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| Nick Peel, a former retail director of Arsenal Football Club, is the CEO of Marka. |
Dubai's Marka, a retail and restaurant start-up that listed on the emirate's bourse last year, said it made a loss of more than AED13.5 million ($3.67 million) in the fourth quarter of 2014, in line with expectations.
The company, which said last month that it expects to turn profitable in the fourth quarter of 2015 as it boosts revenue with new acquisitions, said the Q4 loss was largely due the "one-time costs associated with establishing a new businesses and attracting a world-class brand portfolio".
Monday's results follow the company's announcement that it will be opening the world's first UEFA Champions League Experience, an immersive concept store and fast-casual dining destination in Yas Mall in Abu Dhabi in May 2015.
In a statement, Marka said it has signed 15 lease agreements representing a combined total of more than 45,000 square feet of retail space since listing in Dubai in September.
In 2015, Marka said it plans to launch more than 25 outlets including UEFA Champions League Experience, Cristiano Ronaldo's CR7 Footwear, Essentiel Antwerp, Weill, Laurèl, Sonia by Sonia Rykiel, Berenice, Taste of Italy by Heinz Beck and Harper's Bazaar Café.
In addition, the company said it is in the closing stages of acquiring Modell's Sporting Goods franchise from Retailcorp, an Istithmar company.
Khaled Al Muheiri, vice chairman of Marka, said: "We are extremely pleased at the progress being made on our business plan and on the commitments we made to our shareholders in our IPO.
"With a strong portfolio of brands across sports, fashion and hospitality and 25 outlets planned for opening this year in the UAE, we have a strong foundation in place to be one of the most unique and diverse retailing businesses in the GCC region with a first class management team with international retail expertise."
He added that he expects to announce between four and six further acquisitions in the medium term.
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