Dubai lures big spenders

By Venkat Raman

Friday 25th October 2002

Outrageous prizes, daily raffles to give away Rolls-Royce and Lexus cars, electronic goods, textiles and jewellery at rock bottom prices and hundreds of family entertainment events will mark the Dubai Shopping Festival 2003.

Word is already out a number of international firms will launch new products at special prices at the festival, making Dubai the destination of the month for retail addicts.

Dubai Quality Group chairman Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum said next year's festival is expected to attract more than eight million visitors, compared with about six million this year.

"More than 450 activities including amusement games, raffle draws, street festivities and other items will mark the event," he said in an interview with The National Business Review.

"Hotels in Dubai alone accounted for three million visitors in 2002 and the objective is to attract more visitors from various parts of the world. The number of rooms will see a sharp rise with the increase in the number of new hotels."

Dubai Shopping Festival executive chairman Ali Lootah Hussain said a new team had taken over to add new dimensions to the well-established festival, the biggest of its kind in the world. It runs from January 15 to February 15, 2003.

The 2002 festival, held in March, saw some big prizes being given away. These ranged from 80 Lexus cars, 35 Nissan Patrol Super Safaris, 40 kilos of gold and more than 100,000 dirhams ($1.6 million) from Visa. In 1998, one lucky person won seven Lexus cars valued at more than $2 million.

Festival CEO Saeed Mohammed Al Nabouda said: "It is being held earlier than usual to capitalise on the spring break and the Eid holidays. Several new activities are being planned and these will cater to different tastes."

Despite factors like September 11 and the absence of holidays, last year's festival attracted a 22% rise in Arab visitors and 21% more westerners, an overall growth of 5% and merchandise turnover of 4.6 billion dirhams ($7.35 billion).

Emirates airline has direct flights to Dubai from Sydney, Melbourne and Perth, while the internet offers online shopping at mydsf.com.

"In the coming weeks, mydsf.com will have an extensive listing of stores in Dubai, offering merchandise at all-time low prices," Sheikh Ahmed said. "This shopping channel will reveal the best places to get deals on quality products. Best of all, Dubai's merchants offer amazing deals that are unmatched anywhere else in the world."

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