July 2016 / Vol 5 No 7
Infographics
Travel Escape to Thailand
Published from Dubai Media City
for less dirhams than a fancy dinner in Dubai with Air Asia X p52
S N
THE BOSS Interview
Q&A with Shane Eldstrom, Chief Operation Officer at Reem Mall p38
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UAE Retail on a Roll p8
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The Retail Issue
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Work + Play = Life
benchmark middle east
D Travel Escape to Thailand
Published from Dubai Media City
for less dirhams than a fancy dinner in Dubai with Air Asia X p52
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JULY 2016
Infographics
UAE Retail on a Roll p8
THE BOSS Interview
Q&A with Shane Eldstrom, Chief Operation Officer at Reem Mall p38
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JUly 2016
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The Retail Issue
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Work + Play = Life
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inside
July 2016 / Vol 5 No 7
COvER dESIgN Geri Batara Sonny
A Times Of Oman Publication
e ditoriaL o ffiCe Solus Globus Media Solutions FZ LLC Office: EXC 11, Floor 2, Bldg 2 Dubai Media City P O Box: 50 30 36 Dubai, UAE Tel: +971 4 360 55 96
C hairman Mohammed Essa Al Zedjali
Work
8
14 18
By the Numbers UAE Retail on a Roll
34
C hief e xeCutive e ditor Scott Armstrong
Ten Trending Retail Fads in the UAE Careers in Retail
C reative d ireCtor : Adonis Durado a rt d ireCtor : Waleed Rabin L ead d esigner : Geri Batara Sonny i nfographiC e ditor : Antonio Farach i LLustrator : Winie Ariany
The retail industry may be just what you’re looking for — not least because it boasted the steepest salary increases across all sectors in the Arabian Gulf last year, according to online recruitment portal GulfTalent.
22 New Malls Coming on Stream Online Shopping Finally Taken off 26 Has in the UAE? 30
Ceo & e ditor in C hief Ahmed Essa Al Zedjali
How to be an Instagram Retailer Instagram has clicked with consumers — and so there’s little wonder it is gaining a healthy following among UAE retailers, too. The Thrill of the Hunt: Shopping in the UAE The UAE boasts more than its fair share of luxury boutiques, supercar showrooms and jewellery emporiums. So who’d have thought it is actually a nation of bargain hunters?
38
THE BOSS The Fun of the Mall Q&A with Shane Eldstrom, Chief Operating Officer of Reem Mall
44
Work Events planner Used all your annual leave already? It could be time, then, to concoct a “business trip” if you’re looking for a summertime escape.
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46 Travel Luxury in Thailand 52 Travel AirAsia X Bangkok 56 Top Five Properties For Sale 58 Top Five Properties For Rent 60 Fashion for Her and Him Events planner 64 Play The second half of 2016 is going to be a big one for
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Editor's Note
M
adonna could very well have been singing about Dubai circa 2016 when she belted out her classic hit, "Material Girl" in the 1980s. A land where shopping is sport and malls are destinations for tourists and locals alike, it's little wonder that the retail market continues to thrive, despite the squeeze of the oil crisis on other sectors. What is surprising, however, is how much growth is still projected for this segment, with giants of the industry planning billions of dirhams worth of new developments over the next two years. In this issue, we explore the opportunities, challenges, and overall trends in
the shop-till-you-drop UAE retail sector. In By-the-Numbers, we see that there is ample room for the planned mega-mall additions to Abu Dhabi and Dubai, as the UAE lags behind other markets in mallspace-per-capita, while being home to some of the best spenders. And retailers here know there clients. Despite being known as a destination for luxury shopping, the trend among the leisure spenders of the Emirates is one of thrifty bargain-hunting, a mentality accentuated by the oil crunch. Retailers are responding in kind with a plethora of offers to keep these savvy shoppers coming back week after week. As shopping is a recreational activity in the Emirates, it is not so surprising that online shopping is off to a slower
start, but retailers, like Jacky's Group of Companies, are exploring new ways to introduce trusted, value-added e-commerce to the market. And while buying online might not be trending, online marketing through social media platforms like Instagram, is proving to be an essential element of any UAE retailers marketing mix. If you've had your fill of shop-cationing at home, in Play we help you plan your summer escape. Make a break for it without breaking the bank with a direct flight to Bangkok on the incredibly affordable, and even more incredibly comfortable, Air Asia X, and once in Thailand, use the money you saved on your flight for a stay at the opulent TK hotel, and, perhaps, on just a little shopping. Scott Armstrong Chief Executive Editor
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benchmark middle east | July 2016
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ByBy The The Numbers NumbersInfographics Infographics
Infographics By The Numbers
SHOP ‘TIL YOU DROP
• •by byt h th e enumb num er b er s s• •
UAE UAERETAIL RETAILON ONAAROLL ROLL you’d you’d bebe forgiven forgiven forfor thinking thinking there there is is already already anan overabundance overabundance ofof shopping shopping malls malls inin the the UAE. UAE. But Butdespite despitethe thecountry’s country’ssprawling sprawlingmegamalls, megamalls,there thereis isactually actuallya ashortfall shortfallofofretail retailspace, space,atat least least inin comparison comparison with with some some developed developed markets. markets. The The UAE UAE has has less less than than one one square square metre metre ofof
Value of UAE retail industry (in billion Dh)
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8 8
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MALL SPACE PER PERSON
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UAE
benchmark middle east | July 2016
Number of retail workers in Dubai (2012)
July 2016 | benchmark middle east
9
By The Numbers Infographics
Infographics By The Numbers
INTERNET RETAIL NOT CLICKING INTERNET RETAIL NOT CLICKING
INTERNATIONAL INTERNATIONAL BRANDS BRANDS The UAE The UAE is theisworld’s the world’s thirdthird most-important most-important retailretail market market in terms in terms of attracting of attracting international international retailers, retailers, according according to CBRE’s to CBRE’s latestlatest ‘How‘How Global Global is theisBusiness the Business of Retail?’ of Retail?’ report. report. The country The country is home is home to 56.3 to 56.3 percent percent of global of global brands brands – an increase – an increase on 54.5 on 54.5 percent percent in 2015 in 2015 – behind – behind only the onlyUK theand UK China and China in terms in terms of of beingbeing a magnet a magnet for international for international retailers. retailers. DubaiDubai is second is second mostmost successful successful individual individual city in city attracting in attracting global global retailers, retailers, afterafter London. London.
TOP TOP GROCERY GROCERY RETAILERS RETAILERS
Dh2Dh2 billion billion
15-20% 15-20%
19% 19%
Proportion Proportion in some in some Increase Increase on previous on previous year year developed developed countries countries
ValueValue of UAE of UAE online online salessales in 2015 in 2015
Value Value share share (in %)(in %)
Grocery Grocery retailers retailers
31 31
MajidMajid Al Futtaim Al Futtaim Hypermarkets Hypermarkets (Carrefour) (Carrefour)
19 19
13%13%
EmkeEmke Group Group (Lulu) (Lulu)
14 14
Convenience Convenience storestore growth growth
40% 40%
of UAE of UAE consumers consumers cite fears cite fears over over online online payment payment security security as their as their number number one one concern concern whenwhen shopping shopping online online
1% 1%
3% 3%
Online Online salessales as as percentage percentage of UAE of UAE retailretail market market in 2015 in 2015
Forecast Forecast proportion proportion of UAE of UAE online online retailretail by 2020 by 2020
UPWARDLY UPWARDLY MOBILE MOBILE Mobile Mobile transactions transactions as proportion as proportion of of all online all online retail retail sales sales (in %)(in %)
TOP TOP 1010 SHOPPING SHOPPING DESTINATIONS DESTINATIONS
12 12
20132013
FOR FOR MUSLIM MUSLIM TRAVELLERS TRAVELLERS
28 28
20152015
1. Dubai 1. Dubai 2. Kuala 2. Kuala Lumpur Lumpur 3. Singapore 3. Singapore 4. London 4. London 5. Istanbul 5. Istanbul 6. Antalya 6. Antalya 7. Doha 7. Doha
4
4
TOP TOP PRODUCT PRODUCT CATEGORIES CATEGORIES
5
5 8 6 6 8 7 7 1 9 91
FOR FOR MOBILE MOBILE RETAIL RETAIL PURCHASES PURCHASES 2
2 3
3 10 10
1 1
2 2
3 3
Airline Airline tickets tickets
Phone Phone appsapps
Clothing Clothing
4 4
5 5
Accessories Accessories HotelHotel accommodation accommodation
8. Manama 8. Manama 9. Riyadh 9. Riyadh 10. Bali 10. Bali
10
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By The Numbers Infographics
Infographics By The Numbers
MORE MOREMALLS MALLSNEAR NEARYOU YOU
MAJID MAJIDAL ALFUTTAIM’S FUTTAIM’S DH48 DH48 BILLION BILLION INVESTMENT INVESTMENT DRIVE DRIVE
Developer Developer MajidMajid Al Futtaim Al Futtaim said said in June in June it willitincrease will increase its total its total investment investment in the inUAE the UAE by Dh30 by Dh30 billion billion by 2026, by 2026, taking taking its total its total investment investment in the incountry the country to Dh48 to Dh48 billion. billion. The retail The retail giant,giant, which which is behind is behind landmark landmark centres centres suchsuch as Mall as Mall of the ofEmirates the Emirates and the andCity the City Centre Centre properties, properties, plansplans new new mallsmalls across across the country. the country. Here’s Here’s the lowdown the lowdown on the onplans. the plans.
