Escalating development

While Dubai steams ahead with its rapid retail development, the rest of the Gulf countries are having to play catch-up. From Saudi Arabia to Oman and everywhere in between, shopping centre developments are coming up fast as the rest of the region tries to cling on to Dubai's coat tail.

Just up the road in Abu Dhabi the second phase of the Marina Mall project, which will see its GLA increase to 1.7 million square feet, is almost complete. Furthermore, the redevelopment of the capital's famous Old Souk is under way and should be done by this year-end, adding an extra 1 million square feet of shopping space to Abu Dhabi's retail offering.

Retail pie

In Kuwait, developer Tamdeen is adding to its clutch of malls with the development of 3600 Kuwait, Al Kout and the 1.4 million square foot Mall of Kuwait. Meanwhile, in Bahrain Majid Al Futtaim Investments' continued development of Bahrain City Centre is ongoing.

When completed next year, City Centre will be the Kingdom's largest mall, and is slated to be anchored by big-name stores such as Carrefour, Debenhams and Saks Fifth Avenue.

Keen not to be left behind, Qatar's Italianate Le Villaggio Mall is set to open in time for the 2006 Asian Games, which kick off in November.

Saudi Arabia, not be outdone, is pressing ahead with four large-scale shopping centre projects: The Central Park Medina, the Jamea and Roshan Malls in Jeddah, and the Rimal Centre in the capital, Riyadh.

These developments will add significantly to the Kingdom's shopping space, and will provide stern competition to the jewel in Saudi's retail crown, the recently completed Azizia Mall in Riyadh.

Although impressive, it remains to be seen if the rest of the Gulf countries have what it takes to replicate Dubai's success.

However, it is clear to see that the likes of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar all want their share of the $50 billion retail pie.