Gulf Business March 2022 Property Finder Edition

P.39 SWITCHING OVER: How the UAE’s new workweek has impacted business and life as we know it

P.68 TAKING THE WHEEL: Emma Gilmour is the first woman to bag a driver’s role at McLaren Racing

gulfbusiness.com / M A R C H 2 0 2 2

A REWARDING EXPERIENCE WINNERS OF THE EIGHTH PROPERTY FINDER AWARDS ON DUBAI’S REMARKABLE REAL ESTATE REVIVAL AND THE FACTORS THAT GAVE THEM A COMPETITIVE EDGE

A GIANT LEAP: SAUDI ARABIA’S LARGEST DEBUT TECH EVENT SHOWCASED

Gulf Business

CONTENTS / MARCH 2022

07

The brief An insight into the news and trends shaping the region with perceptive commentary and analysis

24 Creating platforms, building bridges Annabelle Mander and Mike Champion of Informa Markets share the company’s ambitious vision

28 A giant LEAP Inside Saudi Arabia’s largest debut tech event

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March 2022

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CONTENTS / MARCH 2022

63 Lifestyle

Brand values: Porsche Design turns 50 p.64

Wait and watch: Adam Scott on golf’s evolution p.66

The storyteller: Author Raed Barqawi shares his tale p.72

“The signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement marks the beginning of an exciting new era in the longstanding relationship between the UAE and India” Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces

74 The SME Story Interviews with entrepreneurs and insights from experts on how the regional SME ecosystem is evolving

Editor-in-chief Obaid Humaid Al Tayer Managing partner and group editor Ian Fairservice Group director Andrew Wingrove andrew.wingrove@motivate.ae Editor Neesha Salian neesha.salian@motivate.ae Deputy editor Varun Godinho varun.godinho@motivate.ae varungodinho Tech editor Divsha Bhat divsha.bhat@motivate.ae Contributor Zainab Mansoor editorial.freelancer@motivate.ae zzainabmansoor Senior art director Olga Petroff olga.petroff@motivate.ae Art director Freddie N. Colinares freddie@motivate.ae Photographer Mark Mathew

General manager – production S Sunil Kumar Assistant production manager Binu Purandaran Production supervisor Venita Pinto Chief commercial officer Anthony Milne anthony@motivate.ae Group sales manager Manish Chopra manish.chopra@motivate.ae Sales executive Sonal Sawant sonal.sawant@motivate.ae Sales executive Sonam Sharma sonam.sharma@motivate.ae Group marketing manager Joelle AlBeaino joelle.albeaino@motivate.ae Group marketing manager Dominic Clerici dominic.clerici@motivate.ae

Cover: Freddie N. Colinares Follow us on social media: Linkedin: Gulf Business Facebook: GulfBusiness Twitter: @GulfBusiness Instagram: @GulfBusiness

HEAD OFFICE: Media One Tower, Dubai Media City, PO Box 2331, Dubai, UAE, Tel: +971 4 427 3000, Fax: +971 4 428 2260, motivate@motivate.ae DUBAI MEDIA CITY: SD 2-94, 2nd Floor, Building 2, Dubai, UAE, Tel: +971 4 390 3550, Fax: +971 4 390 4845 ABU DHABI: PO Box 43072, UAE, Tel: +971 2 677 2005, Fax: +971 2 677 0124, motivate-adh@motivate.ae LONDON: Acre House, 11/15 William Road, London NW1 3ER, UK, motivateuk@motivate.ae

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Presented by

The Brief Mergers and Acquisitions Clean Energy Trade Finance Alan’s Corner Sustainability

08 09 10 12 16

SHARE OF GLOBAL DEMAND FOR NON-ENGLISH LANGUAGE CONTENT Facing saturation in the US, media giants are looking abroad for growth, and India — the second-largest internet population globally — is ripe for disruption January to December 2021 40% Hindi

30%

MAR

22

Japanese

20%

Chinese Other Korean Spanish French

10% 0 JAN

APRIL

JULY

OCT

DEC

Source: Parrot Analytics / Axios

Mirror image Identify the character you want to emulate to succesfully leverage proximity triggers p.14 gulfbusiness.com

March 2022

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The Brief /Mergers and Acquisitions A N A LY S I S

Sturdy momentum

ILLUSTRATION: GETTY IMAGES/VISUAL MOZART

Regional and global M&A activity witnessed strong growth in 2021, finds Zainab Mansoor

T

he global mergers and acquisitions (M&A) market has had a banner year. With a renewed focus on opportunities, the total M&A deal value reached an all-time high of $5.9tn in 2021, according to a Bain & Company report. Strategic deals – which include corporate M&A and private equity portfolio add-ons – saw the value amount to $3.8tn, an increase of 47 per cent year-overyear in 2021. Meanwhile, deals involving special purpose acquisition companies, or SPACs marked a compound annual growth rate of 174 per cent from 2020 to 2021.

“The year 2021 brought record-breaking M&A deal values. Some buyers were motivated by the plethora of available 8

March 2022

assets and low cost of capital; others jumped into the fray to stay competitive,” the report added. “In our global survey of 281 executives, a full 80 per cent noted that deal activity was part of their broader business strategy in 2021, and more than half (52

A TOTAL OF 665 DEALS

WERE RECORDED ACROSS THE MIDDLE EAST IN FY 2021

Up 51% from 439 recorded in 2020

“WE HAVE SEEN A STRONG SECOND HALF AND A SUCCESSFUL FULL YEAR DRIVING MOMENTUM ACROSS ALL MARKETS IN THE MIDDLE EAST WITH 2021 FIGURES INDICATING THAT VALUES AND VOLUMES ARE SET TO FURTHER UPHOLD THEIR STURDY MOMENTUM IN 2022” per cent) cited the availability of attractive assets on the market as a driver of deals.”

Meanwhile, the regional landscape put up a stellar performance as well. A total of 665 deals were recorded across the Middle East in FY 2021, up 51 per cent from 439 recorded in 2020, while deal values for 2021 amounted to $89.8bn, up 58 per cent from $56.7bn recorded during the previous year, a report by law firm Baker McKenzie revealed. Domestic M&A deal volume grew 81 per cent to reach 241 in 2021, from 133 deals in 2020. Meanwhile, the US took the lead, ruling inbound and outbound crossborder M&A as the top acquirer and target country by volume and value for FY 2021.

Omar Momany, partner and head of the corporate and M&A practice group at Habib Al Mulla & Partners, a member firm of Baker & McKenzie International, said: “We have seen a strong second half and a successful full year driving momentum across all markets in the Middle East with 2021 figures indicating that values and volumes are set to further uphold their sturdy momentum in 2022. This was driven by new deals in traditional sectors such as oil and gas as well as deals in emerging sectors including high technology, fintech, digital platforms, e-commerce, healthcare and education.

“While the M&A market remains hard to predict, relatively speaking, the Middle East is one of the regions in the world that is set for dealmakers to continue to invest in the above mentioned futuristic sectors that are well positioned to succeed.” gulfbusiness.com

ILLUSTRATION: GETTY IMAGES/IR_STONE

The Brief / Clean Energy

Corporate buy-in counts

A N A LY S I S

Growing corporate presence in power markets will boost clean energy

C

ompanies have been buying renewable energy to power their operations for decades. At first, this was done at a very small and highly distributed scale, such as attaching solar power to remote monitoring systems for pipelines. In the early 2000s, companies began to build their own rooftop solar assets to power buildings, or contract with a third party to meet the same demand onsite.

Starting around 2010, companies began to do something different: they signed power purchase agreements with large, offsite renewable energy assets connected to the wholesale power grid. These assets were identical to anything built by a utility or independent power producer and they put power into the grid in the same way – companies purchased the output as it flowed into the grid. That market began, as all do, in a small way, with just 100MW or so in 2010. It has since grown.

In 2021, corporate procurement of clean energy topped 30GW. That’s about 10 per cent of the amount of renewable power generation capacity added last year; it’s also about the same as total global installations of clean power in 2008.

It is fair to describe the corporate renewable procurement phenomenon as primarily an Americas endeavour. Seventeen gigawatts of capacity announced last year came from the US, accounting

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67

COMPANIES

new signatories to RE100, a global initiative of companies committed to

100 per cent

renewable energy

for 55 per cent of the total, with another 3.3GW from other countries in North and South America. Europe signed contracts for 12 GW, while Asia signed only for two gigawatts, significantly less than in 2020.

Such procurement also is very much a US technology company activity. Amazon, Microsoft, and Meta Platforms were the three largest signers of contracts last year, with most of that capacity coming from solar. Amazon signed contracts for more than 6GW last year, increasing the total capacity it has under contract to almost 14GW. At that scale, Amazon counts as one of the world’s biggest players in renewable power. Its portfolio is slightly larger than that of Electricite de France, which has the 13th-largest portfolio of renewable power generation assets globally.

Google, which was previously the leader in total corporate renewable energy procurement, fell significantly in this year’s list of biggest buyers. It procured just over 600MW in 2021 through bilateral power purchase agreements, but for a good reason.

The company has implemented a different energy strategy to meet its demand for zero-emissions power. Google is now aiming to run only on carbon-free energy at every hour of every day by 2030.

That is a much more technically challenging proposition than simply buying as much clean power as your global demand – it means matching supply and demand everywhere, at all times, from many different sources.

The main driver behind all of this activity is fairly straightforward. While companies can enjoy cost savings from fixed-price renewable power, their corporate renewable energy targets are a more powerful incentive. Last year, 67 companies became new signatories to RE100, a global initiative of companies committed to 100 per cent renewable energy, pledging to offset all their electricity demand. There are now 355 RE100 member companies, in 25 countries. Collectively, they consume 363TWh (terawatthours), of power a year, slightly less total demand than Illinois, North Carolina, and Virginia [in the US] combined and more than the UK. With more companies pledging to source renewable power, and with increasing demand for power from energy-intensive industries such as technology and petrochemicals, the corporate presence in global power markets will only increase.

BloombergNEF estimates an additional 246 terawatthours by 2030 – about equal to California’s current power consumption – from today’s existing RE100 members. That equates to nearly 100GW of new wind and solar power contracts.

There’s plenty of room to grow.

Bloomberg March 2022

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The Brief / Trade Finance A N A LY S I S

Ankit Goel, regional head, Modifi

ILLUSTRATION: GETTY IMAGES/SORBETTO

BIG DATA

Lending a helping hand How fintech solutions can support small exporters

I

n today’s world, reaching new markets by developing unique products and expanding operations, is critical.

But funding these goals requires access to the most suitable financing options – at the right time.

Fintech startups have emerged to help businesses fund global partnerships and secure digital trade financing through game-changing non-recourse factoring.

According to an Asian Development Bank (ADB) study, rejection rates for trade finance reached record highs in 2020, with the gap between demand and supply currently at $1.7tn – a 15 per cent rise compared to the previous estimate of $1.5tn in 2018.

The bank’s latest research reiterates findings from previous studies that the trade finance gap disproportionately affects smaller enterprises, which are also strongly affected by supply chain disruptions.

Approximately 40 per cent of rejected trade finance requests were from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

There are significant obstacles for SMEs regarding securing financing. UAE banks are currently adopting cautious tendencies and avoiding lesser-known prospective customers. Many lenders have also adopted a risk-averse approach to trade 10

March 2022

Big data has the potential to even the playing field when assessing cross-border SME financing risks. Because every company has its unique risk profile, fintechs adopt a more customised approach to making lending decisions over a one-size-fits-all process. Digital trade finance leverages data to assess the risks of a growing pool of underserved merchants. For example, digital trade financing can present a holistic view of a seller’s risk profile by analysing multiple operational data points from credit insurance companies and additional, underused sources.

