LuLu, Ariel celebrate National Day with Guinness record

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Updated 24 September 2023
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LuLu, Ariel celebrate National Day with Guinness record

LuLu Hypermarket, the Kingdom’s fastest growing and largest retail chain, and Ismail Abu Dawood and Procter and Gamble Limited, manufacturers of products such as Pampers, Tide, Ariel and Herbal Essences, partnered to celebrate the 93rd Saudi National Day with a Guinness World Records title.

In partnership with Ariel Saudi Arabia, LuLu made an eye-catching formation in the shape of the number 93, using 16,494 Ariel detergent packs. The feat bagged the Guinness World Records title for the “Largest Packaged Product Number.”

The event, which took place at the Alawwal Park Stadium, Riyadh, on Sept. 19, was attended by popular Saudi actor Yousef Al-Jarrah. Guinness World Records officials were present to authenticate and certify the attempt. The LuLu and Ariel teams had been working for days on a logistics and design blueprint to build the formation.

To mark LuLu’s role in the progress of Saudi Arabia, the retail giant is partnering with Albir Charity to donate 6,000 packs from the display to families in need. This will also be part of the LuLu ESG effort. Of the remaining packs, more than 10,000 lucky customers shopping at LuLu stores in Riyadh on National Day, will get them for free on a “first come, first serve” basis.

“We are excited to aim for a Guinness World Records title dedicated to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on the occasion of the 93rd Saudi National Day,” said Shehim Mohammed, LuLu Saudi director. “It is an exercise that frames the progress of the Kingdom and LuLu’s role in it. The top detergent brand, Ariel, produced by our project partner P&G, is manufactured in the Kingdom and, like LuLu, it showcases the development of industry and business in modern Saudi Arabia. We have also built our charity and ESG initiative into the event, thus reaching out to families in need and also our valued customer base.”

Turki bin Moammar, Saudi government relations and public policy senior director at P&G, expressed the multinational conglomerate’s happiness at partnering with LuLu for this landmark event. He said: “At P&G, we are committed to helping create a better world for future generations by driving initiatives across our brands and operations that help the communities we operate in. Our longstanding collaboration with LuLu offers both organizations an opportunity to demonstrate the power of brands to enact positive change. This imaginative effort to mark Saudi National Day with a Guinness World Record is sure to capture the hearts of the public while also serving the noble cause of charity. We look forward to building on this coalition through future initiatives with trusted and mindful partners.”

The project was also applauded by Fahad Al-Nashwan, assistant secretary-general at Albir Charity. He said: “Charity is one of the pillars of Islam and on the joyful occasion of Saudi National Day, what better way to join in celebrations than this, where families in need are served. We thank LuLu Hypermarket and P&G for reaching out in this imaginative way.”

Meanwhile, celebrity guest Al-Jarrah said: “I am very pleased to be here on this special day to celebrate the 93rd National Day and to participate with my brothers at LuLu Hypermarket and Ariel in achieving the world’s largest number, and I congratulate them on receiving the Guinness certificate.”

On Sept. 19, the display was inaugurated in the presence of LuLu top management led by Mohammed, director of LuLu Saudi. The P&G team was led by bin Moammar.


How TCS is helping GCC businesses turn sustainability ambition into action

Updated 28 sec ago
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How TCS is helping GCC businesses turn sustainability ambition into action

As GCC countries advance toward ambitious goals like Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and the UAE’s Vision 2031, sustainability is no longer optional: it’s essential. Businesses across the region are increasingly expected to show tangible progress on their environmental and social commitments. But turning these ambitions into measurable outcomes remains a challenge.

Many GCC organizations are committed to sustainability but struggle with fragmented and inconsistent ESG data. Information is often captured manually or stored in silos, disconnected from key business metrics. This makes it difficult to track progress, meet disclosure requirements, or gain a holistic view of impact. Adding to this complexity is a shifting regulatory landscape, with global ESG standards becoming more structured and mandatory.

The solution: smarter sustainability through technology
Tata Consultancy Services believes that technology is the key to solving these challenges. By leveraging advanced digital tools, including AI, IoT, blockchain, and cloud-based platforms, TCS helps organizations automate ESG data collection, unify information across departments, and generate actionable insights.

For example, the TCS Zero Carbon Platform enables businesses to monitor Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions accurately and in real time. The platform provides a single, transparent view of sustainability performance and ensures that the data is audit ready. TCS also brings deep capabilities in digital twins: virtual models that allow businesses to simulate energy consumption and test decarbonization strategies in a risk-free environment.

These digital solutions also improve data accuracy and transmission, even in offshore or hard-to-access environments, while enabling predictive insights into program performance and ROI.

To ensure consistency and global credibility, TCS also helps organizations align their sustainability efforts with internationally recognized frameworks such as GRI, ISSB, SBTi, TCFD, and IFRS. This alignment goes beyond compliance, embedding ESG into enterprise architecture and business strategy.

TCS–TÜV SÜD: services for impact
To strengthen the credibility and assurance of data sustainability, TCS has partnered with TÜV SÜD, a global leader in testing, inspection, and certification. This collaboration brings together TCS’s digital innovation with TÜV SÜD’s technical validation and third-party certification expertise.

Together, they offer an end-to-end sustainability solution that enables organizations to capture and analyze emissions data using the TCS Zero Carbon Platform, validate results through TÜV SÜD’s independent assessments, and ensure compliance with evolving global ESG regulations, which will build trust with stakeholders through transparent, certified reporting.

Whether it’s conducting energy audits, supporting ESG risk mitigation, or designing a decarbonization roadmap, the TCS–TÜV SÜD approach empowers Middle East businesses to move confidently and efficiently toward their net-zero goals.

What GCC businesses should focus on
With regulatory expectations rising and stakeholders demanding more transparency, organizations in the GCC need to be proactive in how they approach sustainability. One key priority is automated ESG reporting, moving away from manual processes toward integrated systems that ensure data consistency, traceability, and auditability.

Another critical focus area is managing Scope 3 emissions, which requires companies to take accountability for their entire value chain, from suppliers to end-users. Finally, businesses must prioritize building data-backed narratives, using verifiable, high-quality ESG data to clearly communicate their sustainability progress and build trust with stakeholders.

The TCS advantage
TCS combines global experience with regional understanding to help GCC businesses embed sustainability into their core operations. From platforms like TCS Clever Energy and TCS Envirozone, to partnerships with TÜV SÜD and beyond, TCS enables organizations to transform their ESG goals into measurable, impactful outcomes.

As sustainability investment accelerates across areas like clean energy, carbon capture, and sustainable aviation fuels, TCS is well-positioned to guide GCC businesses in navigating this evolving landscape.

By bringing together digital innovation, strong partnerships, and deep industry expertise, TCS helps businesses in the GCC not only keep up, but lead, in the era of sustainable transformation.