Egypt’s Carry On Retail Overhaul to Cost Up to EGP 1 Million Per Store
Egypt’s plan to transform its state-owned consumer outlets into a unified Carry On retail chain will require investment of between EGP 500,000 and EGP 1 million per branch, according to government sources familiar with the implementation process.
The cost varies depending on the size and condition of each outlet, the extent of renovation required and whether its existing infrastructure needs significant rehabilitation, the sources said.
The figures provide a first indication of the investment required at store level as the government moves beyond rebranding its consumer complexes and begins turning them into a standardized retail network.
More than a change of name
Carry On is designed to consolidate government-affiliated consumer complexes and other supply outlets under a single retail identity, with standardized store design and operating practices.
The Ministry of Supply and Internal Trade has already opened the first upgraded branches and is expanding the model as part of a wider modernization of Egypt’s internal trade infrastructure.
The transformation goes beyond new signage and interior design.
Depending on each location, work can include structural and finishing upgrades, refrigeration and display equipment, communications infrastructure, digital payment systems, surveillance and tracking technology, as well as the systems required to connect stores to a more centralized operating network.
The government has also been working with private-sector partners to introduce cloud, connectivity and digital services across upgraded Carry On outlets.
1,060 consumer complexes create a much bigger investment requirement
The scale of the program makes the per-store cost particularly significant.
The government has previously said that around 1,060 consumer complexes are ultimately intended to operate under the Carry On model, alongside a much larger network of more than 30,000 ration grocers and 8,000 Gam’eyati outlets that could gradually become part of the unified retail ecosystem.
Applying the EGP 500,000-to-EGP 1 million range to the 1,060 consumer complexes alone would imply a theoretical renovation requirement of roughly EGP 530 million to EGP 1.06 billion if every branch required spending within that range.
The actual cost could differ considerably because branches vary in size and condition, while the wider Carry On program includes different types of outlets and financing structures.
Financing becomes central to the expansion
Funding is therefore becoming an important part of the project.
The Ministry of Supply has previously said it is considering different financing mechanisms for upgrading consumer complexes, including self-financing and partnerships with the private sector.
A separate agreement with Egypt’s Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency is intended to help existing ration outlets and new entrepreneurs join the Carry On network through financing, training and franchise-based models.
That could eventually turn Carry On into something broader than a renovated network of government supermarkets.
The model combines state-owned consumer complexes with independently operated supply outlets and potentially new franchise stores under a more standardized commercial identity.
From government outlets to a national retail chain
The broader objective is to change how Egypt’s large state-affiliated retail footprint operates.
Rather than maintaining thousands of outlets with different formats, infrastructure and operating standards, the government is seeking to create a recognizable chain with common branding, digital infrastructure and more consistent customer experience.
Four Carry On branches had been opened by the end of 2025, while 44 consumer complexes were upgraded during that year, bringing the total number of upgraded complexes to 369.
The next challenge will be scaling that model without allowing renovation costs to overwhelm the economics of individual outlets.
With upgrades costing as much as EGP 1 million per branch, the Carry On project is increasingly becoming not simply a retail rebranding exercise, but a sizeable investment in modernizing Egypt’s government-backed distribution network.