361,127 361,127 m2 m2
626,887 626,887 m2 m2
265,760 265,760 m2 m2
Retail Retail space space under under construction construction Mall Mall space space under under Mall Mall space space under under in Abu in Abu Dhabi Dhabi and Dubai and Dubai construction construction in Dubai in Dubaiconstruction construction in Abu in Abu Dhabi Dhabi
17 17
thth
11% 11%
UAEUAE cities’ cities’ combined combined rank rank among among the most the most active active Rise Rise on last on last global global destinations destinations for shopping for shopping centre centre development development year’s year’s figures figures
30 30
NewNew Carrefour Carrefour supermarkets supermarkets
10 10
NewNew Carrefour Carrefour hypermarkets hypermarkets
10 10
170,000 170,000
Number Number of new of new shopping shopping mallsmalls under under the the City City Centre Centre brand brand
Number Number of direct of direct and and indirect indirect jobs jobs that that will be willcreated be created
6 6
1,500,000 1,500,000 m2 m2
NewNew hotelhotel developments developments across across sitessites
TotalTotal retailretail space space in mall in mall network network afterafter expansion, expansion, up from up from 725,000 725,000 m2 m2
6 6 Expansions Expansions to itsto its existing existing mallsmalls
PORTFOLIO PORTFOLIO AFTER AFTER EXPANSION EXPANSION
101 101
MAJOR MAJOR PROJECTS PROJECTS IN THE IN THE PIPELINE PIPELINE
NAKHEEL NAKHEEL MALL MALL
DEIRA DEIRA ISLANDS ISLANDS MALL MALL
Planned Planned mall mall by developer by developer PalmPalm Jumeirah Jumeirah property property Nakheel, set to set span to span 620,000 620,000 m2 m2 currently currently under under construction construction Nakheel, 2 including including 200,000 200,000 m m2 of leasable of leasable space space
12
86 86
Carrefour Carrefour hypermarkets hypermarkets and supermarkets and supermarkets
Leisure Leisure and and entertainment entertainment outlets outlets
Fashion Fashion stores stores
28 28
19 19
16 16
Cinemas Cinemas
Shopping Shopping mallsmalls
Hotels Hotels
AL MARYAH AL MARYAH CENTRAL CENTRAL Abu Abu Dhabi Dhabi mega mega mall mall due due for completion for completion in 2018 in 2018
26 26
REEM REEM MALL MALL
THETHE POINTE POINTE
Another Another Abu Abu Dhabi Dhabi development, development, also also scheduled scheduled to open to open in 2018 in 2018
Waterfront Waterfront destination destination beingbeing built built on Palm on Palm Jumeirah Jumeirah in Dubai in Dubai
benchmark middle east | July 2016
38 38
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Healthcare Healthcare clinics clinics
22
Master-planned Master-planned communities communities SOURCES: SOURCES:
2015 MasterCard-CrescentRating 2015 MasterCard-CrescentRating MuslimMuslim Travel Travel Shopping Shopping Index Index | CBRE | CBRE | Euromonitor | Euromonitor | Majid | Al Majid Futtaim Al Futtaim | | Mastercard Mastercard OnlineOnline Shopping Shopping Behaviour Behaviour study study
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More discounts Despite the booming sector, the impact of the oil crash has had an impact on consumer confidence – and that is prompting more retailers to offer sales and discounts, said Nikola Kosutic, research manager at Euromonitor in Dubai. “The largest effect that low oil prices had was on consumer confidence, which has seen some decline but is still in the positive territory,” he told Benchmark. “Retailers responded to lower consumer confidence with discounts and promotions which helped maintain the volume sales and cushion the impact.”
Ten Trending Retail Fads in the UAE Cash registers are ringing across the UAE, with the rising population and creating demand for ever more ‘mega’ malls. Here are the top 10 trends to watch out for in the retail sector.
3
Construction boom The UAE already boasts some of the world’s largest malls – and more are on the way. Nakheel is planning a raft of new shopping centres, including The Pointe and Nakheel Mall on Palm Jumeirah; developer Majid Al Futtaim has announced a massive expansion plan, including more City Centre-branded malls; and two Abu Dhabi mega malls – Al Maryah Central and Reem Mall – are in the works. Mr Kosutic pointed out that the UAE has a relatively low amount of retail space per capita compared to North America and Western Europe. “We can quickly see that there’s still a lot of room for the retail space growth. Tourism will further help retailing industry to expand,” he said.
PHOTO Majid Al Futtaim
ambitious tourism targets
4
Internet retail needs investment… Online sales accounted for just 1% of the UAE retail market in 2015, considerably lower than international averages, said Mr Kosutic. In order for internet retailing to pick up, there needs to be more investments from both brick-and-mortar stores, which may have delayed ventures in this space, as well as global internet retailers who were previously focused on more developed regions, he added. “On [the consumer side, a] reluctance to store credit-card and reluctance to pay upfront — remain main hurdles and since these are consumer behaviour factors, they are expensive and slow to change,” said Mr Kosutic.
1
Shop ‘til you drop In Dubai, do buy. That’s the mantra of many as the emirate’s retail sector, along with that in neighbouring Abu Dhabi, grows apace. The overall industry in the UAE was worth a staggering Dh193 billion last year – and that’s set to grow by an average rate of 5 percent annually, to reach Dh249 billion by 2020, according to EuromonitorInternational.
14
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… But still growing apace Shoppers in the UAE may still be mad about malls, but more and more are turning to the web. According to online payment provider Payfort, regional ecommerce – specificallyin the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Kuwait, Lebanon, Jordan and Qatar – grewby an average of 23 per cent in 2015. The UAE represented the largest growth market, followed by Saudi Arabia and Egypt. The Expo 2020 in Dubai is set to drive further growth in UAE online transactions, which are set to roughly triple over the next four years, Payfort said.
8
PHOTO adac.ae
Abu Dhabi Duty Free sales flying high Abu Dhabi Duty Free sales reached a new record last year, hitting Dh1.5 billion across the retail, food and beverage and services sectors, a 10.3 per cent increase on the previous year. Although that is still far below Dubai Duty Free sales, which reached Dh6.892 billion in 2015, further growth is in store for Abu Dhabi Duty Free when the Midfield Terminal Building opens at the UAE capital’s main airport.
9
This season’s trend: Cheaper fashion Luxury brands have long been en vogue in the UAE, but cheaper lines are now becoming more fashionable, according to Mr Kosutic. “There are many different trends shaping future development of [the] UAE retailing industry but they are sector specific,” he said. “For example, in apparel retailing we see large expansion of [the] economy segment which will bring much needed balance to the apparel sector, which was so far dominated by luxury offering.”
6
PHOTO souq.com
Souq.com plans a different kind of sale With the growth in online shopping, the region’s biggest online retailer Souq.com is reaping the benefits. The company now lists more than 1.5 million products and in February said it had raised more than Dh1 billion, in what it said marked the “largest e-commerce funding in the Middle East history”. The company’s chief executive Ronaldo Mouchawar is reported as saying that the company is looking to do an initial public offering in 18 to 24 months. Souq.com sells both its own inventory and acts as a marketplace for other sellers.
7
10
Oman market is hot It’s not just about the UAE. Neighbouring Oman is also seeing healthy activity, boasting the largest amount of shopping centre completions in the Arabian Gulf last year, according to CBRE. Around 101,000 square metres of shopping centre space was completed in Oman in 2015, compared to 76,721 square metres in Dubai. And Majid Al Futtaim announced in May it would be investing another Dh5 billion in the sultanate over the next four years, with the 137,000 square-metre Mall of Oman one of the notable projects in pipeline. 16
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The customer is always right. Except when they’re not New technology means exciting new products – but they don’t necessarily fly off the shelves straight away. Mr Kosutic pointed to the new virtual reality headsets on the market as an example of a product that requires “investments in terms of educating consumers”. He also said the arrival of dedicated Apple Stores in the UAE have raised the bar when it comes to high standards of customer support. “Retailers will be putting more focus on client-centric services and will need to invest more in educating and retaining their floor staff,” he said. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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Careers in Retail
by ben Flanagan
T
he jobs involved are of course extremely varied, ranging from positions at your local convenience store to upmarket boutiques, and from junior buyers to executive merchandisers for the top brands. Pay in the sector can range from Dh5,000 a month for some sales associates, all the way up to Dh75,000 a month for the best-paid heads of planning and merchandising in luxury retail, according to Charterhouse Middle East. But despite the fast-growing salaries, there are generally negative perceptions about the industry in the Middle East and North Africa. A study by Bayt.com and YouGov found that only a tiny fraction of jobseekers were pursuing a career in the sector, with retail scoring poorly in terms of perceptions of pay, work-life balance, career growth and job security. So is the UAE retail sector right for you? Benchmark has the answers to your FAQs.
Shopping around for a new job? The retail industry may be just what you’re looking for — not least because it boasted the steepest salary increases across all sectors in the Arabian Gulf last year, according to online recruitment portal GulfTalent.
How big is the retail in the UAE? Big — and growing. In Dubai alone, the sector accounted for about 30 percent of gross domestic product in 2013, and employed around 549,800 workers in 2012 — a number that has almost certainly increased since then. According to Euromonitor, the UAE retailing industry was worth Dh193 billion in 2015, and is expected to reach a value of Dh249 billion by 2020. Well that’s a lot of money… But can it be a good earner for me, too? Job salaries vary widely. According to the recruitment firm Charterhouse Middle East, sales associates in prime or high street retail earn between Dh5,000 and Dh10,000 a month — while heads of planning and merchandising in luxury retail rake in between Dh40,000 and Dh75,000. See the chart for more average salaries. 18
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Salaries in UAE Retail Sector RETAIL SALES — LUXURY SECTOR Role
Average salary (dirhams monthly, excluding bonuses)
Head of Retail Operations
51,000
Retail Operations Manager
30,000
Brand Manager
32,500
Area / District Manager
28,500
Store Manager
29,000
Assistant Store Manager
25,000
Department Manager
20,000
Sales Associate
13,500
Head of Visual Merchandising
33,000
Visual Merchandiser Manager
29,500
Visual Merchandiser
16,500
RETAIL SALES — PREMIUM / HIGH STREET Role
Average salary (dirhams monthly, excluding bonuses)
Head of Retail Operations
38,500
Retail Operations Manager
24,000
Brand Manager
25,000
Area / District Manager
22,500
Store Manager
14,000
Assistant Store Manager
10,500
Sales Associate
7,500
Head of Visual Merchandising
24,000
Visual Merchandiser Manager
20,000
Visual Merchandiser
10,500
RETAIL DEVELOPMENT — LUXURY SECTOR Role
ROBERt HALF Consulting Firm
Are any particular areas of retail recruiting? Human resources is one field that is recruiting more than most, consulting firm Robert Half said in its UAE 2016 Salary Guide. “Industries showing the strongest demand for talented human resources professionals include FMCG, pharmaceutical, construction, retail, hospitality and 20
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boutique investment firms,” it said. “Companies in these sectors are the most likely to develop their teams in anticipation of imminent revenue growth, so require HR support to both fill their vacant positions and ensure compliance.” But will I actually like working in the retail sector? Ah: And there’s the rub. According to one recent survey, retail was one of the least popular industries for unemployed professionals in the MENA region looking for a job, with just 2 percent saying they were seeking employment in the field. The ‘Bayt.com Top Industries Survey in the Middle East and North Africa’, published in January, also found that retail ranked third-bottom of all sectors in terms of pay perceptions, with only 3 percent of those surveyed saying they thought retail offers the best salaries. The sector also ranked poorly in terms of perceptions of work-life balance, career growth and job security. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
What about opportunities in ecommerce? Despite internet retail still only making up a tiny fraction of the overall market, there has been an explosion of ecommerce sites springing up in the UAE in recent years – bringing job opportunities with it. Big online retailers include Souq.com, Namshi.com and Jadopado. com – while there are a number of niche retailers emerging too. According to Euromonitor, internet retail sales increased by 19 percent in 2015 to reach Dh2 billion. “Nevertheless, internet retailing remains at a very early stage of its development… the companies operating in this channel in the United Arab Emirates are generally nascent,” the research firm said in a recent report. “However, in comparison to other countries in the Middle East, such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt, the development of internet retailing in the United Arab Emirates is already far ahead of internet retailing in these much larger countries”. benchmark middle east | July 2016
Head of Buying
52,500
Senior Buyer
32,500
Buyer
22,500
Assistant Buyer
16,500
Head of Planning / Merchandising
57,500
Planning Manager
30,000
Assistant Planning Manager /
27,500
Senior Merchandiser 20,000
Merchandiser
RETAIL DEVELOPMENT — PREMIUM / HIGH STREET Role
Average salary (dirhams monthly, excluding bonuses)
Head of Buying
41,500
Senior Buyer
24,000
Buyer
16,000
Assistant Buyer
10,500
Head of Planning / Merchandising
36,500
Planning Manager
24,000
Assistant Planning Manager /
21,500
Senior Merchandiser Merchandiser
15,000
Assistant Merchandiser
10,000
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SOURCE Charterhouse 2016 Salary Guide
Industries showing the strongest demand for talented human resources professionals include FMCG, pharmaceutical, construction, retail, hospitality and boutique investment firms
And how are retail salaries changing? Online recruitment portal GulfTalent said this year that the Arabian Gulf retail sector witnessed the highest average pay rises of all industries during 2015. Salaries in the retail industry rose by an average of 6.6 percent in 2015, compared with an average across all sectors of 5.7 percent, GulfTalent said. This was due to “growing demand and [the] overall stability of the sector”, the firm’s report said. “Sectors that rely on population growth and consumer spending such as retail and healthcare, are showing high resilience and continue to outperform the overall economy.”
