Fund Grube, the Canary Islands-based chain specializing in perfume, fashion, and beauty products based in El Tablero, Maspalomas, closed 2024 with record figures: €170 million in sales, up 16%, and a net profit of €7,3 million, according to data revealed by the financial newspaper Cinco Días. The company, which was founded more than four decades ago replicating the duty-free shop model in tourist areas of Gran Canaria, is now preparing to make the definitive leap to the Iberian Peninsula, in a move that would mark its first major territorial expansion outside the archipelago.
With more than 60 stores spread across Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Fuerteventura, and Lanzarote, the Fund Grube group operates under several brands—Fund Grube itself (which generates 90% of the business), Walk (footwear), Look (sunglasses), and GAP and AW Lab franchises—and already employs over a thousand people. This entire commercial ecosystem is led by the second generation of the family, with Dhiraj Chhabria as CEO since 2018. Under his management, the company has doubled its number of stores in a decade and achieved cumulative revenue growth of nearly 80%.
Last year, its EBITDA increased by 51% to €14 million, amid strong growth due to both new openings and improved comparable sales. Now, the group is confident it will reach €183 million in sales by 2025, with its sights set on breaking the €200 million barrier by 2026, thanks to a model based on large-format stores strategically located in tourist destinations.
Diversification in the Canary Islands or peninsular expansion
Chhabria acknowledges that the company is in the "analysis phase," with two options on the table: further diversification within the Canary Islands market or exploring expansion in cities like Madrid or Barcelona, where agreements with national chains, strategic alliances, or even acquisitions are being considered. "The mainland market is more conducive to this type of transaction. If a business adds value, why not?" he told Cinco Días.
