Dubai: Shoppers flocked to the Dubai World Trade Centre yesterday as the fifth Gitex Shopper Spring edition 2017 opened its doors, to take advantage of the bundle offers.
The four-day event, which runs until April 1, was opened by Buti Saeed Al Ghandi, second vice-chairman of the board at the Dubai World Trade Centre Authority.
Brands and retailers are out in full force, offering a whirlwind of deals and offers to entice consumers.
The exhibition has attracted more than 20 exhibitors and they will be a magnet for shoppers, technology enthusiasts and students alike who will take advantage of the 35,000 products, bundle offers and competitions — all under one roof.
Key retailers such as Sharaf DG, Jacky’s Electronics and Jumbo expect sales to be at similar levels to last year.
“We do see serious buyers coming to purchase electronics, and categories such as laptops, gaming and mobile phones are doing well thanks to some good new products. We hope to see more of impulse shoppers also increasing in the next few months as consumer confidence increases,” said Nilesh Khalkho, CEO of Sharaf DG.
He said that new technologies such as virtual reality should also see broader acceptance this year — something expected to spur demand. Overall, he sees the industry maintaining levels similar to last year.
Mahesh Chotrani, assistant vice-president at Jacky’s Electronics, said that due to the economic slowdown, people wait for such events to get a good bargain and bundle offers.
“I don’t expect big growth to come from the four-day shopper. We are expecting between 5 and 7 per cent growth in sales compared to last year. Even vendors are waiting for such events to dispose of the inventories as new models are expected to come in the next one to three months,” he said.
“No category will do exceptionally well; we expect all categories to grow between 5 and 7 per cent. The focus for Jacky’s will be to offer best discounts as product cycles are coming to an end,” he said.
Retailers expect smartphones — followed by laptops and large-sized TVs — to steal limelight this year.
“We are very positive about the event. DSF was good for us and we have seen a similar growth trend in February and March also. There are specific categories that are driving growth such as smartphones, ultrabooks and hybrids despite overall slowness in PC sales, large-sized TVs [above 65-inches], including OLED [organic light-emitting diode],” said Nadeem Khanzadah, head of omnichannel retail at the Jumbo Group.
He said that OLED was a niche market due to the price factor and not for the masses. The early adopters are buying and price is not a barrier for them.
Jumbo is expecting 10 per cent year-on-year growth.
Khanzadah said that smartwatches, bands and even high-end DSLR cameras are doing brisk business.