Average salary (dirhams monthly, excluding bonuses)
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The UAE’s ‘mall culture’ is expected to get even stronger in the coming years — with a mass of new shopping centres under construction or in the pipeline. According to CBRE, Abu Dhabi and Dubai together rank 17th globally as the most active cities for mall development, with 626,887 square metres of retail space under construction, an 11 percent rise on 2015. by ben Flanagan
L
ong-term development of retail strongly correlates to demographic factors and they are very positive for [the] UAE,” Nikola Kosutic, research manager at Euromonitor International in Dubai, told Benchmark. The firm points to the UAE’s forecasted population growth and the construction boom around the Dubai Expo 2020 as boosting mall construction even further. “With [a] young population and high levels of immigration, [the] UAE is forecasted to add 7.5 percent to its population count over next five years. Retailing expansion will be happening on all levels, from construction of new malls and extension of existing mega malls, to growth of standalone retailers in new housing developments.” So what new shopping emporiums are on their way? Benchmark takes a look at ten UAE malls in the pipeline. Mall of the World One of Dubai’s most ‘mega’ of mega projects is the planned Mall of the World. When first announced in July 2014, the Dh25 billion mall was to span 8 million square feet, making it the world’s largest, as part of a massive 48 million square foot “temperaturecontrolled city”. The plans were later reworked, with local media reporting in May that the design work for phase one is underway. 22
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THE UAE’S MALL CULTURE Shoppers may flock to malls in their millions – but specialised retailers can still thrive outside these marble-floored emporiums. Greenheart Organic Farms, launched in 2012, grows a range of organic vegetables, fruit and herbs right here in the UAE. Elena Kinane, its managing director, explains why she chose to open the company’s shop outside of Dubai’s mega malls. Q&A with Elena Kinane, managing director, Greenheart Organic Farms
Al Maryah Central Construction of a $1 billion shopping centre on Abu Dhabi’s Al Maryah Island, which is set to span 2.3 million square feet, is currently underway, and is due to complete in 2018. Al Maryah Central is to include a Macy’s department store, the first Bloomingdale’s in Abu Dhabi, along with a 20-screen cinema complex. Reem Mall Abu Dhabi’s Reem Mall is also set to open shop in 2018. The project, a joint venture between Kuwait-based National Real Estate Company and United Projects for Aviation Services Company, will include 2.8 million square feet of retail, with around 450 stores, including 85 food and beverage outlets. Nakheel Mall Construction work on the Dh1.2 billion, 4.5 24
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million square foot Nakheel Mall, on Palm Jumeirah in Dubai, hit the halfway mark in May. The mall – which will have five retail levels with 350 shops, restaurants and leisure attractions across 1.2 million square feet of leasable space – is set to open its doors in 2017. It is one of several retail centres being developed by Nakheel. Al Khail Avenue Nakheel also has the Al Khail Avenue mall in the pipeline, geared towards residents of Jumeirah Village, Jumeirah Park and other nearby areas. The mall, which will have around 1.5 million square feet of leasable space and parking for over 4,400 cars, is scheduled to open in 2018. Circle Mall Nakheel in November awarded a $96m contract to build The Circle Mall in Dubai, which will be located in Jumeirah Village.
It is expected to comprise of 235 shops, a multi-screen cinema, health clinic, cafes, restaurants and a food court, spanning more than 432,000 square feet of total built up area.
part of a wider expansion plan to turn the area into a colossal 11 million square foot ‘Dragon City’.
The Pointe Nakheel is due to deliver another property on the Palm Jumeirah, expected to open by the end of this year. The Pointe is a 1.4 million square foot, 135-outlet waterfront destination, across from the Atlantis hotel. It was 75 per cent leased as of May 2016, according to local press reports.
Deira Islands Mall Though the centre of Dubai’s gravity has shifted south in recent years, developers are not overlooking older parts of the city around the Creek. Nakheel plans a massive retail, residential and leisure development at an island waterfront development in Deira. The developer’s delivery schedule before 2020 also includes the Deira Islands Night Souk and Warsan Souk.
Dragon City Nakheel is undergoing a massive transformation of the (already massive) Dragon Mart complex in Dubai. The developer in February officially opened Dragon Mart 2, a 2.1 million square foot extension to the original China-themed complex. That is
Ten new City Centre malls Retail developer Majid Al Futtaim is carrying out a massive expansion plan, which includes 10 new City Centre properties in the UAE. Its Dh48 billion investment drive will boost its portfolio of shopping malls in the UAE to 19.
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Why did you decide to base your shop in Arjan, near Arabian Ranches, rather than in a mall? We decided early on in the planning stage that we wanted a larger space that we could grow into, at an affordable location, even if that meant forgoing passing customers. Our business model was always based on growing and selling amazing organic produce at affordable prices to make going organic an option for families on a budget. When we first started out in 2012 we had only just finished setting up the first stage of our farm so we knew we wouldn’t be able to fill the farm shop every single day with produce. So we were only able to open three days per week. High mall rents and the obligation to open every day from 10am to 10pm would have made it difficult to survive the first six months. Despite the fact that we’re not in a main thoroughfare, we’re very close to Arabian Ranches, Motor City, Victory Heights, Sports City and many other developments and we were confident that once customers realised how easy is it was to get to us they would come and find us, and come back again. Do you agree that there’s a ‘mall culture’ in the UAE, and if so how difficult is it to lure people away to shop outside? Can retailers survive outside malls? Yes, absolutely I believe there is a ‘mall culture’ in the UAE. People tend to want to shop, eat and be entertained at the same place. It’s difficult for some businesses to survive in an environment with lower footfall…I strongly feel that to survive without the traffic of a mall you have to either be extremely specialised or become a destination in your own right. Does Greenheart have plans for other physical retail outlets? If so would it look at malls? Yes, we are looking into branching out in the future, provided we can grow enough produce. As we want to keep prices for our produce affordable we will never be able to move into a mall setting. Nor would we be able to work in accordance with mall regulation in terms of opening hours, access and other terms and conditions.
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Has Online Shopping Finally Taken Off in the UAE? E
by ben Flanagan
commerce accounts for just 1 percent of all UAE retail sales — with several surveys pointing to consumers’ lack of trust and reluctance
towards using credit cards online. But in every problem lies an opportunity — something that has certainly clicked with one long-serving retail boss in Dubai.
Jacky Panjabi started off in the business in Hong Kong back in 1970, and first visited Dubai — where his well-known electronics chain and distribution business is now based — in 1985. Back then, few could have imagined the ecommerce boom enabled by the rise of the internet. In some global markets today, up to 20 percent of all retail transactions by value now take place online. But the trend hasn’t taken off to quite the same extent in the UAE, despite the obvious success of fast-growing online retailers like Souq.com and Namshi.com. That is a trend Mr Panjabi wants to reverse when it comes to his own business. His company has nine electronics outlets in the UAE, and two more on the way. And Jacky’s Electronics plans to capitalise 26
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on the retail experience it has created in malls, by launching a dedicated ecommerce portal by the end of the year. “Internet shopping in the UAE is still at its evolving stage. The research says that the biggest concern for a customer shopping online is trust in the retailer,” Mr Panjabi told Benchmark. “There is a great opportunity for physical retailers to provide an excellent platform for online shopping to its customers… Our e-commerce portal concept would be based on the concept of providing good consumer experience.” Here Mr Panjabi discusses the opportunities and challenges faced by UAE retailers, the potential of the UAE market — and how he has had to take 100 or more flights a year during his decades in the business. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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So tell us more about Jacky’s Electronics ecommerce plans. We want the customer — whether he does ecommerce or comes to our shop — to get the same service. Our ecommerce portal concept would be based on the concept of providing good consumer experience. Although the UAE of course is the main [focus] we are talking about [launching the ecommerce platform across] the GCC. What are the big issues faced by UAE retailers going forward? There are a few companies — I don’t want to mention names — that keep on opening too many stores and now they are shutting them down, because of, maybe, the location. But we are very careful — we do a lot of studies. And we don’t open the huge stories any more. We don’t open more than 5,000 square feet. But there are some companies that have 30,000 and 40,000. And you see hardly any customers during the day in those stores. So we believe that smaller is best.
