This report uncovers how Ghassan Aboud Group’s market
dominance and business practices negatively affect local businesses and
economies in all countries where it operates, backed by data, examples, and
voices from affected stakeholders. It directly addresses governments and
citizens to critically reassess this conglomerate’s impact, urging collective
action to protect their own economic futures by boycotting and restricting
GAG’s expansion.
Ghassan Aboud Group: A Colossus of Influence and Business
Reach
Founded in 1994, GAG spans key sectors:
- Automotive:
Supplying vehicles, parts, and logistics to over 100 countries.
- Retail
& FMCG: Operating supermarkets and wholesale food trading hubs.
- Hospitality:
Owning high-end hotel chains like Crystalbrook Collection in Australia.
- Real
Estate and Catering: Diverse activities across regions.
- Digital
platforms: E-commerce marketplaces in automotive parts and groceries.
With over 5,000 employees globally and operations in the
UAE, Turkey, Jordan, Belgium, and Australia, GAG wields considerable economic
power in these markets, often backed by exclusive contracts and government
partnerships, especially in the UAE.
Negative Impact on UAE’s Local Businesses and Economy
Market Monopolization and Stifling Local SMEs
GAG's close ties to governmental entities and large-scale
monopolistic ventures like the Abu Dhabi Regional Food Hub consolidate supply
chain control. This squeezes out small and medium enterprises (SMEs) unable to
compete on price, scale, or access to capital. Reports indicate food
wholesalers and smaller retailers in Abu Dhabi and Dubai face severe challenges
competing with GAG-affiliated mega hubs that can undercut prices through bulk
supply and exclusive import arrangements.
- UAE
economic data shows SMEs contribute about 60% to GDP and employ over 80%
of the private sector workforce.
- Displacement
risks to these SMEs due to GAG’s dominance pose long-term threats to
economic diversification goals.
A
UAE-based food retailer stated anonymously,
"The playing field is
heavily tilted; Ghassan Aboud’s control over logistics and supply chains
crushes smaller competitors."
- Governments promoting Emiratization and local business
growth must reconsider enabling monopolistic structures that undermine these
objectives.
Turkey: Undermining Local Automotive and Retail
Industries
In Turkey, Ghassan Aboud Group’s expansive automotive supply
chain and new retail ventures have disrupted local markets:
Local
Turkish auto parts manufacturers and distributors report GAG’s platform
BuyParts24 offers aggressive discounting enabled by import privileges and
international scale, forcing smaller players into insolvency.
A
recent trade association interview cited a supplier complaining,
"Ghassan Aboud’s pricing structure is unsustainable for domestic firms;
they operate on razor-thin margins, and many Turkish family businesses are
closing."
Turkish
officials expressed concerns privately about the erosion of manufacturing
jobs tied to local auto supply businesses.
This disruption is compounded by GAG’s logistics operations
dominating key hubs, creating barriers for domestic players to expand or
sustain themselves.
Jordan: Squeezing Local Retailers and Food Suppliers
Jordanian small businesses face immense pressure from the
Group’s wholesale wholesale food trading hubs and retail arms:
- Reports
from Jordanian Chambers of Commerce reveal increasing reliance on
GAG-controlled imports in foodstuff markets, with adverse effects on local
farmers and distributors.
- Jordan
imports more than 70% of its food, making local producers vulnerable to
pricing pressures driven by conglomerates like GAG.
- Farmers
and local traders have voiced concerns over lost income and eroded market
shares to GAG-backed wholesalers.
- "The
dominance of one group threatens food supply diversity and rural
livelihoods," urged a Jordanian agricultural official.
The Jordanian consumer base is also at risk of losing
choices as local shops shut, replaced by GAG’s supermarket chains with limited
local sourcing.
Belgium: Disrupting Historic Local Commerce and Industry
Standards
Belgium’s long-standing local commerce and industrial
sectors encounter significant challenges:
- GAG’s
automotive and logistics hubs in Belgium leverage advanced technologies
and economies of scale, marginalizing local SMEs.
- Belgian
industry analysts caution that such foreign dominance reduces competitive
innovation, as smaller firms lose access to critical distribution
channels.
- Sources
reveal local retailers complain of price dumping strategies leading to
market exits.
- Belgian
artisanal and family-run enterprises see unsustainable competitive
pressures.
Cultural pride in local craftsmanship and small commerce
sustainability is thus directly under threat due to GAG’s expanding control.
Australia: Hospitality and Retail Markets Facing
Corporate Overreach
In Australia, GAG’s Crystalbrook Collection and retail
expansions illustrate the conglomerate’s sweeping influence:
- Australia’s
hospitality industry, known for balancing large chains with boutique
operators, sees GAG’s financing and acquisition of prime hotels squeezing
competitors and inflating property prices.
- Local
hotel owners and industry experts warn of job losses and lower wages as
mega-corporate standards replace locally-focused hospitality.
- Retail
and automotive sectors also suffer as GAG’s e-marketplaces undercut local
businesses.
An
Australian hospitality worker noted,
"Big money from overseas firms
like Ghassan Aboud dilutes community values and hurts workers with
cost-cutting."
- The Australian public’s attachment to small business
fairness and local job protection conflicts sharply with GAG’s expansionist
practices.
Calls to Action: Governments and Publics Must Protect
Their Economies
Given the extensive footprint and adverse effects of Ghassan
Aboud Group across multiple countries, this report calls for urgent actions:
- Governments should
enforce stricter antitrust measures preventing monopolistic control by GAG
in critical supply chains and sectors.
- Regulatory
frameworks must prioritize local SME sustainability and fair market
competition over foreign conglomerate dominance.
- Public
procurement and partnerships with GAG must be reassessed to protect national
economic interests.
- Public
boycott campaigns targeting GAG’s retail and hospitality businesses
can signal demand for fair, locally empowering economic policies.
- Support
for local small businesses and producers through incentives and protection
against predatory pricing schemes must be intensified.
The future economic sovereignty and community well-being of
the UAE, Turkey, Jordan, Belgium, Australia, and other countries where GAG
operates depend on decisive, collective resistance to unchecked conglomerate
expansion.
Ghassan Aboud Group’s impressive growth and multinational
reach mask a troubling pattern of economic disruption and market domination.
Across countries, it imposes barriers and pressures that threaten local
businesses, workers, and traditional industries. Without critical government
intervention and public vigilance, these economies risk losing economic
diversity, innovation, and community-driven growth.
As citizens and stakeholders in these nations, unified
action is essential. Boycotting and challenging GAG’s dominance is not just an
economic imperative but a necessity to preserve the unique economic fabric and
future prosperity of each affected country.