Understanding the actual risk of each transaction, as opposed to the perceived risk, streamlines trade workflows. Another advantage of a data-based infrastructure is that the system continually gets better at identifying what type of information is most helpful in determining the risks involved with any particular buyer or seller.

HOW IT WORKS

financing – and that’s likely to continue in the future, especially for SMEs who want to trade internationally. SMEs are also often unable to secure access to trade finance because they cannot provide collateral. In addition to that, they lack detailed information on market trends, know-yourcustomer (KYC), or risk-management strategies that appeal to lenders.

Fintech companies are uniquely positioned to fill the gap and help SMEs get access to flexible injections of liquidity exactly when they need it, as well as set up digital processes that allow them to successfully trade internationally.

REJECTION RATES FOR TRADE FINANCE REACHED RECORD HIGHS IN 2020, WITH THE GAP BETWEEN DEMAND AND SUPPLY CURRENTLY AT $1.7TN – A 15 PER CENT RISE COMPARED TO THE PREVIOUS ESTIMATE OF $1.5TN IN 2018

By leveraging digital trade financing, small and mid-sized traders can get invoices paid early, rather than having to wait up to 120 days or even longer. Moreover, by leveraging numerous data sources, digital trade financiers have a better understanding of risk for SMEs and can therefore not only vet and confirm the legitimacy of the buyer, but also insure the payment of the invoice.

With fintech solutions, SMEs can optimise their cash flow without the need for collateral or a letter of credit.

They can apply for finance in five minutes and have the cash in their account 48 hours later, remove credit risk and trade confidently, reduce payment disputes, make their cash flow more predictable, free up current lines of credit for investing in growth producing initiatives, including purchasing equipment and seamlessly track their shipments.

IN A NUTSHELL

Digital trade finance tools can help businesses reduce their credit risk, forecast cash flow and allocate working capital. In addition, having access to a digital trade finance solution can help SMEs explore a broader customer and supply base, possibly discovering new channels to buy or sell goods. gulfbusiness.com

BRAND VIEW

Breaking the bias at workplaces in 2022 Claire Roper-Browning, regional director for Marketing, Recruitment, Admissions and Communications at Heriot-Watt University Dubai, highlights why workplaces must guarantee that women are given the tools to succeed in their careers

I

nternational Women’s Day falls on March 8. This year’s theme ‘Break the Bias’ highlights the need for a world free from bias, stereotypes and discrimination to strengthen the case for gender equality.

Bias makes it difficult, particularly for women, to move ahead in their careers, whether deliberate or unconscious. It’s important to recognise that bias is not simply an inclination to prejudice. In the context of the workplace, it is building a system that fails to acknowledge the conditions of a certain group while holding them to standardised expectations. Therefore, changing the intrinsic inclination to bias is not sufficient, action is needed to level the field.

CRACKS EXPOSED DURING COVID-19 During the pandemic, the impact of bias was not only amplified, but revealed faults in the workplace that ultimately led to women either leaving their jobs or considering this option.

According to research by LinkedIn, which surveyed 2,000 working professionals, aged 25 to 55 in the UAE, 52 per cent of women agreed they had taken on more responsibilities than their partner at home during Covid-19.

Additionally, 43 per cent indicated that they had considered leaving or had already left the workforce. With women shouldering more childcare responsibilities while being held to the same performance standard as men, work circumstances became much harder for women.

Another report by Lean In and McKinsey & Company – Women in the Workplace 2020 – showed that women in leadership are 1.5 times more likely than men at senior levels to think about downshifting their careers or leaving the workforce due to burnout.

The financial consequences of losing many women in senior roles could be significant. Research cited in the report

gulfbusiness.com

also showed that companies are 50 per cent more likely to outperform their peers when women are well represented at the top. Additionally, women have a significant impact on a company’s culture, as they are more likely than men in senior levels to embrace employee-friendly policies as well as racial and gender equality at work.

As such, women leaving the workforce means that females at all levels in the workplace could lose their most powerful allies.

ARE WE DOING ENOUGH? Although many employers have taken important steps to support women and their employees in general, including tools and resources to help employees work remotely and improve their wellbeing, fewer companies have taken steps to adjust expectations that are contributing to burnout.

Pre-pandemic performance expectations are no longer sustainable, especially

52%

OF WOMEN AGREED THEY HAD TAKEN ON MORE RESPONSIBILITIES THAN THEIR PARTNER AT HOME DURING COVID-19

for working mothers. Women in the Workplace 2020 revealed that less than a third of companies have adjusted their performance review criteria. Women are facing the choice between falling short or pushing themselves to unrealistic points. Although employers are increasingly revisiting these expectations, there’s still a long way to go.

Some biases women have faced for years have been amplified during Covid-19.

This includes prejudiced views towards working mothers who are taking advantage of flexible work options. With childcare responsibilities becoming more visible, such as children appearing on the screen during video calls, the view that women are less committed to their jobs has been exacerbated.

TAKING THE RIGHT STEPS To mitigate these biases, companies can introduce bias training to sensitise employees and speak publicly about the negative impact of bias. It is also important to track outcomes for promotions and raises by gender to make sure women are being treated fairly.

Companies should also extend policies and programmes to support working mothers. This includes offering more paid time off to provide resources for homeschooling and other parenting resources.

In addition, companies should also make sure women are aware of the full range of benefits available to them. Studies have shown that there is a significant gap between the benefits offered to employees and the employees’ awareness what these benefits entail. Essentially, companies should determine their employees’ biggest challenges and allocate resources to help them effectively deal with these issues.

The pandemic has brought to light how necessary it is to revisit the work structure to guarantee women’s careers are not jeopardised with rising conflicts. It has also exposed how women primarily shoulder the responsibility of childcare and while this is changing, workplaces must guarantee that women are given the tools to succeed in their careers while respecting their responsibilities.

Breaking the bias, therefore, is not only necessary for the wellbeing of women, but for society as a whole.

March 2022

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The Brief / Alan’s Corner

Alan’s Corner Alan O’Neill Managing director of Kara, change consultant and speaker

Find your true grit

ILLUSTRATION: GETTY IMAGES/JRCASAS

Grit sets winners apart, giving you the courage and determination to go over, around or right through challenges and obstacles. Here are simple steps to infuse this quality into your team

I

know that every day is a school day for us adults, but I did not expect to receive my best learning from my grandchildren and I’d like to share it with you too.

Freddie was not yet four when he learned to ride his bike without stabilisers. As you can imagine, he fell several times and did hurt himself. His then eight-year old brother Ben helped him each time, but not just by picking him up. With lots

12

March 2022

of words of reassurance, Ben encouraged him and continuously perked him up. Through some tears and perseverance, Freddie nailed it. So did Ben, for a different reason.

In homeschooling recently, I overheard Freddie’s Zoom class and listened to his teacher talking about ‘grit’. She was prompting the class to keep trying and to never give up. Remember, this is to a class of toddlers. Ben is in the same school and later in the day he told me all about the school ethos. He and his classmates are challenged to support each other, to be kind and also to achieve one new task each week.

Every single day, the teachers talk about grit in class. Ben told me about a time they broke into teams of four to write a poem. Each team appointed a recorder (scribe), a reporter (to read it out afterwards), a time-keeper and an encourager. Yes, an encourager. The encourager’s job is to keep the team upbeat and tenacious when they are struggling. (Fans of deBono’s six-hats will recognise this mix).

It doesn’t stop there. Throughout the whole curriculum, grit is this school’s mantra.

Whether it’s in sports, academics or social interactions, tenacity is encouraged, even through adversity. Now I’m sure that most schools also have their defined ethos, but Safa Community School really impresses me.

ORGANISATION CULTURE Nobody can quantify or articulate how much our world is changing. We can deduce, guess, assume or even look in a crystal ball. But the one thing we can be sure of is that there will always be adversity. We’re not through this yet and we will be tried and tested some more.

Another word for the ethos in the school, is culture. Every single organisation in the world has a unique culture, like a fingerprint.

For some, it has been proactively designed, defined and embedded. For many others, it’s more of an abstract way of working that while everybody in the team knows about it, few can describe it succinctly. I believe that the latter group are missing a trick.

“THE START OF A NEW YEAR IS A TIME WHEN WE REFLECT AND CONSIDER THE FUTURE. THE GLOBAL UNCERTAINTY MAKES THIS YEAR VERY DIFFERENT INDEED. BUT WHILE YOUR STRATEGY AND YOUR TACTICS MAY BE IN CONSTANT FLUX, YOUR CULTURE NEEDS TO BE CONSISTENT”

gulfbusiness.com

The Brief / Alan’s Corner

INTRODUCING ‘GRIT’ TO YOUR BUSINESS Your culture needs to be relevant to you, but you would do well to consider grit as a key element of it.

Here’s how you can do it 01. Research the great achievers from across the spectrum that adapted and coped against extreme adversity. It doesn’t have to be just the solo-rowers that crossed the Atlantic and survived shark attacks and perfect storms. There are others that our teams can relate more to. In Ben and Freddie’s school, a refugee family arrived with no knowledge of English at all. They got extra tuition at weekends and with support from the kids, they were playing and speaking English within a few weeks. They were also taught to show grit from day one.

02. Take time to talk about ‘grit’. In daily huddles and team meetings, acknowledge how everyone is feeling and show lots of empathy. Then try to lift yourselves by refocusing on the big picture and building hope. ‘This too shall pass’ is an old Persian adage that is worth keeping in mind.

03. Set S.M.A.R.T goals, with extra emphasis on the

gulfbusiness.com

‘R’, ie realistic and relevant. Whether they be team goals or individual goals, make sure you don’t overestimate what you can do in these strange times. Make your goals ‘S’ specific (rather than mere wishes).

They should be ‘M’ measurable, otherwise how will you know for sure if they have been achieved or not?

The ‘A’ is for achievable and ‘T’ is for timescale.

04. Surround yourself with as much positivity as is possible. Now I know that’s probably ridiculous for some right now where medical or financial stress is all consuming. But you know what I mean.

S.M.A.R.T GOALS WITH EXTRA EMPHASIS ON ‘R’, WHICH STANDS FOR REALISTIC AND RELEVANT

THE LAST WORD The start of a new year is a time when we reflect and consider the future. The global uncertainty makes this year very different indeed. But while your strategy and your tactics may be in constant flux, your culture needs to be consistent.

I think we should all give some thinking time to our respective organisation’s culture. And if you can consider how to introduce some grit into that, it’ll serve you well I’m sure.

March 2022

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The Brief / Future COMMENT ILLUSTRATION: GETTY IMAGES/MALTE MUELLER

Rehan Khan Principal consultant for BT and a novelist

Mirror image To enable proximity triggers to work for you, start by identifying the character you want to emulate

O

ur behaviour is shaped by the people we are in close proximity with. I once worked for a trigger-happy executive who was ready to declare war on the competition and ruthlessly remove employees who disagreed with him. Initially, I found myself being swayed by my boss’s character, and I noticed myself becoming less patient and tolerant of others. However, this was not my character, and fortunately, I was able to redress this.

In the same manner, as we grow up, we learn from our parents about how they manage conflict, and this becomes imbued within our own character. We observe how colleagues get results at work and we tend to follow their example.

One study tracked 12,000 people for 32 years and found “a person’s chances of becoming obese increased by 57 per cent if he or she had a friend who became obese.”

It works the other way, too. A separate study found that if one person in a relationship lost weight, the other partner would also slim down about one-third of the time.

