Dubai: As an onslaught of globally renowned department stores from shopping destinations such as London and New York choose to make the UAE the location of their first overseas venture, the battle is now on for department stores to maintain their competitive edge.
The UAE is now home to several department stores such as Debenhams from the United Kingdom, Bloomingdales from the United States and Galeries Lafayette from France.
These three are now based in Dubai's largest mall. Making a beeline for the UAE is the world famous Harrods, based in the United Kingdom.
At the same time, the UK-based House of Fraser, eager to open its first overseas outlet, has made a date with Abu Dhabi.
The UAE's attraction lies in the composition of the country's consumer market, according to Pascal Abchee, general manager of Galeries Lafayette.
Unique position
"[The UAE] has achieved something unique where it has positioned itself as a bridge between the West and East and countries of the Middle East," he said.
"It's also one of the few countries which is not only capable of generating a sufficient local market which is open to consumption but also quite an important location in terms of tourism."
Abchee is not too concerned about the positioning of major department stores within Galeries Lafayette's vicinity.
"In a big shopping mall, it's about having a mix. The department stores can work together to make it a better shopping experience," he said.
Abchee said Dubai's largest mall still had to reach its critical mass before the dividing of customer loyalties occurs.
"This is where the fight for differentiation comes in," he said.
Meanwhile, as part of the store's plan to offer a comprehensive shopping experience, Galeries Lafayette announced the opening of a new 4,000 square metre grocery and delicatessen gourmet section.
This new addition will complement the in-store Red Box restaurant and the new home furnishing line.
"Now with the home collection, Red Box restaurant and soon with the gourmet section, the shopping experience will be complete and customers will be able to express themselves at different levels; in what they're wearing, what they're furnishing their house with and what they're eating," Abchee said.
Hailed as the second most visited attraction in Paris after the Eiffel Tower, Galeries Lafayette's first store overseas has a hard act to follow.
However, with GCC nationals being the second most frequent customers in the Paris store, Abchee is confident that the brand's reputation will be carried through to the UAE.
"GCC customers represent an important share of our clients but in terms of tourist shoppers, we have also seen the number of Chinese customers increasing tremendously in the past two months," he said.
Upbeat
While the timing of the $40 million (Dh146.9 million) store opening has been slightly unfortunate, coinciding with a downturn in retail spending, Abchee is positive about the future.
"The opening was not too far from our expectations. There was a slowdown at the end of September but since October we feel that [the UAE] is really picking up with sales picking up in April and March."