Q&A with Jacky Panjabi, managing director of Jacky’s Group of Companies You first landed in Dubai back in 1985. What potential did you see here? I was returning from London and I had just two days in transit to see the market. And I was very impressed with the country and the city, and the way the business was done here. Of course, you need a local sponsor [as a foreigner looking to set up a business]. But otherwise there’s a lot of freedom. You just open up a business and there’s no tax, no income tax, no sales tax, no nothing — a similar thing that we were enjoying in Hong Kong. 28
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Today there are many new retail developments underway in the UAE — but do we really need more malls? Several new projects are being announced, but most of them seem to [complete] in 2018 and 2019. I think there are no new malls opening at the moment. However there is a need for retailers to focus on providing value-addition services to the consumer. Because people when they visit the shopping malls, they want to also see what is the added value that you can provide. So we have a service centre within the shop now, and the customer comes with [for example, their] mobile phone they need to get fixed. When you have these sort of things,
What’s the total turnover of Jacky’s Group, including your distribution and business-to-business services, and how is this changing? Our group turnover is about $500 million — I’m talking about the group level. We don’t see [significant] increases, honestly speaking. Because somewhere our business goes down, somewhere it goes up. In Africa we suffered because of currency exchange rates and all of that. Maintaining that turnover is very important to us.
definitely the customer will want to come back to the retailer. Only 1 percent of UAE retail is online — compared with 20 percent or more in some other markets. What do you think of that? Very young kids want to do online shopping. But the people who have enough time would like to browse around, they want to go from shop to shop, they look at the products and then come back and decide where they want to do the shopping. But while sitting at home [shopping online], we finish it in around 20 minutes’ time… But that concept, I think, is going to need some more time to start in Dubai. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
Our ecommerce portal concept would be based on the concept of providing good consumer experience Jacky PanJabi Managing Director, Jacky’s Group of Companies
benchmark middle east | July 2016
You once said that you took 137 flights in a single year. Why the need for so much travel? That was in 1997. But in the last few years my average flights have been about 100 [per year]. Honestly I don’t enjoy travelling any more. I don’t enjoy sitting in a plane. But I love nice holidays, going to Phuket, or even to Bali, or Europe for shopping. So you have to travel. I don’t travel too much these days for business. But I still travel to my own offices, to Hong Kong or Singapore. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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HOW TO BE A N IN sTAgrAm r E TA IlE r
I
by ben Flanagan
nstagram has clicked with consumers — and so there’s little wonder it is gaining a healthy following among UAE retailers, too. The photo-sharing site, which was aquired by Facebook in 2012 for $1bn, announced that it reached a whopping half-
billion active users last month, 80 percent of whom are outside the US. Where savvy social media users go, brands follow — with Nike, Victoria’s Secret, H&M and Chanel among the most popular on Instagram, each boasting millions of followers. Several fledgling UAE retailers and brands are also using the social media service in an attempt to boost sales – although some say that, while there are advantages, it is far from perfect. The Dubai-based eco-friendly fashion brand Wild Wood says Instagram is an important channel,contributing to at least 10% of its sales. The brand sells sunglasses made from reclaimed wood, with each variety 30
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benchmark middle east | July 2016
named afteran endangered animal species, as well as watches named after the worlds rainforests. Its products are sold online through the Wild Wood website and at various retail outlets across the UAE. And Instagram represents a key marketing channel, said Luke Morris, founder of Wild Wood. “Instagram is actually a really important sales driver for us,” he told Benchmark. “I’d say Instagram contributes to at least 10 percent of our sales. It’s also great for awareness and engagement too, allowing us to consistently connect with potential customers.” Other pros of Instagram are that it is
cost-effective for retailers to use and can reach a high volume of people globally, Mr Morris said. But there are downsides, too. “It is pretty time consuming, not just in terms of posting and engaging with people, but also in terms of having to always have some original quality content that represents our products,”Mr Morris said. According to research firm L2, Instagram is the “world’s most powerful social platform”, with a very high engagement rate with consumers, and a rapidly increasing number of photos posted by brands. The site is actively courting businesses, July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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Maren Gerber Founder of MarMarLand
Luke Morris Founder of Wild Wood
having recently announced ‘Instagram Business Tools’, which offers better insights into which photos are proving popular with users, and – this being the money spinner for Instagram — allowing for posts to be easily converted into paid ads. But one issue cited by some is that it is not possible to add clickable web links to Instagram photo captions — these just appear as plain text, reducing the potential traffic to brand and retailers’ websites. The only clickable link is on the user’s main profile — although one recent post by the fashion giantBurberry showed how brands get around this issue. “Elegant dresses from #Burberry — a special collection for the Middle East to celebrate Ramadan. Follow the link in the bio to discover more,” read the caption to one image shared by Burberry. Another fashion-orientated, UAE re32
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tailer using Instagram is the Dubai-based MyMakas, which offers custom clothing for men. Launched in 2013, the service arranges free measurement sessions at customers’ homes or offices, and then aims to sell them bespoke shirts, jackets, chinos and trousers — all tailor-made to their personal sizes. Ekaterina Meenaghan, founder of MyMakas, says her company uses Instagram primarily as a way to inspire existing customers about different styles of clothing. “Being in the custom tailoring business, where it is more difficult to create digital content, we are using Instagram to post our customer creations to inspire others,” she told Benchmark. “This helps customers to visualise the end result and encourages them to be as imaginative as they dare. We often receive WhatsApp messages with screenshots
Being in the custom tailoring business, where it is more difficult to create digital content, we are using Instagram to post our customer creations to inspire others
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of our Instagram account, where a client wants exactly the same shirt.” Ms Meenaghan said it was important for retailers to spend time and think carefully about what they are posting to Instagram. “You need to be extremely precise with colours and textures — don’t use filters,” she said. “Spend time to create that unique content … inform customers of your upcoming events, use hashtags that are unique to your business not just #mydubai.” Another retail business based in Dubai is MarMarLand.com, an online shop for designer kids’ furniture, toys, decoration and accessories. Maren Gerber, founder of MarMarLand, said the service was inspired by her own reluctance to have “ugly, plastic” children’s toys in her living room. benchmark middle east | July 2016
“I started to search for products which are stylish, of high quality, preferably organic and fun for kids and adults,” she told Benchmark. Ms Gerber said she uses Instagram as a marketing tool and had noticed signs that it helps boost sales. But there are downsides to it too, she added. “It is very difficult to measure how much of our sales are generated because of our posts, but we often see an increase in the sales of brands and products which we have previously promoted on Instagram,” she told Benchmark. “It is a very easy and quick way to inform your followers about new products, remind them of your business, just to keep in touch and of course to reach out to new potential customers,” Ms Gerber added. “The difficulty is to get your follow-
ers to visit your website and do an actual purchase. A like on Instagram is great but does not give you any turnover. It is also a challenge to get your target customer group to follow you. A high number of followers does not necessary mean that these are potential customers.” But with an increasing and ever-engaged user-base, it is possible that more and more retailers and brands will turn to Instagram. About 95 million photos and videos are posted daily to the service, with its monthly active user count far exceeding that of Twitter, the previous socialmedia darling, which earlier this year said it has 310 million monthly active users. Yet the popularity of any social media site can rise and fall like a rollercoaster. So while Instagram has certainly clicked with consumers — and, increasingly, retailers — that’s just a snapshot of things today. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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by ben Flanagan
T
hat is in fact the case, according to new research by Nielsen, which found that 58 percent of UAE consumers enjoy taking the time to find deals — roughly in line with the global average. “Consumers are addicted to a good deal and it might be because retailers and manufacturers have conditioned shoppers to buy on deal,” it said. But there’s another factor at play: Declining consumer confidence in the wake of the oil-price crash. Despite the general rise in UAE retail spending last year, as per Euromonitor figures, shoppers are being more cautious with their spending. And this is prompting retailers to give more and more offers, said Arslan Ashraf, managing director at Nielsen in the Arabian Peninsula and Pakistan. Mr Ashraf told Benchmark how retailers in the UAE are responding to changing consumer behaviour.
thE thrill of thE hunt: shopping in thE uaE
Q&A with Arslan Ashraf, managing director at Nielsen in the Arabian Peninsula and Pakistan
The UAE boasts more than its fair share of luxury boutiques,
Your poll found that 58 per cent of UAE respondents enjoy taking the time to find bargains. How does this compare globally? The sentiment of UAE respondents is consistent with that of the global average of 59%. Sentiments on the thrill of hunting for a good deal [vary] around the world by region – [in Asia Pacific it is 55%], Africa/ Middle East (57%), Europe (61%), Latin America (64%), North America (68%) and South East Asia (56%). In the neighbouring country of… Saudi Arabia, 54% of respondents indicated the same.
supercar showrooms and jewellery emporiums. So who’d have thought it is actually a nation of bargain hunters?
Have retailers in the UAE adequately responded to the demand for bargains, or is the focus more on aspirational and luxury brands? We can see a rising trend in promotions offered by UAE retailers. Especially during this time, where many are offering special Ramadan deals. 34
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Are UAE retail sales holding up in the oil crisis, or is now the time for shoppers to drive a bargain? The current economic climate with declining oil prices and low GDP growth has led to consumer confidence being at its lowest point since 2014 in the UAE. Consumers are more cautious on their spending. Therefore, retail sector sales performance is not as strong as it was last year. We foresee that there will be more promotions offered in the coming months.
that their main grocery retailer carries the items they want and need, six percentage points below the global average (64%), and less than half (48%) say their main grocery retailer provides them with offers they like and value (compared with 52% globally). This indicates that on the product assortment front and in providing valued offers to consumers, UAE retailers have much to improve. Another area which the UAE market stood out from others is consumers’ need for convenience and speed from retailers. With life moving at hyper-speed, consumers crave convenience for everything from choosing the stores they shop in to buying the foods they eat. Almost half of the UAE respondents say a convenient location is highly influential in their decision to shop at a particular retailer and one of every two UAE respondents say their store selection decision is highly influenced by an organised layout that makes it easy to shop (compared with 45% of global average). These attributes are more influential in Latin America and Africa/Middle East (particularly in the UAE), than globally. Although it comes as no surprise that health and wellness is a top priority for consumers around the world, given that this has registered as important for some years now, more than two-thirds of UAE respondents (69%) say they actively seek products with healthful ingredients, which is higher than that of global average (67%), and developed markets in North America (65%) and Europe (55%). Sixtytwo percent say they read nutritional labels carefully, and 47% believe there are not enough healthful options available to buy. Healthy options are not “simply nice to have” and there are still limited number of retailers in the UAE that offers sufficient selection of fresh and healthful food.
The Nielsen Global Retail Growth Strategies Survey polled more than 30,000 online respondents in 61 countries. Were there any other areas in which the UAE market stood out from others? From the global survey, we found that for many in the UAE, grocery shopping is a chore (53%). However, we found that many feel that shopping is a leisure time activity and an opportunity for family outing. Based on our other surveys on shopper trends, we found that on average, UAE consumers visit the malls at least once every two weeks. When it comes to product assortment and providing valued offers, just over half of the UAE respondents (58%) believe
In the UAE, there is a “shoppertainment” culture. Most of the entertainment avenues are located inside shopping malls, hence these malls will attract consumers
Numerous new malls are being built in the UAE, given the recent announcement from Majid Al Futtaim, the two ‘mega malls’ being built in Abu Dhabi, and other developments. What’s your view on the demand/supply balance when it comes to current and future retail space? In the UAE, there is a “shopper-tainment” culture. Most of the entertainment avenues are located inside shopping malls, hence these malls will attract consumers. The challenge for these malls would be how to thrive and maintain a healthy performance in the depressed economic climate, which we believe would improve in the mid to long-term period.
ArslAn AshrAf Managing Director at Nielsen
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The fun of The mall
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he project, a joint venture between Kuwait-based National Real Estate Company (NREC) and United Projects for Aviation Services Company (UPAC), is set to span 2.8 million square feet of retail, with around 450 stores, including 85 food and beverage outlets. But the Dh4 billion mall project is about more than shopping – with the plans including the ‘world’s largest indoor snow park’, a multiplex cinema and children’s entertainment attractions. “While mall developers can anticipate growth in shopping online, creating bestin-class mall experiences with a wide range of outlets and entertainment attractions will continue to be a superior attraction,” said Mr Eldstrom. In an interview with Benchmark, the retail boss explained the latest construction progress at the mall — and how it fits in with the wider UAE retail boom.