Elsewhere, research suggested that the higher your best friend’s IQ at age 11 or 12, the higher your IQ would be at age 15, even after controlling for natural levels of intelligence. The proximity triggers around us seep into our own practices and, ultimately, shape our character.

One of the ways you can enable proximity triggers to start working for you is to identify the character you want to become.

What are the traits and behaviours you 14

March 2022

want to hold? Are you someone who wants to be defined by what you do? Become a writer, a cyclist. Or are you someone who wants to be defined by your actions, to serve others by showing love and compassion? Clearly, it could be both – what you do for yourself and for others. Once you are clear on this, find people who are following those practices. Join a group that has the characteristics you desire. Allow proximity, closeness to them, to trigger the behaviours.

However, the reverse can also happen – when we inherently disagree with the group, but we go along with what they are doing anyway.

One of the classic psychology experiments that demonstrate conformity was undertaken by Solomon Asch. Every experiment began in the same way: a subject entered a room with a group of participants who were all strangers. The strangers were actually actors planted by the researcher, and they were instructed to deliver scripted answers to certain questions. The participants were shown one card with a line on it and then a second card with a series of lines. Each person was asked to select the line on the second card that was similar in length to the line on the first card. It was a very simple task.

The length of the line on the first card was clearly the same as ‘line A’. The experiment always started in the same manner, with some easy trials in which all the participants agreed on the correct line. After

AS HUMAN BEINGS, WE ARE TUNED INTO WHAT OTHERS ARE DOING AROUND US, AND THE NORMATIVE VIEW OF THE MAJORITY BECOMES OUR STANDARD

a couple of rounds, the participants were shown a test that was as simple as the previous ones, but this time, the actors in the room deliberately selected a wrong answer. For example, they would respond ‘line C’ to the comparison shown in the diagram, even though the answer may have been ‘line A’. All the other actors agreed the lines were the same, even though they were different.

The subject, who was not aware of the deception, became puzzled, laughing nervously, checking the reactions of others.

Over time, they became agitated as all the other participants (actors) answered with the incorrect response. After a while, the subject doubted their own eyes, eventually providing an answer they knew was wrong.

Asch conducted the experiment in multiple formats, and what he discovered was that as the number of actors increased, so did the conformity of the subject. If it was just the subject and one actor, there was no effect on the person’s choice. They just assumed there was something wrong with the other person. When two actors were in the room with the subject, there was still little impact. But as the number of people increased to three actors and four and all the way to eight, the subject became more likely to doubt themselves, and by the end of the experiment, 75 per cent of subjects agreed with the group response even though it was incorrect.

When unsure, we often default to the group. As human beings, we are tuned into what others are doing around us, and the normative view of the majority becomes our standard. As a result, if we want our environment to positively trigger good practices, we should encircle ourselves with others who have the practices we want to acquire. gulfbusiness.com

BRAND VIEW

Leading by example Basma Ashry, general manager of Business Incorporation Zone, tell us why she sees herself as a positive role model for women who want to step out of the shadows and empower themselves With International Women’s Day around the corner, tell us how women are trailblazing their way to the top of the corporate ladder.

I believe it all starts with your mindset and embracing a winning mentality. Women are recognising their power, claiming their space and working hard to get where they want to be. They’re not afraid to speak up, and they don’t wait for opportunities to be handed to them. It’s amazing how far you can go when you think big, and believe in yourself and your work.

Having women in visible, leading positions is so important, as it’s encouraging and empowering for young women starting out in their careers. It’s down to us to set an example, show up, share our stories and encourage others to step out. I believe in building supportive networks with other women, providing career advice or mentorships and advocating for more women in business. That’s exactly why I’m so proud to be doing what I do at Business Incorporation Zone.

Tell us about your own journey as an entrepreneur. What have been your key learnings along the way?

I started my career in telecommunications and then moved to banking, but I’ve always had bigger aspirations to help people with their businesses in any way possible. Today, I

head one of Dubai’s leading business setup companies thanks to the experience I’ve gathered over a decade.

The main thing I’ve learned in my journey is you’ve to believe in yourself, your idea and your vision. Congratulate yourself on your wins, but also be prepared to fail. Failure allows us to learn from our mistakes and keep growing. And finally, give back where you can. There’s nothing more fulfilling than helping people and watching them flourish, that’s what drives me every single day.

What I’m truly passionate about is advocating for young women to be more ambitious and aim higher so they can reach their full potential. My happiness lies in helping people launch their entrepreneurial careers, and during my time with Business Incorporation Zone, I’ve assisted multiple clients in successfully achieving this goal.

Our company is all about supporting new beginnings; we pride ourselves on giving our clients the best possible start to their business. We support entrepreneurs through every stage of their business.

Not every person and business can fit into a one-size-fits-all plan, so we make sure we’re very personal in our approach.

Once our clients are fully set up, we like to be there for them if they need any additional help, whether that be marketing, e-commerce solutions or other consultancy services.

“I recently came across a study that showed women will only apply for a job if they meet 100 per cent of the job description, men on the other hand, will apply even if they meet 60 per cent. This is why I feel so strongly about creating a supportive and inclusive space for women”

What are some of the main challenges that women face in the workplace?

The gender pay gap is still a huge issue.

Women are not earning as much as their male counterparts, and don’t feel confident enough to ask for pay rises. They often feel they’re not being taken seriously or aren’t being given the same opportunities as men.

This plays into the imposter syndrome a lot of women unfortunately experience. I recently came across a study that showed women will only apply for a job if they meet 100 per cent of the job description, men on the other hand, will apply even if they meet 60 per cent. This is why I feel so strongly about a creating a supportive and inclusive space for women. There are so many challenges that women face in the workplace, even though it’s 2022. We’ve come a long way but there’s still a long way to go.

What are the opportunities available to women to become successful entrepreneurs?

Entrepreneurship truly is the path to leadership and today, it’s easier than ever for women to launch their own successful businesses. Women can be empowered to be their own boss, pay their own salary, work the hours they choose and create the worklife balance they want. Being an entrepreneur also gives women the chance to collaborate with or hire other women.

To make the best of these opportunities, women can hone their knowledge and skills through courses or a business degree and have a crystal clear vision when it comes to their business. I also suggest cultivating relationships with people who will challenge, motivate, inspire and support you, be it friends, colleagues, mentors or us, at Business Incorporation Zone.

The Brief / Sustainability COMMENT

Ian Harfield, managing director Engie Solutions - GCC

Food for thought

Almost 50 per cent of global consumers are considering sustainability attributes when purchasing food and beverages, adding more pressure on companies to switch to sustainable models. Here’s how they can start the process

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rowing consumer awareness and increased government initiatives around sustainability and climate change are adding pressure on industries to adopt sustainable practices.

This is particularly true of the food and beverages (F&B) sector where food production is responsible for one-quarter of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. Left unchecked, this figure will only rise due to the combined impact of a rising population and growth of the middle class – wealthier people consume more resource-intensive, animal-based

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foods. According to the World Economic Forum, by 2050, the demand for food will be 60 per cent greater than it is today.

There is, therefore, an urgent need for the F&B industry to address its carbon footprint. According to research, only 15 per cent of F&B firms are on track to meet their sustainability goals.

To address the challenges climate change poses for food systems, various initiatives have been implemented in the region in line with global sustainability goals. The UAE was the first in the region to announce a net-zero pledge ahead of the upcoming UN Climate Change

Conference 2021 (COP26). The UAE also partnered with the US to launch the Agriculture Innovation Mission AIM for Climate, a global initiative aimed at accelerating investments in R&D for climate-smart agri-tech.

From a regional perspective, other GCC countries have also joined the sustainability race. For example, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain have pledged to reach net zero emissions by 2060. Meanwhile, Kuwait pledged to achieve a sustainable living environment under its Vision 2030, while Qatar has targeted to cut 25 per cent of local greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

Due to the urgency of the situation, the region is actively adopting sustainable and climate smart agricultural methods and promoting sustainable production and consumption habits. Research shows 49 per cent of global consumers consider sustainability attributes when purchasing food and beverages.

So, how can the food industry evolve its sustainable business models?

An excellent place to start is data analysis. Using the data generated by food production companies, data analytic tools can be used to define and track against the metrics that align with an organisation’s goals and initiatives.

Having access to such information allows for optimisation of resource productivity.

Organisations will be able to improve budget certainty, evaluate supply-side adjustments, identify demand-side actions, and monitor project performance to track and report progress towards their goals.

Secondly, sustainability is a collaborative effort and engaging partners up and down the supply chain is vital. Apart from optimising its production processes, the F&B industry should look to decarbonise end-to-end operations by transitioning to green power options.

Securing renewable power sources such as solar thermal solutions and on-site generation among others, will reduce carbon emissions. Research shows companies sourcing renewable electricity outperform their rivals financially, with the difference ranging from 0.3 to more than 7 percentage points. gulfbusiness.com

The Brief / Sustainability

60%

GREATER THAN IT IS TODAY PERCENTAGE OF DEMAND FOR FOOD BY 2050 CCORDING TO THE WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM

Additionally, shifting fleets to lowcarbon transportation, changing to low-carbon cold chain technology, optimising transit routes and retrofitting improves energy and water consumption. Further, by integrating energy efficiency into plants, warehouses and processing centres, manufacturers can cost-effectively lengthen plant lifecycles while meeting decarbonisation goals.

Outsourcing

Meeting sustainability goals can overwhelm even well-resourced F&B giants, who would rather focus on their

core business. Outsourcing energy management services to specialised firms enables food manufacturers to strengthen their economic performance by leaning on third-party providers for reliable energy supply, management of multitechnical projects and strict control of operating costs.

Most importantly, energy management firms can deploy specialised analytical tools to identify areas for improvement, analyse energy consumption trends, advise on purchasing energy, electricity and gas, and optimise energy performance. An example of such outsourced services includes tailor-made high-tech financed solutions for carbon footprint reduction. Here, customers only pay for the energy they use while the energy services company

“WITH INCREASED SCRUTINY OF FOOD SOURCES, TRACEABILITY IS TODAY A SIGNIFICANT TREND IN THE FOOD INDUSTRY. TRACEABILITY IS THE ABILITY TO FOLLOW THE MOVEMENT OF A FOOD PRODUCT AND ITS INGREDIENTS THROUGH ALL STEPS IN THE SUPPLY CHAIN, BOTH BACKWARDS AND FORWARD”

gulfbusiness.com

undertakes the capital expenditures investment. All risks related to engineering, procurement and construction and energy performance are transferred to the energy services provider.

Another sustainable model is on-site energy power generation, particularly solar, which eliminates the need to transport power across great distances, significantly reducing costs and energy losses. These services are delivered in conjunction with traditional offerings, including the optimised production and distribution of hot/cold/iced water, compressed air, compressors for steam, industrial gas, etc., process utilities such as refrigeration, process environment (e.g., HVAC), heat recovery installations and more.

Technology

Technology is a crucial driver of sustainability, with many digital opportunities to improve process performance and decrease costs. This has led to greater demand for the availability and efficient use of data, marked by an increase in apps.

With increased scrutiny of food sources, traceability is today a significant trend in the food industry. Traceability is the ability to follow the movement of a food product and its ingredients through all steps in the supply chain, both backwards and forward.

Blockchain has emerged as a powerful and efficient technology allowing consumers to trace their food from ‘farm to fork’ with a QR code scan.

Demands for reducing food waste has led to apps such as TooGoodToGo, Phenix and Karma, which connect consumers with surplus food from local restaurants, bakeries and grocery stores that sell products at a fraction of the list price.

