With the kind of frenzy Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) drums up, the event has become a barometer for the retail sector, helping predict what it has in store for the year. 2016 should be no different.
This year organisers Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment, an agency of the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM), is wooing visitors with celebrity appearances, family-friendly activities, live entertainment, and raffle promotions offering millions of dirhams in prizes.
“Returning for its 21st year, the festival is intrinsic to attracting tourists from proximity markets including Saudi Arabia, GCC neighbours and India, in addition to visitors from China, Africa and Russia,” says Helal Al Merri, Director-General, DTCM. “Driving high tourism numbers at the start of the year, DSF profiles the emirate’s year-round retail and entertainment offering — one of the core pillars of Dubai’s overall tourism offer — and is a significant contributor to the economy.” Just how much DSF will contribute this year remains to be seen. Retailers are anyway doing their bit.
“DSF is one of the most important initiatives in the retail calendar for the region,” says Vipen Sethi, CEO, Landmark Group. “As retailers, we aim to create a strong and attractive offer for our shoppers so that we can add greater value to DSF. Our focus is to provide customers with great promotions. This combined with an exceptional product offering and great customer service will work towards enhancing the shopping experience.”
Sethi says the group is viewing the year with cautious optimism. “The UAE retail industry is growing and has seen an increase in competition from international and local brands. Our success depends on our ability to adapt to the changing needs and expectations of our customers. Our focus this year is to use our vast experience to continue providing exceptional product offerings through operational efficiency and ensure our customers enjoy the best through our infrastructural strength. ”
Fashion and home style store Centrepoint, which hopes to pull in shoppers through its sale, is conservative in its estimate about how good things will be this year. “DSF has always been a good month for us as the winter sale is a big event and adds value to the overall deals and festivity of the period,” says Simon Cooper, Head of Centrepoint. “We expect modest growth this year and are optimistic of the sentiment improving. Brands will be tested, as only the best thrive when competition rises.”
Niranjan Gidwani, Deputy Chief Executive Officer at technology and appliances retailer Eros Group, is pragmatic about 2016 given the geographical and economic situations. “Despite that, DSF is the best way to start a year, and we will approach it with the same vigour as in earlier years,” he says. “The festival goes beyond Dubai and is a global one. It is one of the few events in the year where we know sales will be fantastic.”
Many UAE retailers will focus on loyalty programmes for residents and non-residents, the latter due to repeat visits. Recent stats reveal visitors from Saudi Arabia and the UK as the top foreign spenders at DSF. In 2015, tourists from these countries contributed $35.18 million (Dh129.2 million) and $29.98 million, respectively.
The online arena has also gained importance in recent years. Eros Group, for one, is on board.
“We just launched our online shopping portal Erosdigitalhome.ae after studying market trends,” says Gidwani. “In 2016, our goal online will be to strengthen foundations and understand customer needs and habits so as to better serve them. In 2017 we expect it to account for nearly 10 per cent of our total turnover.”
But he also says that a lot needs to be done for online retail in the region. “While the industry has been here for some time e-commerce only recently took off. It still has a long way to go.”
