Magnolia Bakery to expand from Dubai to Qatar and Kuwait

Magnolia Bakery, the New York bakery that made their mouthwatering cupcakes du jour after a star role in ‘Sex and the City‘ is set to increase its Middle East presence. In the next 18 months, the store has plans to open outlets in Qatar and Kuwait.

The store, which opened its first overseas outlet in Bloomingdale’s Dubai last year, is undertaking a global expansion, to include outlets in Brazil, Portugal, Turkey and Mexico.

Magnolia Bakery first opened it’s doors in 1996 on a quiet corner in the heart of New York City’s Greenwich Village, and soon achieved cult status for it’s vintage American desserts that appealed to stylish clientele that favoured high quality goods. In 2007, the original owner decided to hand the business into the reins of Steve Abrams, a veteran NYC restaurateur and consultant who has expanded the brand.

“We consider ourselves to be a high-end luxury brand,” Abrams said in an interview with the Financial Times. “In the rest of the world, cupcakes don’t have the cultural longevity and history, but maybe in some of those cultures they will become a staple. The market is ripe for us.”

Magnolia Bakery was one of several brands that became iconic after being woven into the story lines of Sex and the City; Manolo Blahnik, Skyy Vodka (Cosmo anyone?) Jimmy Choo and the Hermès Birkin bag all featured regulary on the show throughout it’s eight seasons.

Abrams hopes to have stores in 80 countries within the next seven years.

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