Online shopping may be picking up in the UAE — but there’s one thing clicking ‘add to basket’ can never deliver: The fun of the mall. That’s the view of Shane Eldstrom, chief operating officer of Reem Mall, the colossal shopping centre currently under construction in Abu Dhabi.
Q&A with Shane Eldstrom, chief operating officer at Reem Mall What’s the latest from the Reem Mallconstruction site? How is the work progressing, and do you know when in 2018 it will open its doors? Construction began on Abu Dhabi’s Reem Mall in the fourth quarter of 2015 after the project received the Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council’s (UPC) detailed planning approval, the final green light for excavation and enabling works to commence. Reem Mall’s heavily anticipated completion is pegged for Q4 2018.
by Ben Flanagan 38
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NREC said in May that it is engaged in discussions with retailers for more than 70% of the total space. How much has been booked so far and what kind of occupancy rate do you expect when the mall opens? Leasing is already underway in anticipation of the project’s delivery, with Reem Mall expecting close to full occupancy at opening. Vacancy rates at Abu Dhabi’s existing malls was just 2 per cent this time last year, according to JLL. How do you see the supply and demand shifting as massive developments like Reem Mall and Al Maryah Central come online? Reem Mall is set to change Abu Dhabi’s retail landscape on account of the diversity of offering, all housed in a retail 40
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space that epitomises design aesthetic flare, convenience and modernity. Leveraging more than 450 units, an extensive array of 85 dining outlets, edutainment and leisure anchors, as well as the world’s largest indoor snow park, Reem Mall will bring to Abu Dhabi an offering unlike any other presently in Abu Dhabi. There is a need for a new generation of malls in Abu Dhabi to satisfy the needs of the global-minded customer. Factors such as ease in accessibility, with links to Reem Mall from Abu Dhabi’s mainland and the fast-growing master planned community of Reem Island, create opportunities for a rise in footfall once the mall is open. As a result, we can anticipate shifts that are reflective of Reem Mall’s distinction from Abu Dhabi’s current offer and trends in consumer preferences.
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The mall will have the “world’s largest snow-play park”. What exactly is that, and how important are such leisure facilities in attracting visitors to malls? Reem Mall is a retail development set apart from any other in the region because of the careful attention to detail put into designing the entire project. We did not want to bring to Abu Dhabi just another mall, but placed emphasis on the need to enable the creation of unforgettable experiences for the entire family. We also wanted to create a product that would not only appeal to residents of the capital, but also tourists keen on experiencing the diversity of Abu Dhabi’s rich touristic elements. Abu Dhabi is raising its profile as a destination that appeals to every type of traveller, with combined mall and entertainment offerings contributing heavily to overall visitor satisfaction. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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Over the eight years I’ve seen the industry grow to be one of the world’s top retail destinations with visitors from around the globe visiting the UAE not only for its beaches, but for its shopping malls and unique retail experiences Shane eldStrom Chief Operating Officer at Reem Mall
The 125,000 sq. ft. “world’s largest snow-play park” is a world-leading entertainment attraction for the entire family, designed to bring the intrigue of snowy conditions to a desert landscape. The snow-play park, which will include a variety of activities and experiences including sleding, zorbing, luge and others, is also set to enhance Abu Dhabi’s position as a global tourism and leisure hub. Internet shopping in the UAE accounted for just 1 percent of total retail sales by value in 2015, according to Euromonitor. But have mall developers like your own factored in for the expected growth in shopping online? The increasing use of technology and subsequent access to online store fronts is creating opportunities for retailers to diversify into the e-commerce landscape. The UAE was ranked 25th in A.T. Kearney’s global retail index, a study that ranks countries on their online retail potential. This ranking illustrates a rise in online shopping in the UAE as more and more consumers are taking to shopping online as opposed to the more traditional mall shopping that this region is known for. Having said this, while shopping online continues to offer consumers the convenience of purchasing products remotely, traditional malls offer experiences which consumers cannot enjoy from the online 42
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benchmark middle east | July 2016
component. During the design phase of Reem Mall, weight was placed on the importance of creating cutting-edge entertainment and educational experiences, juxtaposed with availability of a rich palette of leisure and lifestyle brands to attract every customer profile. You moved to the Gulf region in 2008. How have you seen the region’s retail industry evolve since then? Over the eight years I’ve seen the industry grow to be one of the world’s top retail destinations with visitors from around the globe visiting the UAE not only for its beaches, but for its shopping malls and unique retail experiences. No longer following the rest of the world, the Gulf is leading the way in retail and retail real estate innovation. What’s the biggest challenge for the continued growth of the UAE retail market? There is ample opportunity for growth in all key markets of the UAE. The key to that growth comes down to excellence. As the market becomes even more competitive, landlords need to recognise that tenants require better choice in retail space in order to remain relevant. Landlords must therefore focus on having a highly competitive best in class product in the right location with a focus on long-term value. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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App Promotion Summit London
Work Events Planner
WHEN July 7 WHERE London Marriott Hotel Grosvenor Square
Used all your annual leave already? It could be time, then, to concoct a “business trip” if you’re looking for a summertime escape. And given the current seasonal lull on the Gulf conference scene, you’ll certainly need to travel to get your fix of seminars and networking events. Here is Benchmark’s guide to this summer’s top international business events — purely intended for work purposes, of course.
Invest Fair 2016
Texworld USA
FT Digital Energy Summit
WHEN July 30-31 WHERE Suntec Singapore
WHEN July 12-14 WHERE Jacob K. Javits Convention Centre, New York
WHEN September 13 WHERE Etc.Venues St Paul’s, London
We all know the worldmarkets are shifting east, but what are the best investment opportunities given the fallout from China’s economic wobble last year? This investment event in Singapore hopes to answer that question. It is set to feature exhibitors ranging from alternative investment firms to fund houses and property developers, looking for the opportunity to interact with targeted retail investors. Last year’s fair included ‘Invest Idol’ – a contest where participants selected top Singapore stocks for a chance to win a $10,000 cash prize. WEBSITE www.invest-fair.com PRICE Check website for details
WEBSITE www.messefrankfurt.com PRICE Registration required
FT Family Business Forum 2016 WHEN August 12-13 WHERE Insead business school, Singapore
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Talking of “digital disruption”, this business event in the City of London is set to tackle how this applies to the energy sector. The event will bring together executives from oil, gas, power, water and clean energy, along with the digital entrepreneurs disrupting these sectors. It will look at how digital technologies – such as advanced sensors, data analytics, robotics and automation – are being enabled by the so-called ‘industrial internet of things’ to continue to transform how energy is generated, distributed and used.
Middle Eastern manufacturers will be among those exhibiting at the twentieth edition of Texworld USA, according to the organiser. The trade show stands as North America’s largest sourcing event for apparel fabric buyers, designers and overseas sourcing professionals. It is geared towards buyers looking to be introduced to new cutting-edge apparel textile companies, and is co-located with the Home Textiles Sourcing Expo and International Apparel Sourcing Show.
If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by the sheer volume of applications on the Apple and Android app stores, think about it from another perspective – how much of a struggle it is for app developers to stand out from the crowd. This issue – a niche one, but growing in importance globally – is the key item on the agenda at this one-day event on marketing mobile applications. Issues on the agenda include how to get visibility for your app, as well as full-on technical issues like app store algorithms. Speakers on the bill include executives from Google, Facebook, Twitter, MoneySuperMarket.com and eBay. WEBSITE apppromotionsummit.com PRICE £499 + VAT (standard ticket)
WEBSITE live.ft.com PRICE £849 + VAT (standard price)
Just as family firms mean big business in the Middle East, they also form the backbone of fast-growing Asia, where they make up over 80 percent of all companies. And so there will be a lot on the agenda at this workshop due to be held in Singapore. Family business members from across the Asia Pacific region are expected to attend, addressing the specific challenges and issues faced in the region. Speakers include Insead’s Randel Carlock, author of ‘When Family Businesses are Best’, and Sim Yi Hui, co-founder and co-leader of Singapore Women’s Everest Teams. Topics include the planning required to protect both family harmony and business performance.
According to a 2013 study by researchers at the University of Oxford, about 47 percent of all US jobs are at risk of computerization – from autonomous trucks making delivery drivers redundant, toAI-powered algorithms replacing bank staff responsible for loan decisions.So will a robot be doing your job in a few years’ time? This event in London will probe this very issue, looking at how technological advancement and automation is redefining what work is and how we engage with it. It will also address the impact on the workplace of the ‘Millennial’ generation, the so-called ‘gig economy’, as well as how sharing services like Airbnb and Uber are changing the landscape.
WEBSITE live.ft.com PRICE From $1,600
WEBSITE live.ft.com PRICE Check website for details July 2016 | benchmark middle east
London FinTech Week 2016 WHEN July 15-22 WHERE Grange Tower Bridge Hotel and other venues across London FinTech is currently something of a buzzword on the global startup scene, with ever more apps, web services and other technology products being created with the promise of making financial services more efficient. And London will this summer host an entire week dedicated to the boom in financial technology. Fintech Week will include a series of conferences, workshops, hackathons, meetups and parties, with each focused on a different topic. Last year’s event attracted some 2,500 participants and hundreds of speakers. WEBSITE www.fintechweek.com PRICE £1,895 (full week pass) benchmark middle east | July 2016
WHEN September 7-8 WHERE Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, Malaysia Fire prevention is obviously a massive issue in the UAE at the moment, following the string of high-rise blazes in recent years. And it will also be on the agenda at the IFSEC Southeast Asia 2016 in Malaysia. Fire alarms, detection and protection systems will feature prominently at the show, which will have an expected 10,000 trade visitors and about 350 companies exhibiting. Broader security technologies will also be on show, including CCTV systems, surveillance, biometric access and perimeter protection. WEBSITE www.ifsec-global.com PRICE Registration required
The Future of Work WHEN September 8 WHERE London, venue TBC
International Fire Security Exhibition & Conference (IFSEC) Asia 2016
Wired Retail 2016 French Property Exhibition WHEN September 16-18 WHERE Olympia, London Appetite for French property was highly dependent on the outcome of the UK’s European referendum vote in June. And so that will doubtless be a talking point at the upcoming French Property Exhibition in London this September. The event, which is free to attend, is geared towards investors looking to buy real estate ‘across the Channel’, with exhibitors including French estate agents, legal and financial advisors, and removal companies. WEBSITE www.fpeolympia.com PRICE Free
WHEN November 16 WHERE London It’s a few months away but this UK event will be just the ticket for anyone interested in the future of retail, the theme of this month’s edition of Benchmark. Wired Retail will look at how cutting-edge technology looks set to transform shopping as we know it, with diverse topics set to include frictionless payments, virtual reality, 3D printing, drone delivery and blockchain. If you’re interested in how things will be bought, sold and delivered in the future, book a place before July 22 for a 20 percent discount. WEBSITE www.wiredevent.co.uk PRICE £799.20 (early bird ticket); £499.50 (for startups) July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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Play Travel
Travel Play
A Retreat of Extremes in Bangkok
Serenity, peace, reflection ‌ three words almost never used to describe the dizzying capital of Thailand. Few places on earth are so comfortable being so many different things at the same time, Bangkok is a schizophrenic city of multiple identities, all of them engaging in different ways. by scott armstrong
H
idden away in the bustling metropolis of Bangkok, and perhaps all the more powerful because of their unbelievable contrasts, little slices of heaven can be found, and these moments of peace in the swirl of madness are the moments that stand out the most. Wandering amid the golden spires of the Grand Palace and the Temple of the Emerald Buddha is one such moment. Having ploughed through the city traffic (in an incredibly reasonable priced taxi cab), weaving between high-rise offices and low-rise shanty dwellings, the utter calm to be found in this centuries-old treasure is breathtaking. Nothing can be finer than simply meandering around this sprawling royal complex, comprised of around 100 buildings, jaw slack as you gape at majestic temples, intricate carvings or giant statutes of fearsome warriors. It’s all so visually stunning that even in the midst of a pulsing crowd of (usually Chinese) tourists, the noise slips away as you soak up the scene.
