This report first appeared in Gulf Marketing Review's July 2008 issue. The full report with statistics is available for download at the bottom of this page.

The Market

Dubai is renowned as the shopping capital of the Middle East and this pursuit plays a prominent role in the daily lives of residents and tourists alike. With a total of 50 shopping malls, the variety of all kinds of commodities means that there is probably no better place to shop to find the widest varieties of products at competitive prices.

Despite the fact that we live in a society dominated by the large shopping centers’ culture and philosophy, many small malls witness big success and remain very profitable for both the developers and the retailers operating within. These malls have a tight and focused group of small retailers; and they frequently rely on the formulaic (average consumers) and generate a customer base similar to that of an anchor grocery store. As a result, these malls create a market niche for themselves by targeting a specific group of particular catchments or areas on which the mall tends not only to depend, but also trust. In addition, due to the elaborate relation between these malls and the location of their shoppers, these small malls are often characterized with a high market penetration, which in turn leads to a very reliable shopper audience.

‘Green’ Malls

Socially responsible retailing and sustainable ‘green’ stores and malls, are emerging global trends that Middle East developers cannot ignore. Retail City, which takes place from June 1-3, 2008 at the Dubai International Exhibition Center, will bring together global retailers, investors, shopping center developers, franchise networks, shopping centers management, architects and regional authorities to focus on all aspects of the retail development cycle.

Bargains

Dubai is also rich with shopping spots for bargain hunters. Al Fahidi Street in Bur Dubai is the place to go for bargains on all kinds of electronic goods. Karama, also situated in Bur Dubai is famous for being a paradise for bargain hunters and is far removed from the hustle and bustle of the shopping malls. Wandering through the shopping areas, you will be invited into clothes, jewelry, leather goods and souvenir shops.

The Coverage

The coverage on shopping and malls from the UAE and Saudi markets yielded quite a bit from the UAE market and as expected, shopping and malls is not a major industry in the Saudi market, unlike the UAE market where shopping is an actual industry as it relies heavily on tourism.

The coverage consisted of clippings on new malls being constructed, clippings that promote pre-existing malls, clippings on collections being displayed in the various malls of the UAE, as well as on the shopping sector as a whole, clippings on Dubai Summer Surprises, on the Dubai Shopping Festival and on the Arabian Travel Market. There were also clippings on Mall of the Emirates and Burjuman bagging awards, clippings on events taking place in various malls, clippings on the redevelopment of some of the malls and clippings were on the new shops opening up in the various malls.

There were 15 malls that were covered in the media; Mall of the Emirates, Burjuman, Ibn Batuta Mall, Marina Mall, Wafi, Abu Dhabi Mall, Deira City Center, Sharjah City Center, Al Wahda Mall, Reem Mall, Dragon Mart, Mercato, Souk Madinat Jumeriah, Al Aim Mall and Dubai Outlet Mall.

Wafi Mall had 3 manifest mentions and 2 latent ones. Burjuman had 3 manfiest mentions and 4 latent mentions. Mall of the Emirates had 4 manifest mentions and 11 latent mentions. Dragon Mart had 1 manifest mention only, while Reem Mall had 2 manifest mentions. Abu Dhabi Mall had 5 latent mentions only, while Sharjah City Center had 3 manifest mentions. Ibn Batuta Mall had 6 manifest mentions. Deira City Center had 1 manifest mention and 3 latent mentions. Mercato and Souk Madinat Jumeriah had 1 manifest mention each. Al Wahda Mall had 3 latent mentions while Marina Mall had 2 menifest mentions and 4 latent mentions. Al Ain Mall had 1 latent mention, while Dubai Outlet Mall had 1 manifest mention.

Three of Wafi’s mentions were resultant from PR, while 2 were not. Burjuman had 3 press releases and 4 other mentions. Mall of the Emirates had 5 press releases, and 10 other mentions. Dragon Mart’s only mention was resultant from PR, while Reem Mall’s only 2 mentions were not. Abu Dhabi Mall had 5 non PR mentions, while Sharjah City Center and Ibn Batuta Mall had 3 and 6 press releases respectively. Deira City Center had 2 press releases and 2 other mentions. Mercato and Souk Madinat Jumeriah had one press release each. Al Wahda Mall had 3 non-PR mentions while Marina Mall had 1 PR mention and 5 non PR mentions. Al Ain Mall had 1 non press release mention, while Dubai Outlet Mall had 1 press release.