The discussion around climate change is becoming more intense, increasing demands to reduce energy and water consumption and mitigate carbon emissions. Even the most prominent players in the food industry would struggle to maintain a coherent decarbonisation strategy while delivering their core business objectives.

March 2021

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A DIGITAL REVOLUTION IS TAKING SHAPE, HELPING COMPANIES BECOME MORE INNOVATIVE, SUSTAINABLE, RESILIENT AND PROFITABLE Cobus Oosthuizen, country manager and managing director, Africa and Middle East, Siemens Digital Industries Software

A

s we emerge from a global pandemic, companies are reckoning with new modes of work and collaboration, while also learning how to deal with broken supply chains.

Plus, innovation introduces its own challenges. Smarter products increase the complexity of product design, manufacturing and service, which is being compounded further by demands for greater personalisation and customisation options in products. While companies seek to support the demands of the modern marketplace, they must also develop comprehensive sustainability approaches that encompass global supply chains, product development, manufacturing processes and end-of-life.

Clearly, we have some mountains to climb on our path to the future. Enterprise-level digitalisation and the creation of a comprehensive digital twin will make climbing those impending mountains a whole lot easier, connecting teams and ideas, accelerating the development of advanced products, and enabling greater 18

March 2022

levels of efficiency and productivity throughout the lifecycle.

Digitalisation, or digital transformation, is all about creating digital threads between siloed or disparate areas of data and functionality. It is precisely at these intersections that the greatest opportunity for innovation lies to achieve greater performance, sustainability and efficiency.

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

First, it’s important to recognise the role of model-based systems engineering (MBSE) in enabling such a comprehensive, digitalised approach.

They are the starting point for today’s innovative and smart products. As products and programmes grow in complexity, next-generation MBSE tools enable seamless interoperability of models through product development and across its lifecycle. MBSE connects all the sources of data and experts to create a comprehensive digital twin of the product, and harnesses the digital enterprise to weave together engineering, manufacturing and even outside suppliers to add value at every step of development.

When concepting for a new product, system architects using MBSE can access models from previous product iterations, quickly and confidently derive

new features and ideate fresh designs.

The resulting product architecture leads to the creation of a digital twin that will eventually encompass every aspect of the product. Next, an MBSE solution provides the different product engineering disciplines – electrical, mechanical, software and interconnect – the flexibility to define and optimise their systems while cooperatively developing the interfaces between them. This single source of truth of the digital twin enables earlier and continuous verification and validation to the overarching product architecture even as the design moves into manufacturing and eventually into the real world.

Ultimately, the aim is to connect all these digital assets to the product in the field, enabling a comprehensive digital twin that offers an ‘as performs’ virtual representation of the product. These connections known as digital threads span the product lifecycle, from definitions through to in-field performance, ensure that data regarding the product, its attributes, performance, or functionality in the field can be traced to how it was defined, designed, manufactured and supported over its lifetime.

A strong flow of data from initial definition and concept stages through to the product in the field will enable faster product innovation through enhanced cross-domain collaboration, fewer errors that contribute to development cost, and a wealth of information and insights from real-world product usage data. In short, it will help a company to become more efficient with its resources, more informed when making decisions, and more agile when responding to dynamic market demands. Now, let’s see how this is taking shape today.

PRODUCT DEFINITION AND DESIGN

The digitalisation of product definition and design involves the capturing of requirements, goals and concepts for the product in a digital format that is traceable and manageable. Such a format provides a ‘single source of truth’ that will guide not only the product design, but also verification and validation programmes, manufacturing design, materials selection and much more. Indeed, as we move into the age of smart, complex and sustainable gulfbusiness.com

The Brief / Digital Transformation

products, requirements are more numerous and more varied than ever. Take, for example, the autonomous vehicle (AV).

Even a lower-level AV – whether a passenger car, an aircraft or an automated guided vehicle (AGV) – comes with a slew of requirements around safety, compute resources, connectivity both internally and to external systems, thermal management, energy consumption and more.

Then, design and engineering teams must find ways to bring all these requirements together in a vehicle that is nearly flawless in operation, often with advanced features and functionality and a high-quality user experience.

A comprehensive digital twin is perfectly suited to the demands of tomorrow’s advanced products. Product requirements are captured in an intelligent, digital format that follows the product throughout its entire lifecycle. Meanwhile, integrated engineering software enables cross-domain collaboration, early design verification and validation through simulation, and the ability to more rapidly evaluate and select the best of numerous design alternatives.

Rather than operating in siloes, design teams will be able to collaborate to find the best solutions, resulting in advanced and exciting products. Underneath it all, MBSE tracks design iterations, functional models, test results and more, tying them back to the initial product definitions and requirements.

MANUFACTURING TOMORROW

Complex products often require complex manufacturing processes, increasing the cost and time of production.

The push for product individualisation increases complexity further, as gulfbusiness.com

manufacturers must devise this situation, opening the doors to comincreasingly flexible and autonmunication and collaboration between omous production systems to original equipment manufacturers, supmeet demand. And manufacpliers and partners involved in the supply turers are also determining chain ecosystem. Within such a connected how to do all this while using ecosystem, all parties can share informafewer resources, less energy tion and predict outcomes to avoid disrupand more sustainable materials. tions in the delivery of raw materials or Each challenge also presents an sub-assemblies. opportunity, where new techIN-FIELD SUPPORT AND nologies and new methodoloEND-OF-LIFE gies can help companies create Finally, companies are considering how efficient, flexible and reliable they can best support their products in the production systems. field, and how to process these products at One such technology is addiend-of-life. Support procedures, whether tive manufacturing (AM). The flexibilphysical repairs or software updates, are ity of AM makes it a potential boon for key to ensuring long-term value for both manufacturers hoping to create highly the manufacturer and its customers. personalised products for their customThis value can be further extended ers, while the relative lack of manufacby connecting products to the digital turing constraints allows engineers to thread, enabling data capture and in-field reimagine product designs to integrate optimisation. This data can also be used new technologies or design philosoto predict when products require service phies. For example, AM can print comand maintenance, rather than relying on plex lattice structures that maintain generalised schedules. Such information structural rigidity while also improvmay also guide when a product has ing thermal performance and reducing reached the end of its service life and is the weight of the product or part. This ready to be replaced by a newer model. means that manufacturers can produce End-of-life procedures will also conhigher performing products and better tinue to be important as industries serve their customers while also reducstrive towards sustainability and profiting the waste created during subtractive ability goals. As products reach the ends production. of their service lives, recycling or proper Digitalisation is key to adopting AM disposal of materials is critical to reducand other advanced manufacturing ing the environmental impact of a prodtechnologies, such as automated logistics uct. If these recycled materials can be systems and the industrial internet of incorporated back into production, at things, or IIoT. the original manufacturer or elsewhere, For AM, a tightly integrated digital then the advantage may be compounded. twin is critical to achieving quality prodOutside of the material realm, companies ucts while minimising design iterations. may also learn a great deal from newly Before printing, designs must undergo retired products. These lessons can be rigorous simulations of the printing incorporated back into the digital twin process to mitigate risks, optimise the of new models, creating a loop of learnprinting and, thus, improve yield. At the ing and product improvement. facility level, the digitalisation of production lines enables machine monitoring, predictive maintenance, and the analysis of entire production processes to optimise material delivery, line balancing, and more.

The digitalisation of supply chain management plays a role here as IS KEY TO ADOPTING ADDITIVE well. The global pandemic has MANUFACTURING AND OTHER exposed some cracks in how supply chains are constructed and manADVANCED MANUFACTURING aged today. Fortunately, digitalisaTECHNOLOGIES tion can help us take advantage of

DIGITALISATION

March 2022

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The Brief / Infographics

A new world, a smart future

LIVING SMARTLY

Over 54% of UAE respondents believe the Covid-19 pandemic will accelerate development of smart cities

URBAN SETTINGS ARE INCREASINGLY DEPLOYING TECHNOLOGIES TO FOSTER ECONOMIC GROWTH AND IMPROVE QUALITY OF LIFE

DUBAI

51.9%

PRIORITY AREAS

MOST IMPORTANT FEATURES IN DAILY LIFE

The higher the percentage of responses per area, the greater the priority for the city

28%

24%

28.4%

Better protected privacy and more secure personal data

25.4% 26.2% 26.2% 22%

More efficiency, via a single app/platform

— SHEIKH MOHAMMED BIN RASHID AL MAKTOUM Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai

ALL DATA ARE NORMALISED TO A SCALE OF 0 TO 100, WITH 100 BEING THE BEST SCORE

OF RESPONDENTS EXPECT THEIR SMARTPHONES TO BE THE PRIMARY CHANNEL TO ACCESS CITY SERVICES

THE UAE IS BETTING ON THE FUTURE. THE MUSEUM OF THE FUTURE WILL BE A SPACE FOR KNOWLEDGE THAT GATHERS INTELLECTUALS AND FUTURISTS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD. IT IS THE LARGEST RESEARCH SPACE OF ITS KIND, ACCOMMODATING ALL IDEAS, EXPERIENCES AND CREATIVE CONCEPTIONS”

City-wide cash-free services

67%

FULFILLING EMPLOYMENT

ROAD CONGESTION

AIR POLLUTION

GREEN SPACES

HEALTH SERVICES

RECYCLING

More personalisation

SMART CITIES ARE DRIVEN BY:

SENSORS 0 2 0

20

March 2022

5%

Seamless payments wherever you might be

13%

18%

11%

CITIZEN ENGAGEMENT

EACH WITH OVER 10 MILLION PEOPLE

43 MEGACITIES

BY 2030, IT IS ESTIMATED THAT THE WORLD WILL HAVE

A SINGLE PLATFORM WITH BETTER PROTECTED PRIVACY 42.8%

Higher speed of transaction and services

The global autonomous vehicle market is estimated to reach

53% Living in a sustainable and environmentally-friendly city

#28

$172.3 BILLION

6% Receiving a drone

#29 DUBAI

Rating 2021: BB Technology: BB Structure: BB Rank 2020: 42 Change: +14

by 2024

food delivery

GLOBAL RANK

ABU DHABI

3% Being served at a

Rating 2021: BB Technology: BB Structure: BB Rank 2020: 43 Change: +14

restaurant by a robot

City

01

SINGAPORE

02

Rating 2021

SMART CITIES 2021

MIDDLE EAST

UAE RESPONDENTS WOULD BE HAPPIER LIVING IN A SMARTY CITY

Technology Change 2021 in rank

AAA

AAA

—

Zurich

AA

A

+1

03

Oslo

AA

A

+2

04

Taipei City

A

A

+4

05

Lausanne

A

A

—

06

Helsinki

A

A

-4

07

Copenhagen

A

A

-1

08

Geneva

A

A

-1

09

Auckland

A

A

-5

10

Bilbao

BBB

BBB

+14

GLOBAL RANK

#30

RIYADH

Overview of regional performance

TOP 10

SMART CITIES GLOBAL RANK Rank 2021

4 OUT OF 5

MARKET SIZE OF SMART SECURITY SYSTEMS FOR HOMES IN THE UAE [2012-2022] (IN MILLION US DOLLARS)

140.39

All ratings range from AAA to D

25%

Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park increased share of CLEAN ENERGY in Dubai’s total power output by 2030

GLOBAL RANK

#104 CAIRO

Rating 2021: BB Technology: BB Structure: B Rank 2020: 53 Change: +23

Rating 2021: C Technology: C Structure: D Rank 2020: 106 Change: +2

125

ABU DHABI 107.5 100

82.65

PRIORITY AREAS The higher the percentage of responses per area, the greater the priority for the city

