Dubai Chamber CEO Dialogue sheds light on Dubai’s global leadership in retail

Providing insights from industry experts on the retail sector, which is one of Dubai’s important drivers of economic growth, the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry organised its latest round of CEO Dialogue on Dubai: World Leader in Retail at its premises on Tuesday. 

Presided over by H.E. Hamad Buamim, Director General, Dubai Chamber, the panel of speakers included Mr. Mohi-Din BinHendi, Chairman, BinHendi Enterprises, Mr. George Kostas, CEO, Majid Al Futtaim Properties, and Mr. Christophe Nicaise, CEO, Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons, who discussed the current opportunities, trends and economic highlights within Dubai’s retail industry. The roundtable was attended by industry leaders and representatives.

In his opening speech, H.E. Hamad Buamim, Director General, Dubai Chamber, stated that retail is an important driver of Dubai’s economic growth contributing 10% to the total GDP of the emirate as it helps to attract visitors from around the world, particularly high-spending GCC and Chinese tourists. 

The city is ranked second globally for retail representation, just behind London, and it is favoured by European retailers for expansion while the Asian retailers view Dubai as a first choice for expansion and we expect this to increase in line with rising tourism flows from this part of the world, said H.E. Buamim. 

The Director General of Dubai Chamber further stated that the retail sector is directly supported by Dubai’s geographic location as a hub for the movement of passengers and freight transiting between the East and West. Also, Dubai being a much-favoured retail destination by well-known global brands and the emirate’s world-class shopping malls add to its appeal as a popular global shopping destination. 

The Director General of Dubai Chamber pointed out that the UAE retail sector can be divided into several segments such as consumer electronics, garments and clothing including fashion apparel, cafes, restaurants and coffee shops, grocery stores, pharmacies, and automobile sales. 

He cited the example of restaurants and coffee shops which he said recorded strong total growth at about 22.84% from 2009 to August 2012 when the numbers grew from 648 in 2009 to 796 in 2012 which is a clear sign of the growth of the retail sector. 

Quoting a Business Monitor International (BMI) study, H.E. Buamim informed that the UAE, particularly Dubai, is an attractive destination for consumer electronics as the demand for electronic products in the UAE is expected to go up from USD 3.78 billion in 2012 to USD 4.73 billion in 2016, growing per capita by about 33.4% during the same period which is an indication of a promising time for the sector. 

For UAE retailers the growth is an opportunity because by collecting information about sales patterns and tastes for customers of different countries they can create more attractive events and sales strategies for different customers, said H.E. Buamim. 

He added that the initiative, ‘Dubai 24 hours’ is a good example of the government’s support to the retail sector and to the emirate’s ambitious vision of attracting 20 million tourists by the year 2020 which will have a positive impact on the retail sector in Dubai which has been thriving, especially under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, which has made Dubai one of the world’s premier shopping destinations. 

On his part, Mr. Mohi-Din BinHendi, highlighted the presence of potential opportunities in the retail sector which he said serve as a magnet to pull in top retailers of the world to set up in Dubai, especially those in the fashion business. Most of the global brands are present in Dubai, still there is scope for more as this will directly support the increasing flow of tourists to the emirate, he said. 

Mr. George Kostas, added: “Dubai has a strong future as a leading international retail centre, that is why we have recently announced our plans to invest AED 3 billion to revamp our developments in Dubai, to meet the future demand of our customers.  Dubai continues to reinforce its leadership as a retail tourism destination, mainly due to the constantly evolving retail formats and innovative shopping concepts. There is definitely more room for expansion and capacity for more retail space. We see strong demand across all retail segments notably in fashion, electronics and furniture.” 

Mr. Christophe Nicaise, CEO, Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons, said that the need is to get a wider berth for Dubai on the world shopping map and as festivals create opportunities we have to have more cultural and sports events to attract visitors. Also, Dubai has to look at the concept of street-side shopping especially in the luxury shopping sector as he informed that Chinese visitors are leading in the purchase of luxury goods in Dubai. 

The city of Dubai is ranked second globally for retail representation, just behind the British capital London, according to the annual CBRE survey for the year 2012.