Primark opens at Mall of the Emirates: 'We came here from school,' say excited visitors

Dubai: The line outside the Primark at Mall of the Emirates on opening day was no shock to anyone who has seen the store's launch at Dubai Mall and City Centre Mirdif before. The queues were snaking from the store's entrance, through the mall's corridor, and stretching so far it blurred into the direction of Ski Dubai.

Inside the moving line of shoppers stood people waiting for their turn to reach the front, shifting forward inch by inch, with their phones out taking videos of the buzz around them.

Wanting to see if the hype was real

Sofia Alvarez, a marketing executive, leaned slightly on her tote bag as she looked ahead, half-amused by the chaos. “I think I came because I’ve been watching this trend online for a while” she said. “You see all these clips and you start wondering if the reality matches the hype."

Especially with this being the third store to open in the city she wondered if the crowd was going to be just as big. "My friends sent me their lists too, they could not imagine standing in line so I took one for the team" She laughs.

Retail openings here feel like events

A few steps behind her was Ron Silva, a civil engineer who had only recently moved to Dubai. “Back home, a queue like this would mean something is wrong,” he laughed. “Here, it feels big especially because where I come from, it isn't everyday you see people excited about Primark."

Further along, Nicole Bennett, stood with her friends still in her school uniform. “We literally came straight from school,” she said. “We decided to go after we saw it on an influencer's page yesterday."

University student, Naina Sanjay stood in the line with her father. “I just got back from India on my university break and I had nothing to do and doing something unnecessary (like standing in a long line) feels good sometimes” She laughed. "When I was in Pune, I remember my friends talking about Primark and I would get FOMO." Standing beside her, her father smiled and added, “I’m just here to accompany my daughter.”

At one point in the queue, retired teacher Alia Sultan stood beside her daughter. “I did not go for the other openings she went to, but she came home with things she bought that I ended up loving. This time she asked me to come and I just agreed.” She laughs gesturing towards her daughter.

As shoppers exited the store carrying oversized paper bags, I knew my TikTok would probably be flooded with first impressions, 'everything I bought at Primark' hauls, and chaotic queue videos. And for the next few days at least, my algorithm will almost definitely be convinced that all I care about is affordable knitwear and home décor.