49.2%

75

63.81

All ratings range from AAA to D

FULFILLING EMPLOYMENT

34.8%

49.46

50

38.5

HEALTH SERVICES

SOURCES: Mastercard, Smart Dubai and Expo 2020 Dubai’s Building the Cities of the Future report; UAE’s Government portal; Smart City Index 2021

MOST EXCITING INNOVATIONS

GLOBAL RANK

30.09 23.62 18.62 14.74 11.71

27.9%

25

ROAD CONGESTION

25.7% 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022

2012

0

AIR POLLUTION

24.5% GREEN SPACES

23.1% RECYCLING

NETWORKS

ENGAGEMENT

21.1% CITIZEN ENGAGEMENT

0 2 1

March 2022

21

The Brief / Lightbox

The giant snowflake emblem, also known as ‘Bird’s Nest,’ was the centrepiece at the closing ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics at the National Stadium on February 20 22

March 2022

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PHOTO: KYODO NEWS VIA GETTY IMAGES

THE FUTURE IS (A)LIVE COVER STORY / INFORMA MARKETS

Left-right: Annabelle Mander and Mike Champion

24 March 2022

gulfbusiness.com

COVER STORY / INFORMA MARKETS

FROM BEING HIT HARD DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC TO ORGANISING LEAP, THE WORLD’S LARGEST DEBUT TECH EVENT, MIKE CHAMPION AND ANNABELLE MANDER OF INFORMA MARKETS, TELL US HOW THEIR COMPANY’S RESILIENCE HAS HELPED THEM SUCCESSFULLY DELIVER SOME OF THE REGION’S TOP LIVE EVENTS WO R D S : D I V S H A B H AT

The ‘LEAP’ ahead

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ravely staging events amidst a pandemic is only one half of the story. The other sheds light on event organisers, who’ve had to reinvent their approach and carefully recalibrate their methods to deliver high-octane events while still complying with everchanging Covid-19 safety protocols.

Few know this better than Mike Champion, regional executive vice president at Informa Markets, and Annabelle Mander, portfolio director at the London Stock Exchange-listed Informa Markets.

Informa Markets is a leading events company in the Middle East that has organised many high-profile events in the last 18 months, including LEAP, @hack, Arab Health and Medlab Middle East.

Unlocking business profiles

Having been in the events industry for over a decade, Champion and Mander explain their professional journeys to this point. Champion describes how he began his career as a conference producer and ended up at Informa Markets. “After working for a traditional printing company, I opted to work in international events so I could travel and see more of the world. At the same time, I used to work on smaller conferences that hosted as few as 100 people, and now I am accountable for several events that host over 100,000.”

Mander meanwhile explains her first job after graduation was that of a sales executive at Informa Markets. “However, after ten years, I am still working in this fast-paced and thrilling sector. My enthusiasm for this business and the opportunity to meet individuals from across the world, has kept me going.”

gulfbusiness.com

Their extensive experience in the events field was fully tested when they co-created LEAP, Saudi’s mega tech event, which launched last month with even more visitors attending than the recent editions of Websummit, Mobile World Congress and CES, which up until the pandemic, were the world’s largest tech shows.

It was held at the Riyadh Front Expo Centre from February 1-3 and featured over 500 speakers and more than 700 technology startups. Informa believes this was the largest debut tech event in history, with Saudi Arabia announcing over $6.4bn in future technologies and entrepreneurship investments. Over 100,000 visits were made to the show, causing traffic standstill in Riyadh.

“The Saudi government is in the midst of a remarkable transformation. They’re transforming the world’s largest hydrocarbon economy into one of the most vital tech hubs. In order to help drive that, the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) wanted to host a globally impactful technology event,” says Champion of the primary idea behind LEAP. Mander goes on to outline the core idea behind LEAP, adding, “The Ministry wanted to bring innovators, entrepreneurs, startup investors, venture capitals and private equity firms under one roof. So, we created this one-of-a-kind platform for everyone to meet, explore, learn and enable genuine business.”

Apart from MCIT, another leading entity, the Saudi Federation for Cyber Security and Programming (SAFCSP), played a major March 2022

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COVER STORY / INFORMA MARKETS

role in executing the event. “The two highly innovative organisations helped us pick some of the best tech companies in the kingdom that shared a similar vision of transforming the national economy,” says Champion.

“We’ve witnessed MCIT and SAFCSP leading an enormous capacity building programme in the country, facilitating world-class training courses to help develop the country’s youth and unskilled into a future workforce. We are proud to be a part of it and Informa will invest materially to help accelerate their vision,” adds Mander.

She explains how the kingdom has also been empowering its next generation with training modules, focusing on cybersecurity, programming, artificial intelligence and the electronic gaming sector.

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I PREDICT THAT WITHIN FIVE YEARS SAUDI ARABIA WILL BE THE LARGEST MARKET FOR B2B EVENTS IN THE REGION, AND SOON AFTERWARDS, ONE OF THE LARGEST IN THE WORLD IN PROPORTION TO ITS SIZE”

Rising to the challenges

Executing an event of any scale and size can be a daunting task. From planning to designing, and promotion to execution, event professionals are up against a continuous stream of challenges in the run up to and during the event itself, further compounded by pandemicrelated restrictions.

For example, Champion recollects how difficult it was to launch a new brand, requiring large-scale staff and investment, during a time when most event companies were trying to reduce costs to mitigate the impact of worldwide event cancellations.

“To build an entire team of largely new hires, over forty core members and many more contractors, during a time when event organisers were actually freezing hires or reducing workforces required all senior management at Informa to buy into the LEAP project. Much more time was allocated to forecasting, making measured hires at careful stages, than would normally be expected. Thankfully Informa counts Saudi Arabia and tech as two strategic priorities. So the response internally was always supportive,” says Champion.

Mander further adds that challenges always arise when bringing an idea and vision to life, and the same held true with LEAP. “As this was the debut edition, it was not easy to bring partners, speakers and sponsors on board. However, we underlined the significance of Saudi Arabia and the opportunity for these organisations to establish business and meet the appropriate stakeholders and buyers. Furthermore, we expounded how LEAP will be a gateway or access not only to the kingdom’s companies and investors, but also to huge giga projects such as Neom and the Red Sea project.”

A typical challenge for any event would be to get the right calibre of speakers to attend. Mander and Champion realised an additional layer of complexity was added to the mix given that global CEOs were initially reluctant to travel. The Informa team had to not only convince them to do so, but also make sure they complied with the travel restrictions in dozens of countries, including Japan, India, Korea, the UK and the US to ensure the participation of these speakers.

Internally, a major challenge that cropped up was building a large gulfbusiness.com

COVER STORY / INFORMA MARKETS

production, marketing and sales team, and motivating them to collectively achieve the ambitious goal ahead of them. “Fortunately, the team saw the event’s full potential and collaborated across departments to produce something truly spectacular,” she says.

The duo feel proud to have conquered many of those herculean challenges.

“For me, it’s the moment of elation,” expresses Champion. “I don’t think you get this moment by working in any other industry or project. It is critical to assure many areas of event management, performance management, as well as staff wellbeing and mental health while planning a large-scale event. And the feeling of exhilaration of it all coming together is unparalleled when the event is a success.”

“Building a brand from the ground up is exceedingly challenging when working on larger projects for more extended periods with a diverse team. However, when it is a success, the feeling of delight and fulfilment is terrific,” states Mander.

events, including healthcare, in Saudi.

“Informa will continue to be the largest international organiser of events in Saudi Arabia, and we plan to make a unique drive to expand our impact and presence there. I predict that within

five years Saudi Arabia will be the largest market for B2B events in the region, and soon afterwards, one of the largest in the world in proportion to its size,” comments Champion.

In addition, Informa continues to focus on its subscriptions, data services and digital content series to improve its digital offerings, which it thinks is essential to growth.

Eventually, Mander and Champion concur that to be successful in the events industry requires a resilient mindset and strong resolve to overcome hurdles.

As Champion notes, rules are meant to be broken. “If you believe your convictions are right, find a way to get others to say yes. Have the courage of your convictions. Take risks, and never take no for an answer,” he says. You only need to look as far back as LEAP to know the outcome of that conviction.

What’s next

Informa is looking to capitalise on the success of LEAP, by investing into allied

BUILDING A BRAND FROM THE GROUND UP IS EXCEEDINGLY CHALLENGING WHEN WORKING ON LARGER PROJECTS FOR MORE EXTENDED PERIODS WITH A DIVERSE TEAM. HOWEVER, WHEN IT IS A SUCCESS, THE FEELING OF DELIGHT AND FULFILMENT IS TERRIFIC” gulfbusiness.com

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FEATURES / LEAP

DIGITALLY LEAPFROGGING THE INAUGURAL EDITION OF LEAP SHOWCASED THE GLOBAL INNOVATION ECOSYSTEM, CONVENING ENTREPRENEURS AND LEADERS IN BUSINESS AND THE GOVERNMENT, TO DISCOVER AND EXPERIENCE FUTURE TECHNOLOGIES WO R D S : D I V S H A B H AT

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FEATURES / LEAP

T

he Middle East has been boosting its economy with new and emerging technological innovations in recent years. Government and private sectors have been making huge investments in 5G, artificial intelligence (AI), the internet of things (IoT), blockchain, cloud computing and cybersecurity. IT spending in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is forecast to increase to $1.7bn in 2022, surging 2.6 per cent from last year, according to Gartner.

“In 2022, digital transformation projects will advance moderately. Underpinned by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) country visions, the rapid shift of the GCC countries from an oil-exporting economy to a knowledge-based economy will be a major influence,” said Miriam Burt, managing vice president at Gartner. gulfbusiness.com

Meanwhile, according to Dell Technologies Digital Transformation Index 2020 report, the UAE and Saudi Arabia lead the world in digital transformation cutting-edge technologies. A total of 92 per cent of Vijay Jaswal Saudi government IT decision-makers agreed that the Covid-19 pandemic had accelerated their digital transformation over the past year, according to a YouGov survey launched by SAP. “Saudi Arabia will continue to play a pioneering role in creating and launching smart city projects across the kingdom, redefining citizen services and inventing new business models that are powered by data and AI,” says Vijay Jaswal, chief technology officer at Software AG Middle East and Turkey.

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FEATURES / LEAP

DEVELOPING A ROBUST DIGITAL ECONOMY SERVES AS A CATALYST FOR PROMOTING NON-OIL SECTORS, WHICH IN TURN WILL LEAD TO THE GROWTH OF THE ECONOMY. DURING THE EVENT, THE DIGITAL CONTENT COUNCIL UNVEILED IGNITE, A NEW INITIATIVE THAT AIMS TO TURN THE KINGDOM INTO A MAJOR DIGITAL ENTERTAINMENT AND MEDIA PRODUCTION POWERHOUSE

Accelerating towards digital transformation Technology plays a key role in Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, with digital transformation projects rising dramatically in recent years. Last year, the Saudi government announced a series of technological programmes totalling more than $1.2bn aimed at improving the digital skills of 100,000 Saudi youth by 2030 with a focus on cybersecurity, programming, AI and gaming.