Every article for any of the abovementioned malls was in the form of a positive reputation driver, with the exception of 1 of the 15 mentions of Mall of the Emirates contained a message void of a reputation driver.

Survey Analysis

The survey on what motivates people to go to shopping malls was conducted in the UAE market and the Saudi market with sample sizes of 787 and 2,078 respectively. The results were broken down by nationality, age groups, income groups and gender for each market.

The general pattern in the UAE showed that the number 1 motivation for people to go to shopping malls is for shopping for non grocery items, followed by shopping for groceries, eating, going to the movies, just killing time, going for a cup of coffee, taking the kids to the mall and to participate in the malls’ events.

Interestingly, Westerners’ responses indicated that killing time is hardly one of their agendas when going to a mall. However, going for a cup of coffee is. Asians on the other hand, do substantially more shopping for groceries or non-grocery items as well for eating and watching a movie.

Age plays a huge role. Those who are below 21 of age, go mainly to watch movies and kill time more than any other age group. They barely go there for shopping. Ages of 21-29, do not shop much either, but go to eat more than any other age group. Ages of 30-39, go mainly for grocery shopping, while ages of 40-49, go primarily to take the kids, while they hardly go for coffee or movies. Finally the ‘50+’ age group go for shopping more than any other age group.

Income played a major role as well. Those with income below $1,600, go to malls primarily to kill time and participate in events more than any other income group. Those of incomes between $1,600-$2,665 go to malls primarily to take their kids there. Their responses generally showed that they stand mid-ground compared to all income groups. Those of incomes between $2,665 and $5,332 go to malls primarily for shopping and movies more than any other income group, while those of incomes of $5,333-$7,999 go to malls to socialize more than others, but they also go for shopping and movies a lot. Finally, those with incomes of $8,000+ go to malls to eat more than others.

As one would expect, females outnumbered males in all motivational categories and especially for shopping and eating in the UAE market.

As for the Saudi market, the general pattern displayed that shopping for non-grocery items ranks first, followed by grocery shopping, followed by killing time, eating, coffee, taking the kids, movies and finally participating in events. It is interesting to note that killing time ranked 3rd overall in the Saudi market, while it ranked 6th overall in the UAE market.

Nationality played a role as Saudis go for eating, coffee and movies more than expatriates, while expatriates go for taking the kids to the mall more than Saudis.

Below 21 year olds participate in events, do grocery shopping, eat, have coffee and kill time more than any other age group. It is interesting to note that this age group is very active in malls in the Saudi market in comparison to the UAE market, where they only rank 1st in terms of their preference for eating only. 21-29 year olds generally stand mid-ground. They do engage in coffee, shopping and killing time substantially. 30-39 year olds shop more than others, and they rank lowest in terms of participating in events. 40-49 year olds do grocery shopping and take kids more than others. Finally the ‘50+’ age group, ranked last in all categories with the exception of taking the kids to malls.

As expected, income played a substantial role. Those of incomes below $1,600 showed preference to engage in events participation more, and ranked last in all forms of chopping, coffee and taking the kids. Those of incomes of $1,600-$2,665, go to malls primarily for grocery shopping and kill time more than others. Those of incomes of $5,332-$7,999 go to malls for shopping more than others. They generally stand mid-ground compared to all income groups. Finally those of incomes of $8,000+ go to malls primarily to have coffee more than others.

Unlike in the UAE market and interestingly, males and females showed different preferences. While males go to malls primarily for movies and taking the kids, females go to malls primarily for all forms of shopping, killing time, eating and having coffee.

Conclusion

One of the interesting observations is the difference between the UAE and Saudi markets in terms of the role age plays. In the UAE market, the ‘50+’ age group shop more than any other age group, and that can easily be attributed to the wealth factor. The older generations has more money and thus shop more. They are not as attracted to the other facilities malls might provide. However, in the Saudi market, it is the 30-39 year olds that shop more than others, which can be attributed to the fact that the older Saudi generation is more conservative.

Saudis seem to be very bored and are hungry for venues to spend their time. Saudis go to the mall to kill time because there are very few movie theaters. A lot of people, specifically females, spend time on shopping malls with no intention of shopping and are only there to kill time, which is a market screaming to provide entertainment such as movies.

Judging from the amount of response and the sample size, interest in shopping by both markets and specifically the Saudi market is significantly high, indicating room for growth in both markets.