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benchmark middle east | July 2016
July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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Play Travel
Travel Play
This is one of those times that you’ll want to take some pictures, but keep the selfies to a minimum, put the camera phone back in your pocket and concentrate on burning this experience in to your memory, rather than your memory stick. (Quick tip, if someone wearing a tourism police t-shirt outside the palace tells you it is shut, ignore him, it’s a scam, just keep walking.) Once you’ve had your fill of the Grand Palace (if that is possible) it’s a pleasant 10-minute meander to the similarly impressive Wat Pho, otherwise known as the Temple of the Reclining Buddha. This huge golden statue (15m high and 46m long) has to be seen to be believed and is well worth the stroll whatever the weather.Again ignore anyone telling you it is shut. Wat Pho is not just a one trick pony—the grounds are as stunningly serene as those of the Grand Palace and in 48
benchmark middle east | July 2016
July 2016 | benchmark middle east
benchmark middle east | July 2016
some ways almost nicer, as this is a temple in which to explore little alleyways to discover more carvings, statues and gorgeous architecture that seems straight from a fantasy novel. Take a short ferry ride across the Chay Phraya River to WatArun, the Temple of Dawn, for another dose of soul-stirring peace. Again beautiful grounds hold a host of treasures including the huge Khmer-style colourful tower of tiles or the fat golden Buddha (Chinese style, Thai Buddhas are slimmer). To truly cement a powerful morning of reflection jump back on the ferry and on the riverside near Wat Pho you’ll find a number of hidden away eateries offering the chance to sit, enjoy a local brew, great food and watch the busy waterfront traffic perform for you – Bangkok, after all, is called the Venice of the East. Following all that serenity you might July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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be in need of an adrenalin shot and none can be more exhilarating than a TukTuk motorcycle taxi ride back through the city traffic to your hotel. While this will possibly cost you twice the fare of a normal cab, thethrill ride at breakneck speed is the fastest way to get back to where you have laid your hat. In a city such as Bangkok accommodation choices abound, but few offer this particular bewildering cocktail of contrasts better than the Siam Kempinski Hotel, a resort slap bang in the heart of the city’s premier shopping and entertainment district of Rama 1 Road.This beautiful hotel is an oasis of calm, seemingly holding back the noise and frenetic chaos of the city beyond its walls, looking inward on a huge garden and pool complex one might expect to find at a beach resort. It even has cabana rooms with private access into the pool to increase that feeling of being a million miles from the city. It’s a grand illusion but it works. As luxury hotels go the Siam Kempinski is an impressive affair featuring a jaw-dropping lobby to rival any found in the Gulf’s uber luxury offerings.Acres of marble, including pillars which stretch up into the skies, greet the arriving traveler. All that sumptuous stone is warmed by huge brass sconces intricately carved 50
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with Thai designs that throw out light in the shape of lotus flowers.Warmer still is the greeting from the hotel team, who clasp their hands together, smile and give a slight bow whenever you pass. This hospitality is so engrained in every member of staff that it is impossible not to feel welcome at the Siam Kempinski. The rooms are modern Thai with wooden floors and comforting carpet setting a soothing tone, a refreshing change from the marble favoured in GCC properties. Pick a deluxe residence in the Royal Wing and you’ll get a pool and city view, complimentary mini-bar and wifi, a spaesque bathroom with bath and shower, and of course a sprawling bed. Dining options are plentiful in KempJuly 2016 | benchmark middle east
benchmark middle east | July 2016
inski, which has one of the finest choices of restaurants in Bangkok. SraBua by KiinKiin offers modern Thai fine dining and is the concept of renowned chef HenrikYde-Anderson, whose KiinKiin restaurant in Copenhagen, Denmark has held a Michelin star since 2008. Slightly more relaxed is Brasserie Europa, which offers all-day dining and an informal European a la carte menu, while Niche, the other all-day option, offers a more intimate, yet still relaxed, atmosphere. Apart from the utter luxury of it all, another bonus of staying at the Siam Kempinskiis that it is connected via a sky bridge to the adjacent Siam Paragon mall. This is high-end shopping at its best so if you are looking for Jimmy
Choo, Prada, Gucci and the like then you are in luck (Pro Tip: fly Air Asia X into Bangkok and use the money you save to splurge in the shops). It’s impossible to leave Bangkok without being slightly changed by this astonishing city even if you spend just 24-hours there. For so extreme are the contrasts — high octane energy alongside deep spirituality — that it stretches the soul, making you more open to change and frenetic chaos than you thought possible. Despite all that exhausting hustle and bustle, punctuated by moments of profound peace, at the end of the day Bangkok leaves you feeling revived and just slightly more alive than when you arrived. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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Play Travel
Travel Play
Escaping
the Grind for a song
Isn’t it nice when something in life exceeds our expectations? You know, that feeling of getting more than you bargained for, when someone over-delivers and it comes as a complete surprise.
W
elcome to the business model of Air Asia X, the low-cost Thai airline which has just launched its new service from Muscat to Bangkok, flying three times a week. Low-cost and long-haul conjures images of being crammed on to Ryan Air for seven hours, however Air Asia X’s offering in this price range comes as a totally refreshing change, being as it is a genuinely enjoyable experience to fly with them. It is almost as if ‘surprise the passenger’ is the unofficial motto of Air Asia X. The key driver of this is the staff, both on the ground at check-in and especially the on-board crew because the passenger is treated with a respect and courtesy normally reserved for business class on pre52
benchmark middle east | July 2016
July 2016 | benchmark middle east
benchmark middle east | July 2016
mium international airlines. The warm smiles and deft service of the Air Asia X team put the traveler at ease even before they have stepped on board the A300 flight, which itself over-delivers on space, ambiance and comfort. Anyone who has flown, for example Ryan Air, will remember the sweaty blue plastic leather effect seats and the garish dark blue and bright yellow colour scheme, but the interior on Air Asia is calming, with comfortable seats and soothing tones. One could almost be forgiven for forgetting he was on-board a ‘low-cost’ operator at all. This is amplified by the seating options on board, in economy one has the choice (for a small extra cost) to be the Quiet Zone. Soft ambient lighting, faster service for meals, and overall less noise on the sixJuly 2016 | benchmark middle east
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Facts & Figures Fares • Round trip base fares start as low
hour flight, this is one way to ensure a relaxing journey. One can then opt (to pay) for one of the Hot Seats which offer extra legroom too. However if you want to opt for total comfort then Air Asia X’s Premium Flatbed option is for you, being ‘business class on a budget’. Here again the airline under promises and over-delivers. So before you get on board you know you won’t have the endless flow of bubbles that other business class flights offer, you won’t get fine china and crystal glasses, you won’t even get inflight entertainment. But you do get a super comfy angle-lie flatbed starting from Omr132 one-way — that’s an impressively low fare for what is a real luxury. However Premium Flatbed actually delivers business class experience — despite (and in some cases because of ) the stripped back experience. Focusing on your seat for six hours, the Premium Flatbed reclines with all the same degree of flexibility as any other flatbed seat in other, more expensive, business classes. So you can go fully reclined, up54
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as 118 OMR • All inclusive fares that include 20 kg, one hot meal, and seat selection, start as low as 150 OMR Lowest fares are at www.airasia.com Thai AirAsia X operates flights to Singapore, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, Phnom Penh, Yangon, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, and Bali. It also operates local flights to Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai Province in northern Thailand, Hat Yai, Krabi, Phuket, Narathiwat, Nakhonsithammarat and Surat Thani in southern Thailand, and Loudoun Thani in northeastern Thailand. In addition to direct flights, AirAsia X provides transit services, helping passengers reach other cities in Thailand through the Don Mueang International Airport in Bangkok. The airline’s destinations include Krabi and Phuket, two popular beach destinations in Thailand, and attractive northern cities, including Chang Mai and Chang Rai.
July 2016 | benchmark middle east
benchmark middle east | July 2016
right, laid back with the feet up etc. You also get a pillow and duvet to add to the comfort. Add to that a privacy screen separating you from your neighbour and your own reading light and you are already on to a winner. The lack of in-flight entertainment can be compensated for by packing your laptop as you have your own power socket to keep it, and the rest of your devices, charged. As for the lack of fine china, ok when the meal is presented to you in the tinfoil tray with a plastic fork perhaps your hearts sinks a little, but then you are totally unprepared for how delicious the meal actually is. Honestly it is good as anything served on many premium lines, it just comes in a little more basic presentation. Premium Flatbed comes with a meal included, but there is also a (very reasonably-priced) menu from which you can order more, plus drinks, if you remain hungry or thirsty. The onboard crew also ask when you when you would like it served, so you can eat before sleeping, or they’ll wake you a short time before landing should you wish.