In line with its vision, Saudi Arabia recently hosted the region’s largest technology event – LEAP. It took place at the Riyadh Front Expo Centre from February 1-3 and featured over 500 prominent speakers, who included Amer Al Qahtani, CEO and business development, Saudi Authority for Data and Artificial Intelligence (SDAIA); 30

March 2022

Talal Al Kaissi, CEO, G42 Cloud; Eugene Kaspersky, CEO and co-founder, Kaspersky; YoungCho Chi, president and chief innovation officer, Hyundai Motor Group; Maëlle Gavet, CEO, Techstars; Peggy Johnson, CEO, Magic Leap; Richard Houston, CEO, Deloitte North and South Europe; Dr Nabeel Koshak, CEO and board member, Saudi Venture Capital Company; Dr Makaziwe Mandela, founder, House of Mandela Family Foundation; Salman Al Badran, CEO, Mobily; and Ghinwa Baradhi, chief information officerMENAT, HSBC. The event is part of a strategic effort led by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), the Saudi Federation for Cyber Security and Programming (SAFCSP), and its organiser Informa Markets to transform the country’s economy to position it as a tech powerhouse. The event, which was backed by the Saudi government and the country’s top investors, was aimed at improving business prospects gulfbusiness.com

FEATURES / LEAP

by empowering the funding of ideas and developing tech startups.

“As Saudi Arabia begins to emerge from the pandemic, the kingdom is playing an important role in creating a platform for diversified entrepreneurship in emerging sectors,” said Ahmed Al-Faifi, senior vice president and general manager - Middle East North Africa, SAP, in a statement.

Investment in innovation To further secure the kingdom’s position as the MENA region’s largest digital economy, Saudi Arabia at LEAP announced over $6.4bn of investments in future technologies and entrepreneurship.

Aramco Ventures, Saudi Aramco’s venture capital arm, announced the formal launch of Prosperity7, a $1bn diversified growth fund that will provide its portfolio companies with the funding and connections they need to scale and enter new markets to attain global reach.

Meanwhile, as part of its investment, NEOM Tech & Digital Company unveiled plans for the launch of XVRS, a first-of-a-kind digital twin metaverse platform. It is the first cognitive metaverse developed on one scalable platform, including real-time translation and humanoid robotic avatars. XVRS is part of a $1bn investment by NEOM Tech & Digital Company in AI-driven technology, including M3LD, a data management platform that empowers users to regain control of their data.

Meanwhile, stc launched MENA HUB, a $1bn investment in submarine cables and data centre infrastructure. To encourage foreign direct investment, the company will manage data centres and continue to invest in additional ones around the region.

LEAP also saw the launch of ‘The Garage: Start-up District’. This initiative is a combination of physical location, startup incubator, and accelerator, that will provide startups with grants investment, marketing and training support and full-service workspaces. In addition, it will also offer access to deep-tech labs, talent and research networks, amongst other incentives to empower local and international startups.

Furthermore, J&T Express Group, a logistics company, announced a $2bn investment alongside eWTP Arabia Capital and other partners. J&T will build its MENA headquarters in Riyadh and will provide sorting centres, auto storage systems, air cargo terminals, e-commerce industry parks, and other industrial facilities and infrastructure as part of the investment.

“These investments and initiatives are a manifestation of the kingdom’s push toward the growth of the digital economy for the greater good of people, the planet and the prosperity of the MENA region. They mark the next level of growth for the gulfbusiness.com

digital economy in Saudi Arabia, the MENA region’s largest technology and digital market,” said Abdullah Alswaha, Saudi Minister of Communications and Information Technology, during the event.

In his keynote address, the minister also noted how Saudi Arabia is the regional leader for technology talent, with a potential to generate over 318,000 jobs in the sector. He added that the percentage of women in the ICT workforce has also jumped to 28 per cent in recent years.

Saudi Arabia is also home to some of the most significant investments in cloud technology, with leading hyper-scale cloud providers including Google, Alibaba, Oracle and SAP investing over $2.5bn in the country’s cloud ecosystem.

Reinventing the digital economy Developing a robust digital economy serves as a catalyst for promoting non-oil sectors, which in turn will lead to the growth of the economy. During the event, the Digital Content Council unveiled Ignite, a new initiative that aims to turn the kingdom into a major digital entertainment and media production powerhouse. The programme will build a robust ecosystem to attract digital content firms and help the local media and content development industry thrive.

Ignite seeks to boost the size of the Saudi Arabian digital content sector in gaming, music, video, and advertising. The $1.1bn initiative would include incentives such as financial support for local, regional, and international businesses and startups, infrastructure development, talent development programmes, and revised policies and regulations to help the industry grow.

Over 4,400 people are expected to be upskilled over the next three years through training courses in three industries – gaming, films and digital

XVRS

IS PART OF THE

$1BN

INVESTMENT

BY NEOM TECH & DIGITAL COMPANY IN AI-DRIVEN TECHNOLOGY

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FEATURES / LEAP

advertising. The training programmes will ensure that the kingdom develops the skillsets necessary by the industry while also providing local youngsters with the capabilities they need to improve their employment opportunities.

Saudi also announced the launch of WiFi 6E, supported by the largest spectrum available for WiFi of any country worldwide. A statement said that the combination of stateof-the-art technology and a record amount of spectrum would allow the country to benefit from the fastest achievable WiFi speeds globally (2.4 Gbps). Enabling this advanced connectivity is expected to quadruple WiFi’s overall contribution to Saudi Arabia’s GDP, rising from $4.7bn in 2021 to more than $18bn by 2030.

Other connectivity-boosting activities that will accompany the kingdom’s WiFi upgrade include the first regional testing of low earth orbit satellite technology to extend reliable coverage to remote areas of the kingdom. The event also noted that the Communications & Information Technology Commission would organise a frequency auction in the first half of the year, a development that is likely to place Saudi first

globally for spectrum available 5G networks and mobile communications. 5G technology’s contribution to GDP is estimated to grow from $1.4bn in 2021 to more than $15bn by 2030.

Enter the private sector LEAP also witnessed private sector organisations introducing new solutions and initiatives. Speaking to attendees, Huawei’s rotating chairman Guo Ping said that the company would soon build a cloud region in Saudi Arabia. The new cloud region aims to create further social and economic value in the kingdom and the wider Middle East in line with their digital development strategies. Huawei has also pledged to cultivate talent for the regional AI industry.

Ping also said that Huawei would support the kingdom’s effort to become one of the first countries to have a largescale AI model. “This will help the country build more intelligent platforms in domains like Arabic-language identification, pharmaceutical R&D, disease detection, and many others,” he added.

4,400+ PEOPLE ARE EXPECTED TO BE UPSKILLED OVER THE NEXT THREE YEARS THROUGH TRAINING COURSES

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FEATURES / LEAP

WE WILL CONTINUE TO PLAY A MAJOR ROLE IN THE KINGDOM’S SMART CITY PROJECTS FOR SMART CITY RESIDENTS. IN FACT, ONE OF OUR MOST RECENT PROJECTS IN THE COUNTRY IS A FULLY DIGITAL, AI COGNITIVE ENABLED SMART OFFICE FOR ONE OF THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS GOVERNMENT ENTITIES IN THE COUNTRY”

On the other hand, Trend Micro, the cybersecurity company announced the opening of its regional Middle East and Africa (MEA) headquarters in Riyadh, a security data lake, and other investments totalling over $50m.

Meanwhile, Software AG showcased a gamified setup of an IoT-powered smart warehouse. Visitors got to see IoT in action and an experienced supply chain with connected equipment to move goods with efficiency managed by its IoT platform. “The showcase demonstrated a connected digital ecosystem, both cloud and on-premise, that enables enterprises and organisations to tackle challenges holistically and truly turn data into business value,” says Jaswal.

According to CITC, by the end of 2022, 82 per cent of medium- and large-organisations in the kingdom are expected to adopt an IoT solution for their business.

“One of the top three drivers for the adoption of IoT solutions by the kingdom is elevating customer experiences amongst other priorities.

IoT offers immense opportunities to the enterprises in the kingdom, particularly for the manufacturing, automotive, transportation and Moussalam Dalati logistics, retail, public sector and healthcare industries which have already started to utilise IoT solutions and are expected to further benefit from further adoption of IoT technologies,” says Moussalam Dalati, general manager for Liferay Middle East.

“We will continue to play a major role in the kingdom’s smart city projects for smart city residents. In fact, one of our most recent projects in the country is a fully gulfbusiness.com

digital, AI cognitive enabled smart office for one of the most prestigious government entities in the country,” adds Dalati.

Multiple partnership agreements were also signed during the event. While SAP signed a partnership with stc for enhanced services and digital solutions, VMware signed a memorandum of understanding with Aramco to support collaboration across cloud and end-user computing, cybersecurity and digital transformation in the areas of energy and green technologies. A new partnership to build startups between Unifonic and TheSpaceKSA, called UnifonicX, was also revealed.

LEAP also provided startups with a pitching competition to promote their innovative business ideas to powerhouse venture capitalists and leading international investors, to win a share of the $1m prize fund. The Rocket Fuel Start-up Competition saw seven startups taking home cash prizes for impactful new business ideas, scored on creativity, innovation, potential, functionality and impact on people and society.

ACCORDING TO CITC,

BY THE END OF 2022

82%

OF MEDIUMAND LARGEORGANISATIONS IN THE KINGDOM ARE EXPECTED TO ADOPT AN IOT SOLUTION FOR THEIR BUSINESS

One giant LEAP Over the next few years, technology will inevitably play an increasingly important role in advancement, growth, and innovation. Having revealed its ambitious tech goals, Saudi Arabia has taken ‘one giant LEAP’ forward into an audacious new world – with several more on the horizon.

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BRAND VIEW

Building the future: Smart-life-as-a-service Meanwhile, the Covid-19 pandemic has caused a significant increase in startups, with the number of new companies worldwide exceeding indicators compared to the last few years. Young professionals in the Middle East are now likely to begin their careers at a startup, and work across multiple functions within those startups.

Al-Rashidi, however, asserts that startups often shut down due to challenges such as lack of funding, despite introducing innovative solutions and services. He says, “Although the region is a leading community for startups, we believe they are still struggling to acquire funds in order to sustain their business model. To address Mohammed Al-Rashidi, this challenge, we have created executive chairman, a decentralised financial services One Global marketplace that will help banks and other financial institutions digitally transform and also foster the connects growth of startups.”

A global lifestyle digital service provider that customers with technology breakthroughs, One Global helps make day-to-day digital service payments more mobile, safe and simple. Headquartered in Kuwait, the company aims to expand to the UAE this year

T

he Middle East’s tech boom is underway, as government initiatives prioritise digital transformation, and emerging technologies take centre stage in both the public and private sectors, as many countries in the region aim to diversify their economies. Fintech, one of the leading technology trends, is rapidly transforming the financial sector services from digital payments and capital markets to supervision.

Mohammed Al-Rashidi, founder and executive chairman at One Global, says: “There is a lot of development in the fintech industry, particularly in corporate finance.

On the other hand, cross-border payments

and trade finance businesses have a long way to go. Wallets and digital banks are getting extremely popular, but payment processing stays constant at its core. Aside from banking, the region is seeing the rise of robotics big data and blockchain.”

GROWTH OF STARTUPS According to the data platform, Magnitt, fintech has been a prominent beneficiary of the return of a risk-on approach by investors globally in 2021. As a result, both funding deployed into the industry and the number of deals closed by fintech startups scaled to a record-high in 2021, growing by 550 per cent and 56 per cent year-onyear, respectively.

A HOLISTIC APPROACH One Global, according to Al-Rashidi, is a digital transformation and innovation firm that was founded in 2004. It now operates in more than 20 countries around the Middle East and North Africa, Europe and North America. “We provide services in the digital economy, including supply chain financing and distribution, procurement, payment acceptance and collection, and automated settlements to bank accounts, cards, and wallets, among other things.”

