Abu Dhabi: The Abu Dhabi Electronics Shopper 2014 (ADES) was inaugurated on Wednesday at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (Adnec) with 40 of the biggest electronics brands and retailers offering various discounts and bundle offers to consumers.

The exhibition, now in its second year, is expected to attract 110,000 visitors and generate a minimum sales volume of Dh50 million over four days.

“Overall, at Costless we’re expecting almost Dh5 million worth of sales, which is almost double the amount from last year. The exhibition is definitely bigger this year. It’s spread over double the surface area and there are more visitors,” said Jehas Habison, purchasing manager at Costless Electronics.

Habison said the exhibition was a boost for Abu Dhabi in terms of increasing its appeal as a shopping destination.

“The event is in line with Abu Dhabi’s plan for development, and it’s high time we have these events here. A lot of people from Abu Dhabi go shopping at other emirates, so that’s a huge potential of people that could shop here instead,” he added.

Among the products at Costless Electronics’ stand are 4K televisions, Apple 5S phones, and Sony Playstation 4.

This year’s edition of ADES sees participation from brands such as Samsung, Nikon, Canon, Sharp, Philips, and Huawei, among others, showcasing the latest technology including mobile phones, entertainment devices, computers, cameras, and other gadgets.

Wearable technology

Sean Connor, general manager at Plug Ins, noted that smart phones were the best selling items. He said customers have also been showing an increasing interest in wearable technology and Samsung gear, such as the Samsung watches.

As for sales, Conner expects a 40 per cent uplift compared to last year, and attributed such increase to greater attendance and stronger performance by Plug Ins.

Another retailer, E-max, replicated some of their most prominent offers from the Dubai Shopping Festival, in order to make the products more accessible to Abu Dhabi consumers.

“Last year being the first year, we did phenomenally well, and this year we have a significantly high target with our stand space doubling and with several striking deals, and are confident that we will achieve it successfully,” said Neelesh Bhatnagar, CEO of E-max.

“We are going bigger and are projecting to double our sales from last year,” he added.

One of the visitors, Hellen Wanjiru, an Abu Dhabi resident, who purchased two televisions, said she had come to check the offers by exhibitors.

“There are lots of stores so it’s easy to shop and compare prices. It’s a good idea to put all these brands under the same roof. There are some good discounts, but I expected more,” she said.

Organisers of the exhibition said the event is set to grow to become an annual event on the emirate’s calendar.