It’s all ridiculously civilised for a ‘lowcost’ experience, no wonder SkyTrax award Air Asia X the World’s Best Low Cost premium cabin and premium seat. Having polished off your food after watching (or reading) your own choice of entertainment, you plump up your pillow and pull up your duvet in the surprising amount of space and lie there, serenely calm, thousands of feet in the air, thinking ‘this is one of the most enjoyable flights I have had’. You don’t think it for long before you drift off to sleep. Added bonuses of Premium Flatbed is the generous 40kg luggage allowance, plus priority check-in and priority boarding, plus you can change your flight free of charge up to two hours prior to departure. All in all the passenger arrives in Don Mueang International Airport, some 30 minutes from Bangkok central, feeling at least as fresh as passengers on any other airline would, just with a significant amount more left in their wallets to enjoy the sites and sounds of Thailand’s most famous city and beyond. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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Play Property
Property Play
Top Five Properties For sale
Dh5.5 million Furnished penthouse with private pool in Moevenpick, Jumeriah Lake Towers, Dubai
luxhabitat, Dubai’s only high-end real estate brokerage, gives us the rundown on the top five choices for sale in the emirate The essenTials City Dubai area Palm Jumeirah
For more details on all these properties,
Development
and more, visit: luxhabitat, Dubai's only
Oceana Residences
high-end real estate brokerage and interior
sub-development Atlantic
design company, at www.luxhabitat.ae
Type Apartment
or scan the QR code with your smart phone
availability Ready lifestyle Luxury Penthouses Bedrooms 3 bedrooms Bathrooms 4 (1 ensuite) Built up area 2,440 sq ft Pool Infinity, community pool
Dh4.5 million Burj Khalifa two bedroom portent with fountain view. The essenTials City Dubai area Downtown Dubai Development Burj Khalifa Tower Type Apartment availability Ready lifestyle Lake Surroundings Bedrooms 2 bedrooms Bathrooms 3 (2 ensuite) Built up area 1,546 sq ft Pool Community pool
Dh13 million
This lovely spacious two bedroom apartment has panoramic full fountain and old town views. Situated on a mid floor level the apartment allows natural light to flow throughout the apartment. Two large sized bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms and built in wardrobes. There is a separate laundry area and guest bathroom. This apartment is priced to sell immediately. The Burj Khalifa is currently the tallest structure on the planet. Soaring 828 meters (2,717 ft), with more than 160 stories, the building has a stepped design that narrows as it climbs syringe-like to the sky.
Full sea view penthouse in 23 Marina, Dubai Marina
The essenTials City Dubai area Dubai Marina Development Marina 23 Type Penthouse availability Ready lifestyle Luxury Penthouses Bedrooms 4 bedrooms Bathrooms 5 (4 ensuite) Built up area 5,775 sq ft Pool Private pool
Dh4.35 million Spacious and upgraded semi-detached townhouse, The Lakes, Dubai.
The essenTials City Dubai area The Lakes Development Zulal sub-development Zulal 3 Type Semi-detached townhouse availability Ready lifestyle Lake Surroundings Bedrooms 3 bedrooms Bathrooms 2 (1 ensuite) Built up area 2,910 sq ft Plot size 4,300 sq ft
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This penthouse in 23 Marina, one of the nicest towers in the Marina boasts full sea and Palm Jumeirah views. On a clear day you can even see all the iconic sights of Dubai, such as Burj Khalifa and the world famous seven star hotel Burj Al Arab. The penthouse is spread over two levels with a private internal elevator in the living room. The apartment has four bedrooms, one on the lower floor and three on the upper level. All of offer views over the sea and the Palm. An extensive renovation was done in the apartment including a new kitchen, new flooring and most of the bathrooms have also been renovated giving the apartment a contemporary but the same time homely look.
Dh17.5 million
One of the more spacious townhouse floor plans, at just under 3,000 sqft, this property has been beautifully maintained and well upgraded in neutral tones and natural materials. The upgrading has included a rearrangement of some of the storage and pantry space to maximise useable floor area, improve the maid room, add space on to the guest bathroom to make it a full shower room, which attaches to the downstairs office/family room to make it a functional 4th bedroom with ensuite, on the ground floor. The property is marble tiled throughout, with an upgraded light and clean kitchen, an attractive entry way and glass front door which lets extra light into the spacious hallway. The ceilings are all of good height and a breakfast room within the kitchen area is a perfect daytime family space for meals and study. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
This penthouse is located in one of the most sought after locations in Dubai, Jumeirah Lake Towers which is one of the fastest growing free zones in the world. The building itself is located at the very beginning of Jumeirah Lake Towers on top of the Moevenpick Hotel and Residences. The apartment has three conveniently sized bedrooms a nice kitchen with built in appliances and a large lounge area, which leads to the beautiful private terrace with its private pool, which is very rare to find in an apartment of this size. The apartment is fully furnished as you can see in the pictures which allows you to move in immediately and just bring your suit cases.
Stunning penthouse in Burj Khalifa, Downtown Dubai
The essenTials City Dubai area Downtown Dubai Development Burj Khalifa Tower Type Penthouse availability Ready lifestyle Luxury Penthouses Bedrooms 4 bedrooms Bathrooms 5 (4 ensuite) Built up area 4,493 sq ft Pool Community pool
benchmark middle east | July 2016
Live on top of the world. The very highest luxury has to offer in this special penthouse at one of the highest level floors on the planet. This large four bedroom home features maids room, luxury furniture, fully upgraded. Includes floor to ceiling panoramic windows, marble and wooden flooring, fully fitted kitchen with high specification appliances, built-in entertainment cabinetry, separate laundry room with Miele washing machine and dryer. Offers amazing panoramic views of the sea and the stunning Dubai Fountains. This Penthouse comes with three VIP conveniently located parking spots. Burj Khalifa offers amenities and services that provide residents and their guests an unparalleled lifestyle experience. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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Play Property
Property Play
Top Five Properties For Rent
Dh875,000 per year
We’ve teamed up with luxhabitat, Dubai’s only high-end real estate brokerage and interior design company, to bring you our top five choices to rent
Signature Villa, Fronds, Palm Jumeriah.
The essenTials City Dubai area Palm Jumeirah
For more details on all these properties,
Development
and more, visit: luxhabitat, Dubai's only
Fronds, Signature Villa
high-end real estate brokerage and interior
sub-development Frond K
design company, at www.luxhabitat.ae
Type Villa
or scan the QR code with your smart phone
availability Ready lifestyle Sea-Front Properties Bedrooms 6 bedrooms Bathrooms 7 (6 ensuite) Built up area 7,000 sq ft Pool Overflow private pool
Dh185,000 per year Upgraded one bedroom apartment in Index Tower in DIFC, Dubai.
The essenTials City Dubai area DIFC Development The Index Tower Type Apartment availability Ready lifestyle Private Communities Bedrooms 1 bedrooms Bathrooms 2 (1 ensuite) Built up area 1,111 sq ft Pool Infinity, community pool
This stunning, upgraded one bedroom apartment in Index Tower in Dubai International Financial Centre is fitted with wood floors throughout and direct views over the iconic DIFC. Located above the 40th floor, the apartment offers 1,100 sq.ft of built up area. Accommodation comprises of one en-suite master bedroom with wood flooring, custom wardrobes. The main living area is complete with a large lounge area with built-in bookshelves and wine refrigerator, impressive floor to ceiling windows and open-concept luxury kitchen with high class fitted utilities. The home has been professionally designed and furnished and features contemporary Italian sofas, chairs and tables from Moroso and French lighting and chandeliers by Ligne Roset.
Dh320,000 per year Four bedroom villa in Jumeriah Golf Estates.
The essenTials City Dubai area Jumeirah Golf Estates Development Olive Point Type Villa availability Ready lifestyle Golf Retreats Bedrooms 4 bedrooms Bathrooms 5 (4 ensuite) Built up area 5,513 sq ft Pool Overflow, heated and cooled community pool private pool
Dh380,000 per year Top floor duplex penthouse with Burj Al Arab views, Palm Jumeriah
The essenTials City Dubai area Palm Jumeirah Development Shoreline Apartments sub-development Al Das Type Penthouse availability Ready lifestyle Luxury Penthouses Bedrooms 4 bedrooms Bathrooms 5 (4 ensuite) Built up area 5,640 sq ft Pool Infinity, community pool
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Owning a home in the Mediterranean-style Jumeirah Golf Estates is like stepping into a street in Europe, complete with cobblestone paving, manicured hedges and traditional street lights. Facing the Earth golf course, the sand-coloured villa will make you feel welcome with natural daylight streaming in through the arched floor-toceiling windows. The living room is subtly split into two via an arched doorway that leads to a dining area, that further overlooks the swimming pool, perfect for a few laps in the morning. During the day, the light bounces off the wooden parquet flooring and creates a warm feeling that you can come home to.
Dh155,000 per year Modern two bedroom apartment, Dubai Marina
This is a top floor duplex penthouse located on the right-side Shoreline Apartments with direct beach and pool access. This meticulously maintained penthouse offers a large, double volume outdoor balcony off of the living room overlooking the Burj Al Arab and Dubai skyline. On entering the apartment you are greeted by the hallway which leads you to the high-ceiling living room followed by the spacious dining area. A double sized terrace with views of the tree lined park represent true Palm living. The lower floor also consists of a closed kitchen, guest bedroom with private terrace, maids room plus storage room, all with exquisite white marble flooring. The second floor of this beautiful penthouse staircase consists of a spacious large majlis area for greater privacy. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
This beautifully maintained Gallery View Signature Villa on Palm Jumeirah is located on one of the top fronds on The Palm. This sought after high number villa with full beach frontage would suit a family new to Dubai looking for a prestigious location. The Gallery View is one of the most popular of layouts affording ground floor open plan living and maximising the views from all family rooms of the open water and Dubai skyline. The ground floor comprises of a large open family area, private sitting, second family room, private/formal dinning, kitchen, laundry and staff rooms. Also located on the lower level, are two double en suite bathrooms and cloakroom.
The essenTials City Dubai area Dubai Marina Development Cayan/ Infinity Tower Type Apartment availability Ready lifestyle Marina Living Bedrooms 2 bedrooms Bathrooms 2 (1 ensuite) Built up area 1,372 sq ft Pool Infinity, community pool
benchmark middle east | July 2016
This is a mid-floor two bedroom apartment available immediately for rent in the prestigious Cayan Tower, Dubai Marina. The property has been well-maintained and is offered with all modern comforts and appliances provided. The Master bedroom provides a stunning Marina view, as well as a large en-suite bathroom. The guest bedroom is superbly laid-out and well proportioned. The impressive living area is bathed in natural sunlight, and has a contemporary feel to it's decor. The kitchen provides all the necessary equipment needed by any modern professional, as well as a plenty of counter space for preparing meals and entertaining guests. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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Adrianna Papell
Play Fashion for Her
Brooks Brother
As we battle the toasty temperatures of the Middle Eastern summer, we are craving new style solutions to keep us fashionable during the summer heatwave. Raise your hemlines
This luxurious sand-washed silk charmeuse shift dress comes in an eye-catching print which will take you from desk to dinner in one failsafe easy-to-wear look.
This white short beaded cocktail dress is is finished in a sparkly, sophisticated white which is sure to make happy hour even happier. Timeless, elegant and the perfect addition to your wardrobe.
Dh725 Dh2,380
with stylish romper suits, aim for laid-back cool with stylish shift and shirt dresses and stylishly cover-up for night with chic throw-over-the-shoulder jackets. This July, Adrianna Papell, Kate Spade and Brooks Brothers have your look covered.
Adrianna Papell Meet the piece that will carry your look through every event in your summer calendar. Top off any look with this sleek white cape jacket with a long, lapel-like collar. From dresses to tops, simply drape on this chic jacket for indoor-outdoor elegance.
Dh550 kate spade Made from a black-and-white large-format gingham - this sweet, stylish and picnic-friendly romper is a summer must-have. Team with the adrien bag and a sparkly sandal.
kate spade A scaled-down version of our versatile adrien, the cobble hill small adrien is a great go-anywhere bag. Polished enough for the office, it's also playful enough for the weekend, and the choice of top handle or adjustable crossbody strap makes it extra easy to wear. We like the black and white striped version the best.