Explaining the marketplace, Al-Rashidi adds they provide capabilities and acceleration services to businesses across the spectrum, which includes startups, small- and medium-businesses and large enterprises. With digital offerings such as Og Business, Og Travel, Og Life and other such platforms under one umbrella, Al-Rashidi has positioned One Global as a diversified company at the service of the community.

BRAND VIEW

“We are attempting to disrupt the status quo for entrepreneurs with our new business model, Og Stack. It’s a platform enabling entrepreneurs to connect their services to a larger ecosystem. This tool makes it easier for ideas to reach global marketplaces” “We connect customers to technological advances that make day-today digital service payments more mobile, secure and convenient. In addition, we offer mobilised lifestyle services through our platforms, all of which are powered by in-house innovation. By linking private and public clouds around the globe, we can build, manage, and maintain mobile apps, software and websites, software interfaces, and wearables,” adds Al-Rashidi.

For instance, Og Money, one of their financial services platforms, serves as a one-stop shop for bill payments, top-ups and other financial transactions.

Al-Rashidi also highlights how their business model is divided into two components and serves as an end-to-end solution ecosystem. “Our business strategy is divided into two parts – venture capital and operations. As a result, our ecosystem

can meet the end-to-end demands of our customers. Meanwhile, we are also researching the current market trends and developing new solutions and services to address the needs of the customers.”

DISRUPTING THE STATUS QUO One Global’s forward-thinking approach and their business platforms are on the verge of disrupting the status quo for entrepreneurs. Al-Rashidi believes that Og Stack and Og Business have been well received by businesses which have adopted it thus far.

“Og Stack enables entrepreneurs to connect their services to a larger ecosystem. This tool makes it easier for ideas to reach global marketplaces, incubators, investors and other stakeholders. We further provide startups with comprehensive profiling, sandbox,

production environment, and testing environment, among other things. We also offer business support services such as legal, financial terms, subscription plans, and pricing strategies, all under one ecosystem.”

In short, startups may use Og Stack’s platform to enrol their services in an online ecosystem that allows them to combine their services into a single integrated software development kit (SDK). In addition, Og Stack will enable enterprises and startups to integrate their whole service menus into a single platform without worrying about contracting and paying developers or software specialists.

“Startups and businesses don’t have to employ or rely on a third-party to get security-as-a-service, encryption-as-aservice, or even business support services like commercial agreements and servicelevel agreements. Instead, all of them can be accessed using a single SDK. They only need to verify their software using the SDK and then publish it on the marketplace where other businesses may use the service,” he adds.

The company’s Og Business platform meanwhile enables private organisations of all sizes and governments to manage their financial activities more effectively.

Og Business’ payment gateway, which was created to allow for customised payment solutions and a simple checkout procedure, is used by startups, online stores, and e-commerce merchants in various sectors. The platform also makes it easier for businesses to accept payments by creating QR codes that can be used to accept digital payments without using point-of-sale equipment.

The platform also intends to process several worldwide currencies.

He mentions another engaging platform, Og Travel. “This platform acts as an umbrella where customers can plan and manage their journeys effectively. They can book flights, hotels and other domestic travel services. We’ve previously launched these services in the Middle East, in Kuwait and Bahrain, and we plan to do the same in the UAE, which we consider a unique market.

“Our mission is to provide customers smart-life-as-a-service by 2030. We aim to release some of our innovation and achievements at every stage of this mission,” concludes Al-Rashidi.

FEATURES / GULFOOD

INGREDIENTS OF SUCCESS ZERO WASTE, FOOD SECURITY, HOMEGROWN BRANDS, ORGANIC AND PLANT-BASED FOOD PRODUCTS, AND INNOVATION IN AGRICULTURE WERE KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF GULFOOD 2022 WORDS: NEESHA SALIAN

P

icture this: serpentine queues, thousands of delegates speaking multiple languages, business meetings in progress, ongoing seminars and product demos – all of these are common at an international trade show, but when you take these up several notches and turbocharge them, you get Gulfood, the world’s largest food and beverage (F&B) show.

Tolga Sezer, CEO of the multinational food company Solico Group and an exhibitor, says: “Gulfood is the world’s biggest F&B showcase and the ultimate industry platform. You can feel the buzz everywhere around you, and I am extremely happy with how busy it was this year. Our contacts were all here, so it was an important week for us as a regional company to generate business.”

Held at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) from February 13-17, the 27th edition of the mega show had all the ingredients to qualify as a significant platform for the F&B industry. Reflecting the post pandemic optimism and 36

March 2021

excitement seen globally, this year’s event attracted more than 4,000 companies from 120 countries. Some were part of national pavilions, while others were standalone food producers showcasing their products across 21 halls at DWTC. “The sheer volume of entries this year underlined Gulfood’s status as the premier platform for bold industry players to unveil what they have been working on and use it as a springboard to demonstrate how they are rising to the challenge of driving the industry forward,” says Mark Napier, show director, Gulfood.

Italy had one of the largest pavilions featuring 180 companies, a 50 per cent increase on last year’s participation, while the US introduced 28 new-to-market exhibitors, including its first-ever pavilion in the pulses and grains section of the show.

In total, more than 100 companies showcased the country’s products.

Amedeo Scarpa, Italian Trade Commissioner to the UAE, says: “Italy continues to be one of the leading food suppliers of the UAE, and Gulfood is the most important

show for us in the region. This year, we launched our new campaign about Italian food and cultural awareness under ‘Italy is simply extraordinary #beIT.’” Estonia increased its participation at Gulfood this year by 166 per cent, responding to growing trends for high nutritional value, health benefits and a balanced diet.

Taste Estonia, the F&B arm of Enterprise Estonia, featured 16 companies presenting products ranging from natural mineral water and organic chocolate to fresh fish and plant-based protein products.

Turkey was also well represented at the event, with 152 companies, ranging from meat, poultry and dairy producers, to pulses, grains, fats, oils and beverage specialists. Nesibe Selten Hasdal, director at Selten, says, “The UAE market is extremely essential for all Turkish companies because it allows them to re-export goods to the GCC, the Middle East and Africa.”

Hasdal adds Gulfood was an important platform to leverage the “diverse presence of visitors, exhibitors and industry associates”, which would result in substantial contracts. This year’s edition also had the largest participation so far by Turkish beverage producers offering readyto-drink coffees and fruit juices.

New entrants to the show included the Dominican Republic, Norway, Panama, Uruguay and Uzbekistan.

Homegrown brands also had the opportunity to show the industry their innovations, ranging from alternative meat options to a sustainable farm and Emirati-influenced flavours of hand cooked potato chips. gulfbusiness.com

FEATURES / GULFOOD

Food Specialities, one among these brands, launched the region’s first meat-replacement ready-mixes, including plant-based (vegan) chicken and beef replacements.

In addition to homegrown brands, young, aspiring Emirati chefs were also given the platform and an opportunity to display their skills at the first-ever edition of Gulfood Youth X, which featured a competition. Three finalists were awarded a 25 per cent scholarship for training at Dubai College of Tourism.

While trade and business remained priorities, the key themes of zero waste, sustainability and food security were strong influences at Gulfood.

Gulfood Inspire Summit, a new conference programme featuring key stakeholders and thought leaders from the F&B industry, shone the spotlight on important issues such as food security and zero waste. Mariam Bint Mohammed Saeed Hareb Almheiri, UAE Minister of Climate Change and Environment, was one of the speakers at the summit. During her talk, she mentioned the latest statistics revealed that almost 811 million people around the world are facing hunger, with one in three people on earth deprived of access to adequate food, due to factors such as conflict, climate change and the impact of the global pandemic.

Calling for action, the minister said the world had an “urgent” task to transform food systems for a sustainable future and ensure everyone on the planet has access to safe, adequate and affordable food.

The inaugural Gulfood Zero Waste Awards also complemented the theme, recognising zero-waste ‘heroes’, including global hospitality leaders, local schools

gulfbusiness.com

and homegrown change movements, as part of Gulfood’s commitment to transform agenda to action.

“Gulfood Zero Waste is a global initiative with the goal of sparking dialogue and movement among policymakers, industry leaders and communities to take a proactive approach to adopting zero-waste initiatives, which can help end the discrepancies between food waste and hunger while playing a part in addressing climate change,” says Trixie LohMirmand, executive vice president, Exhibitions and Events, DWTC. According to latest data from the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization, one third of the world’s food produced for human consumption is wasted annually – approximately 1.3 billion tonnes per year.

UAE-based EroeGo was recognised in the ‘Zero Waste Changemakers’ category, for efforts in reclaiming misshapen fruits

and vegetables discarded by producers and delivering them to customers at a discount.

“Seeing so many people come together under one umbrella to talk about sustainable food and how we can do better to ensure society is practicing zero waste was so impressive. I am excited to have received this award. Being able to reclaim food is huge as it is a social issue,” says Daniel Solomon, founder, EroeGo. Hilton, which has a portfolio of more than 6,100 properties worldwide, received the ‘Growing Movement’ award for its ‘Travel with Purpose 2030’ goals. The initiative aims to reduce waste output in managed operations by 50 per cent, and food waste sent to landfills by 50 per cent.

Agriculture technology and innovation was also under the spotlight at the show. Companies such as Dubai-based hydroponic farm management company, Greener Crop, which specialises in setting up and operating commercial hydroponic farms, tied up with Tamkeen Investments, a venture capital firm, to develop and manage hydroponic farms in Oman.

Olive Country, which disrupts conventional sourcing and supply chain in the food industry, also signed a partnership with Saudi Arabian water brand Berain and Omani dairy brand Mazoon for sourcing and distribution. These opportunities were easy to access due to the scope of Gulfood, which showcased some of the leading innovators across F&B sectors.

LohMirmand concludes, “With all sectors of the global F&B community represented from regulation setters and policymakers, to producers, wholesalers, distributors and retailers, together under one roof, there couldn’t have been a better event at a better time to thrash out a better future for the industry and society.”

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BRAND VIEW

AIX Investment Group strengthens its footprint across the region The investment company will be present at Dubai International Boat Show 2022, one of the region’s most established boat shows, for the second time in three years, to showcase their products and services to potential investors

A

IX Investment Group has ambitious plans to expand its presence in the region.

The company has grown exponentially since its inception in 2007, when an independent consortium of European investors joined hands to create the company.

The group has consistently developed and scaled their operations, alongside the UAE and region’s rapidly growing financial ecosystem.

The financial advisory firm has been generating passive income for investors at an average of 28.7 per cent per annum, with a substantially expanding portfolio currently under its management.

The strength of the business, according to Fadi Dabbagh, the firm’s board advisor, stems from its extensive expertise and a solid foundation, which is based on both intellectual and financial capital.

Dabbagh says: “We provide a highly personalised level of service that focuses

entirely on establishing the goals and financial aspirations of our clients.”

He adds: “When it comes to investment, trust is the number one factor, the second being return. And this is something we focus on a lot, ensuring that the client is aware of our background, history and operating

As part of its larger effort to showcase its offerings to a community of local, regional and international investors, the firm will be exhibiting at the Dubai International Boat Show, from March 9-13

model before we go into discussing investment opportunities. When clients feel relaxed and safe in the knowledge that the company knows what it is doing and with our track record, they proceed with the investment. Transparency is at the core of our business philosophy.”

As part of its larger efforts to showcase its offerings to a community of local, regional and international investors, the firm will be exhibiting at the Dubai International Boat Show, from March 9-13. AIX Investment Group is also one of the boat show’s leading sponsors.

