A.M.H. Alshaya Company has opened its flagship store Alshaya Home at the Al Haddab Center on Tahlia Street in Jeddah. “Alshaya Home gives discerning Saudi consumers exclusive access to the most exciting brands in the home furnishings sector, including ‘And So To Bed’, ‘Becara’, ‘Duravit’, ‘Estel’, ‘Hansgrohe’, ‘Imola’, ‘Keuco’ and ‘Nobilia’, showcasing beds, furniture, kitchen, bathroom and sanitary ware, tiles and office furniture, as well as relevant accessories, all under one roof in a continuous display area,” Ayman Alshaya, CEO, A. M. H. Alshaya Company, said at the opening of the store. In fact Alshaya Home offers five exclusive showrooms in one: Becara, And So To Bed, Kitchenhaus, Bathrooms & Flooring, and Office Furnishings. Alshaya said: “We have brought together an extensive range of homeware, for almost every room in the house, and we are honored to have our partners from Germany, Spain, the UK and Italy with us. We wish the homemakers of Jeddah many happy hours in our new home.” Displayed in one of the five spacious showrooms, And So To Bed was Alshaya Trading’s first venture into home furnishings and first became available in the Middle East in 2004. This renowned English brand unites both contemporary and classic premium bedroom furniture designs with the high-end market. The Jeddah store will be followed by openings in Riyadh, Dammam and Khamis Mushayit, with the Alshaya Trading Saudi Arabian operation scheduled to be fully operational by Ramadan 1433.
 

LG Electronics has announced that its IT Academy will start operating in Jeddah, in the building that houses its Cooking Academy, from May 15. It has joined forces with the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI) for its new activity, which is part of its CSR plan. Saudi women can study at the IT Academy free of cost and obtain certification approved by the JCCI. The IT Academy is designed to offer key practical and theoretical skills through a structured learning program. Completion of the training and required exam, will enable students secure jobs in the IT industry. John Lee, MD, LG Electronics, Jeddah, said: “As we continue to bring IT Academy into the community, our goal is to make it more accessible to Saudi women who are interested in acquiring formal IT education. This is part of LG’s CSR initiative — to give back to the community.” LG’s senior executive Hee Choon Lee said: “Our initiative will not only benefit those who train with us, but the IT industry will also be able to increase the visibility of IT professionals by employing our highly trained and certified delegates.” LG Electronics is very active in terms of activities and CSR initiatives among Saudi women. Its Cooking Academy offers women an opportunity to learn about various cooking styles and methods focusing on healthy food.
 

With the Aventador LP 700-4, Automobile Lamborghini is redefining the very peak of the world super sports car market. Its brutal power, outstanding lightweight engineering, and phenomenal handling precision are combined with superior design and the very finest equipment to deliver an incomparable driving experience. Stephan Winkelmann, president and CEO of Automobile Lamborghini, describes the work of art in these words: “With the Aventador LP 700-4, the future of the super sports car is now part of the present. Its exceptional package of innovative technologies is unique, its performance simply overwhelming.” With the Aventador, Lamborghini is taking a big step into the future - and building on the glorious history of the brand with the next automotive legend. The Aventador inherited its name from the courageous bull that entered into the Saragossa Arena battle in 1993 and won the “Trofeo de la Pena la Madronera” for its fearlessness. The technology package of the Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-4 is utterly unique. Lamborghini is heading into the future with a systematic lightweight design concept based on an innovative monocoque made from carbon fiber. The Aventador will be built to the very highest quality standards in an all-new production facility in Sant’Agata Bolognese and the first customers will take delivery of the new Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-4 in late summer of 2011. Lamborghini is distributed throughout the Kingdom and in Bahrain by Al Ghassan Motors.
 
SHB
Saudi Hollandi Bank (SHB) has announced that HP has been selected to develop and deliver a ‘Multi Channel Platform’ (MCP). This will offer SHB customers an integrated, rich and consistent experience across the Internet, mobile banking, ATMs, call centers and the SHB branches. The MCP program will deliver the latest technology, allowing the bank to substantially improve its current services while enabling the flexibility to add new services in future. As such, the program will be the first step of a continuous journey of innovation in which SHB and HP join forces to bring the best solutions to the bank’s customers. “The delivery of the MCP is an important step toward delivering better service to the bank’s customers.” says Mubarak Al-Khafrah, chairman of SHB. Bernd van Linder, managing director of SHB said: “The agreement with HP will bring the technology allowing us to constantly renew and improve our solutions.” Bassem Bouzid, regional vice president and general manager for HP Enterprise Services in the Middle East, Mediterranean and Africa (MEMA) region, said: “This project clearly demonstrates HP’s commitment to a long-term agreement with SHB, and the Kingdom’s financial services market.”
 

Reed Exhibitions, a major international events organizer, has entered into a partnership with Sunaidi Expo, a subsidiary of Alfadl Group of companies in the Kingdom. The move aims at joining hands to organize a series of international events in Jeddah starting from 2012. The new alliance constitutes Reed’s first entry into the Saudi market, which will contribute to the company’s expansion in the region. Frederic Theux, president of Reed Exhibitions Middle East, said the partnership with Sunaidi Expo marked a new beginning for Reed in Saudi Arabia and will help reinforce and develop its exhibition sector. Theux said: “We have chosen Jeddah to be Reed’s entry point to the Saudi market because it is a very ancient city with vast history. It is known to be the bride of the Red Sea and the Kingdom’s marine gateway to the outer world. Jeddah, in particular, and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in general, constitute one of the most important trade, economic and investment hubs in the region.” Mohammed Alfadl, president of Alfadel Group, the parent company of Sunaidi Expo, expressed his pride in the new alliance with Reed Exhibitions. “This partnership will secure us a strong position in the exhibitions market in the Kingdom. We will certainly benefit from Reed’s global reputation and vast expertise in this arena,” he added. The annual “Jewellery Salon” for jewelry and watches and the annual “Decofair” for interior design and furniture are among the exhibitions the partnership will organize.
 

Saudia Private Aviation (SPA), an affiliate of Saudi Arabian Airlines, is the main sponsor of the 5th edition of EXCS International Luxury Motor Show, which will be held at Riyadh Four Season Hotel in October. The sponsorship contract was signed between SPA and Specialized Systems for Exhibitions and Conferences (EXCS), organizer of EXCS International Luxury Motor Show for the fifth year in a row. SPA’s AGM for Royal and VIPs affairs Wajdi El Idrissi underscored the importance of the specialized exhibition, which targets prominent people, and the high class segment of the community. El Idrissi said: “We have renewed the partnership to be a sponsor for this important motor show after the great success we have achieved last year at its fourth session, where we found that the sponsorship of the exhibition is an important step, particularly since the reputation of the exhibition in previous sessions has been extremely positive.” He added: “We have put into service a number of private jets, such as modern and sophisticated aircraft (Hawker 400 XP) as well as aircraft (Falcon 7 X) with a range of more than 11 flight hours straight. We also added stations to the new international services.” Abdullah Al-Shamasi, CEO of EXCS, said: “The participation of a national company as large as Saudi Arabian Airlines is important for the development of a special and a distinct exhibition as EXCS International Luxury Motor Show.”