Dh1,044
Brooks Brother
Adrianna Papell Vibrant floral printed canvas heightens the romantic appeal of this quintessential spring pump finished with flirty mesh panels and a perfectly pointed toe. Pair this playful pump with your favorite denim or dress for a flirtatious pop of color and flare.
Subtle yet sophisticated, shirt dresses are your sartorial best friend in the soaring heat of the summer. Team with sandal for the day or thrown on a wedge for an evening upgrade.
Dh1,220
Adrianna Papell Guarantee some serious dancefloor fun with this eye-catching dress which features a halter beaded bodice, leading to a full taffeta skirt that shows some serious leg.
Dh1,550
Dh495
Dh525
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benchmark middle east | July 2016
July 2016 | benchmark middle east
benchmark middle east | July 2016
July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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Brooks Brother Expert tailoring teamed with fine Italian wool, this streamlined and solid colour suit is Saville Row-style fit but ready-to-wear. A weekday work wonder.
Bally
Play Fashion for Him
The average man typically owns a dozen pairs of shows. These should make the final cut. A pair for the dressier moments in life, the bukle details gives this shoe more personality than laces.
From workday formals to weekend casual, find the right fit, color and style for you with some of the best
Dh6,170
D2,290
men’s suits, blazers and shoes of the season.
Bally The stylish way out the door this spring? A pair of brown loafers. This pair is perfect with everything from jeans to suits, and appropriate for everything but formal occasions. Team with chinos or jeans and a well-cut blazer.
Brooks Brother The sartorial equivalent of silence speaking louder than words: this simple, clean and no-fuss classic blazer makes a bold statement. Team with contrasting chinos and a well-cut white shirt.
Dh1,550
Dh3,080
Bally Want to wear sneakers to work? These black sneaker is perfect for the office and they go with everything, mostly because they're simple and classic.
Dh1,790
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benchmark middle east | July 2016
July 2016 | benchmark middle east
benchmark middle east | July 2016
July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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Shaan Live In Concert
Play Events Planner
WHEN August 11 WHERE Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi
The second half of 2016 is going to be a big one for newleisure pursuits in the UAE, with both the Dubai Opera and the massive Dubai Parks and Resorts theme park complex set to open their doors. The former, a 2,000-person-capacity venue in Downtown Dubai, hosts its first performance on August 31 — and leads our guide to going out over the hot summer months.
Bollywood singer Shaan is performing in the UAE capital in August, also as part of the Abu Dhabi Summer Season. The popular Indian ‘playback singer’ is also famous as a TV host, having appeared on shows such as Star Voice of India. Expect him to be rolling out some of his hit songs in the lavish setting of Emirates Palace.
Ice Skating Fun Camp WHEN July 10 – August 25 WHERE Zayed Sports City, Abu Dhabi If you’re looking for a break from the kids, and the kids are looking for a break from the long hot UAE summer, the Ice Skating Fun Camp could be just the ticket. The camp runs each week from Sunday to Thursday, with two session slots daily — either 9am to 1pm, or 1pm to 5pm. The daily activities are run by certified and experienced coaches, and include off-ice games that build endurance, flexibility and strength. No wonder it’s billed as the “coolest way to spend summer break”.
The Barber of Seville WHEN September 2, 4 WHERE Dubai Opera, Downtown Dubai Gioachino Rossini’s classic comic opera, The Barber of Seville, is one of the next shows scheduled for the soon-to-open Dubai Opera. The opera – which is being performed by Fondazione Teatro Lirico Giuseppe Verdi, from Trieste in Italy – is considered to be one of the greatest masterpieces of comedy within music. Many of the opera melodies are well-known, especially the introductory song of the swaggering Figaro, the barber of the title.
WEBSITE www.visitabudhabi.ae PRICE From Dh145
WEBSITE www.zsc.ae PRICE Dh750 per week, pre-registration required
PHOTO abudhabievents.ae
PHOTO wikipedia
WHEN August 31 WHERE Dubai Opera, Downtown Dubai Dubai may be builton sand, but it’s certainly no cultural desert — as the imminent opening of its dedicated opera house shows. The Dubai Opera’s dhow-shaped building, in the heart of the Downtown district, is a billed as “iconic” and “a stylish tribute to Dubai’s maritime history”. Tickets for the first concert, by the Spanish opera tenor Placido Domingo, reportedly sold out in less than three hours after they went on sale — but there are plenty more events lined up for later in the year. WEBSITE www.dubaiopera.com PRICE From Dh450 64
benchmark middle east | July 2016
The Pearl Fishers WHEN September 1, 3 WHERE Dubai Opera, Downtown Dubai
WHEN July 14-August 6 WHERE Du Forum, Abu Dhabi Fans of gaming, cooking, sports and fashion are expected to flock to this summer event in Abu Dhabi. Run in conjunction with broadcaster MBC, Fun Nation is set to include workshops, interactive activities, and appearances from TV celebrities. The focus will be on sports and cooking from July 14-23, with daily cooking workshops, a food science exhibition, and daily football and cricket sports clinics. Gaming and fashion will be the focus from July 28 to August 6, with tournaments featuring world-renowned games, and panel discussions featuring some top fashion experts. WEBSITE www.duforum.ae PRICE From Dh20 (child) and Dh40 (adult)
WEBSITE www.dubaiopera.com PRICE From Dh350
Dubai Opera opening
Fun Nation
The Kapil Sharma Comedy Show
Dubai Summer Surprises 2016
Cirque Adrenaline
Bollywood in the Capital
WHEN July 9 – August 20 WHERE Across Dubai
WHEN August 18-19 WHERE Al Raha Beach Theatre, Abu Dhabi
WHEN August 12 WHERE Du Forum, Abu Dhabi
The Fondazione Teatro Lirico Giuseppe Verdi will also perform this opera by French composer Georges Bizet, who is better known for his masterpiece Carmen. Les Pêcheurs de Perles — or ‘The Pearl Fishers’ — is set in ancient times on the island of Ceylon. A tale of love, betrayal and sacrifice, the opera centres around two friends, who vow to never let the love of a woman come between them and destroy their friendship.
This edition of Benchmark is devoted to all things retail — which is fitting given Dubai’s annual festival dedicated to the art of shopping is nearly upon us. It’s the 19th edition of Dubai Summer Surprises (DSS), which was launched as a way to boost tourism over the hot season. Visitors can expect equally hot bargains in the 6,000 or more outlets participating in this year’s six-week event. So shop ‘til you drop — and then check out the spas, restaurants and family entertainment venues also participating in this year’s DSS.
WEBSITE www.dubaiopera.com PRICE From Dh350
WEBSITE www.visitdubai.com PRICE Free July 2016 | benchmark middle east
More indoor entertainment comes to the UAE for the summer season, with this dazzling circus event set to be performed at the Al Raha Beach Theatre. Part of the Abu Dhabi Summer Season, Cirque Adrenaline is billed as “a thrilling extravaganza of the world’s most dangerous and death-defying acts”, blending traditional circus acts with high-octane feats of skill. Expect flame-wielding fire spinners, contortionists, trapeze artists and daredevil motorcyclists. WEBSITE www.abudhabievents.ae PRICE From Dh75 benchmark middle east | July 2016
More Bollywood stars are set to descend on Abu Dhabi, just a few days before Indian Independence Day on August 15. Singers Vishal Dadlani and ShekharRavjiani – who together make up the popular duo Vishal-Shekhar – are set to perform live at the Du Forum on Yas Island. They will be joined by Farhan Akhtar, the film director, playback singer, lyricist and television host, as well as the Indian musical trio consisting of Shankar Mahadevan, EhsaanNoorani and Loy Mendonsa. WEBSITE www.duforum.ae PRICE From Dh150
WHEN August 12 WHERE Al Raha Beach Theatre, Abu Dhabi The quick-witted Indian comic Kapil Sharma is set to perform a one-night stand-up show in August. One of India’s biggest names in comedy, he rose to fame with his show ‘Comedy Nights With Kapil’, one of the most-watched shows on television. His new series — ‘The Kapil Sharma Show’, which is broadcast on Sony Entertainment Television — started airing in April 2016. Sharma was last year named by Forbes India as the 27th top celebrity in the South Asian county. WEBSITE tickets.virginmegastore.me PRICE From Dh200
July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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Fit A
s the host of BBC’s popular The Travel Show, Rajan Datar knows a thing or two about globetrotting. Having taken hundreds of flights around the world to over 80 countries, racking up tens of thousands of air miles in the process, Rajan knows the perils of long hours in a flight cabin, and the difficulties of hitting the ground running after a long flight across different time zones, better than most. Here he tells us how he manages to stay fighting fit in spite of his frequent flying. The biggest takeaway from his insights? There really isn’t any magic solution to combating jetlag issues, so go with the flow, and enjoy the privilege of getting to travel around the world. What is your typical regime for surviving long-haul flights and landing ready-to-go? If you’re not mentally prepared each time before a flight, it can make you nervous, anxious, physically stiff, bored and tired. But there are ways of limiting this. However, I still haven’t cracked the essential problem — sleep deprivation. There are all sorts of different ideas on how you can cope with long flights. The latest recommendation I’m trying is to manage your circadian rhythm by flashing lights during your sleep the night before you fly. I’m flying to China in a couple of days, which is a horrendous journey from London. I have to get off the plane and straight into filming, which I know I’ll find challenging to cope with.
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benchmark middle east | July 2016
Frequent travel can take a toll
on your health. Sudeshna Ghosh asks an expert to share his top tips on staying healthy when travelling. Q&A
What is the most important piece of advice you can give when it comes to eating and drinking on flights? Eat early — if you’re going to eat at all. My cameraman always tells me not to eat anything on the plane, as flying impacts your digestive system and metabolism. Even frequent flyers don’t always realise this. So, I always try and eat early, if I’m going to eat, then try to go to sleep. And, the right thing to do is to avoid alcohol. The environment in an aircraft cabin is incredibly dry, and dehydration can exaggerate jetlag and give you headaches or dizziness, so staying hydrated is a very important when it comes to flying. It can be very tempting to enjoy the luxuries you get on a flight — free wine, the food, the entertainment — but in reality, those things won’t help when you reach your destination feeling groggy.
Any golden rules for minimising the effects of jet lag? Tune in to the time zone you’re about to go to — reset your watch, and gradually start adapting your mealtimes. If you can, breathing exercises and meditation are actually really beneficial. Too much stimulation, such as in-flight entertainment, can keep your mind buzzing and therefore make it difficult to relax and sleep. And keep in mind, going East is the toughest direction to travel, in terms of jet lag and adjusting your body clock — so be mentally prepared when planning your trip. What essentials do you always carry to help make a flight more comfortable? I never travel without a good book and a few downloaded podcasts. July 2016 | benchmark middle east
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