Highlighting the firm’s presence at this event, Dabbagh says, “The show is a gateway to reach people from different countries and diverse industries, right here in Dubai, the heart of the UAE. “We will be exhibiting at the event at Stand MLL-01, and will be perfectly placed to showcase our offerings to potential individual and institutional investors visiting the show. We are very proud of the work that’s gone into building this stand. It features a luxurious design, exclusive furnishings, lighting and accessories.”

“We look forward to welcoming visitors to our stand to know more about AIX Investment Group’s values, portfolio and services,” adds Dabbagh.

FEATURES / WORKING WEEK

SWITCHING OVER

MONDAY IS NOW THE NEW SUNDAY. HOW HAS THE DIRECTIVE IMPACTED THE ECOSYSTEM? WORDS: ZAINAB MANSOOR

new workweek for the UAE’s public sector came into effect on January 1.

The directive saw the country’s federal government entities transition into a four-and-a-half-day workweek, with Friday afternoon, Saturday and Sunday forming the new weekend.

Federal government employees were also granted remote working options and flexible working hours on Friday. From an economic standpoint, the directive aimed to better align the country with global markets as well as foster stronger international business links. Additionally, the revised structure would help underpin work-life balance and enhance wellbeing.

Private sector companies were not required to follow suit, although a significant number of them did. Katy Holmes, general manager, British Business Group Dubai and Northern Emirates (BBG), opines that while it was, of course, optional for the private sector to adopt the new working week pattern but as schools went Monday to Friday, the private sector had to align to accommodate working parents. “Given the speed at which the announcement and implementation took place, we are sure to see a period of adjustment supported by the new labour law’s acceptance of flexible working and home working.”

A

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Samantha Ellaby, legal director, Clyde & Co, says: “Private sector employers are under no obligation to move to a Monday to Friday working week. However, there are clearly advantages in doing so including being aligned with the global markets and better facilitating trade and transactions with the majority of countries outside of the region.”

LOCAL IMPACT

The new directive also offers an impetus to those who were keen to recalibrate their work-life balance in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite private sector entities being given a choice to adjust their working model, 79 per cent of UAE-based respondents in a recent YouGov survey said that their organisation has transitioned to the new workweek policy. Of these, 47 per cent claim to follow a four-and-a-half-day workweek, while 53 per cent have adopted the new five-day workweek, the study – which reviewed 1,026 people in the UAE – revealed.

Ellaby says: “There is no legal obligation on private sector employers to follow the model adopted in the public sector by adopting a shorter working week, although clearly employers need to be sensitive to the importance of attending Friday prayers for Muslim employees. I’ve seen private sector companies taking a range of approaches in this regard – some operating a half-day on a Friday and some allowing an extended lunch break on a Friday. Where working hours are reduced on a Friday, private sector companies will need to consider a number of issues, such as whether there will be a commensurate reduction in pay or whether employees will be required to make up the hours.

Changes of this nature will typically require express employee consent. Policies may also need updating.”

But the key question remains: How has the decision impacted the workforce? Dr Saliha Afridi, clinical psychologist and founder of The LightHouse Arabia, an accredited provider of Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training in the UAE, suggests it is too soon to tell if employee wellbeing has been positively or negatively impacted by the new workweek. “From what we have heard, the initial response to the new week is split. Some people and many children were optimistic about the new week, while others felt added stress due to several factors, including having to cope with a new change amidst all the other changes they’ve had to contend with in the past two years. This involves having to consider childcare on Fridays since their companies have not shifted to a 4.5-day workweek along with schools, having increased workload since countries in the region and some companies are still on a Friday/Saturday weekend – this means many people went from a five-day week to a six-day week, as they have to work on Sundays, and the grief associated with the loss of Friday rituals they have had for many years.”

HEALTHY PRECEDENTS

The departure from a conventional working week to a truncated one isn’t radically new.

Several countries and organisations around the world have either adopted or trialled a shortened work structure.

Two trials of shorter working hours were initiated in Iceland from 2015 to 2019 involving over 2,500 workers, a report by UK-based Autonomy and Iceland’s Association for Sustainable Democracy (Alda), revealed.

THE TRIALS – IN WHICH WORKERS TRANSITIONED FROM A 40-HOUR TO A 35- OR 36-HOUR WEEK, WITHOUT REDUCED PAY – WERE SUCCESSFUL

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FEATURES / WORKING WEEK

There is no legal obligation on private sector employers to follow the model adopted in the public sector by adopting a shorter working week, although clearly employers need to be sensitive to the importance of attending Friday prayers for Muslim employees”

The trials – in which workers transitioned from a 40-hour to a 35- or 36-hour week, without reduced pay – were successful. Participants took on lesser hours and relished greater wellbeing as well as better cooperative spirit in the workplace. By June 2021, 86 per cent of Iceland’s working population were on contracts that had either moved them to shorter working hours or gave them the right to do so in the future, the report added. Meanwhile, employees across Belgium will also be able to request for a four-day workweek under recent labour reforms.

One step down, organisations around the world have also taken similar measures for tipping the scale towards greater work-life balance. Towards the end of 2020, Unilever New Zealand announced that it would trial a four-day workweek, allowing participating employees to retain full salaries, while working 80 per cent of the time.

A REPORT COMMISSIONED BY THE 4 DAY WEEK CAMPAIGN FROM PLATFORM LONDON REVEALED THAT TRANSITIONING TO A FOUR-DAY WORKING WEEK WITHOUT LOSS OF PAY COULD REDUCE THE UK’S CARBON FOOTPRINT BY 127 MILLION TONNES PER YEAR BY 2025

gulfbusiness.com

79%

of UAE-based respondents in a recent YouGov survey said that their organisation has transitioned to the new workweek policy

The group CEO of Panasonic also said earlier this year that the company aimed to introduce an optional fourday workweek, to flexibly accommodate employees.

Environmental concerns, which are fast gaining ground, also offer an impetus for a curtailed work regime. A report commissioned by the 4 Day Week campaign from Platform London revealed that transitioning to a four-day working week without loss of pay could reduce the UK’s carbon footprint by 127 million tonnes per year by 2025.

REVERBERATING EFFECT

Barring the UAE, countries across the GCC continue to operate on a Sunday-Thursday workweek. However, a local shift could arguably morph into a regional rethink of how work going ahead could look like. If that were to hold true, could this be the beginning of a broader movement? Holmes explains: “The UAE has once again demonstrated progressive steps to align itself with much of the rest of the world and with this change in working week it is further amplifying its status as a global business hub. Companies in the UK will feel the difference in a positive way – no longer restricted for calls on a Friday and for those companies with client commitments across the GCC, we know through our survey that they are managing with either a six-day week or dividing their workforce in shifts to cover the requirements.”

Whether the local directive leads to a broader regional movement remains to be seen.

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BRAND VIEW

Spinning destinies Farid Samji, CEO of Ewings, the managing operator of Mahzooz – the GCC’s first weekly digital draw – explains how the format of it goes beyond rewarding winners. The draw has attempted to have an equally sizeable impact on disadvantaged sections of the community through its many philanthropic outreach programmes Emirates Loto rebranded as Mahzooz, operated by Ewings. What prompted the decision?

Mahzooz’s journey started when a group of GCC investors joined hands to realise a clear vision: to change people’s lives for the better and give back to the community.

Mahzooz was first introduced to the market as Emirates Loto (the region’s firstever weekly digital draw) in March 2020.

We ran Emirates Loto for three months and received an overwhelming response.

However, the sheer growth levels and interest we received would not be sustainable if we did not upgrade our systems and platform. For instance, we asked ourselves, ‘How could we improve the customer journey? What could we do better?’. After a thoughtful pause, we promised to come back bigger and better, and we did exactly that. Our efforts culminated in the complete transition from Emirates Loto to Mahzooz.

There’s a strong CSR component to Mahzooz. What are some of the activities undertaken to date?

At Mahzooz, CSR is embedded in our DNA. We have been involved in several social and humanitarian projects since the launch of Mahzooz and have collaborated with numerous community partners. In addition to donating substantial amounts

to NGOs and charities, the bottles of water purchased by the participants are donated through our community partners to hydrate those in need. Recently, we collaborated with Dubai Centre for Special Needs to upgrade their computer lab with new computers to help the students enhance their digital abilities. We also collaborated with Al Jalila Foundation to support their A’awen programme; with Friends of Cancer Patients to assist with the funding of treatments for cancer patients and to boost cancer awareness in the UAE; with Rashid Centre For People of Determination to build a sensory garden for their students to promote physical fitness and overall health; with Smart Life to distribute thousands of backpacks full of health and hygiene essentials to workers in the construction industry in the UAE during Ramadan. We also celebrated the graduation of a group of blue-collar workers from SmartLife’s SmartReading English language programme, which aims to enhance English communication skills and instil confidence among them. To date, our substantial monetary contributions, initiatives and projects, have reached out to nearly 300,000 people.

How much money in total has been disbursed by Mahzooz since the start of the draw? What are some of the

most inspiring stories you’ve heard from the winners?

As of February 2022, Mahzooz has created 21 millionaires and 148,077 winners who have collectively taken home Dhs166,254,043. During our journey, we came across many inspiring stories. For instance, Thinakar, a 25-year-old Indian expat in Fujairah won Dhs10m in the 57th weekly live Mahzooz Grand Draw in his first participation. From earning Dhs900 a month to being a multi-millionaire Thinakar is now able to reunite with his family and rescue them from a deluge of debts.

Meanwhile, Pakistani expat, Junaid, a 36-year-old company driver in Dubai won Dhs50m in the 48th weekly live draw as Mahzooz’s first-ever grand prize winner, which was the biggest cash prize ever to be won in the UAE and the GCC in a live draw.

With rival draws coming up in the UAE, how will Mahzooz ensure that it remains relevant?

Our affordable participation fee and the fact that we use it to give back to the community by facilitating water bottle donations are all factors that give us an edge. Mahzooz was the GCC’s first weekly live draw when it was launched in 2020.

What makes it unique in the market is the concept of entering the draw by donating water to the needy. Mahzooz is a medium for us to make people’s dreams come true, not just through our draw but also through our charitable and philanthropic efforts.

Prestige

MAR POWERED BY

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BEST OF THE BEST

The eighth edition of the Property Finder Real Estate Awards celebrated the UAE’s leading brokerages and agents, acknowledging their tenacity, exemplary performance, innovative solutions and best-in-class service Fountain Views penthouse, courtesy: Driven Properties

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fter going through a challenging year in 2020, Dubai’s economy showed robust recovery in 2021. The government’s effective management of the pandemic, successful vaccine rollout programme, new visa options and pro-investment policies have led to an influx of interest and investment in Dubai.

Expo 2020 Dubai has further shone the spotlight on the emirate’s growing status as a preferred destination for holidaymakers, expats and investors in 2021. These factors have been effectively leveraged by Dubai’s real sector, which enjoyed a record-breaking year across most segments.

Michael Lahyani, founder and CEO of Property Finder, describes it as a “year of fundamental changes and developments”, but also one that “presented an excellent opportunity for all of us”.

The eighth edition of the Property Finder Awards honoured some of the sector’s top performers, who stood out in 2021 due to their consistent commitment to enhancing the industry by offering exceptional service, high-quality listings and transparency. The selection of the winners was through a variety of criteria across 14 categories.

Based on this, the Property Finder awards were given to Driven Properties (Best Quality Brokerage, Best Quality Broker and Best Property Video), Exclusive Links Real Estate Brokers (Best Boutique Brokerage) and LuxuryProperty.com (Best Quality Broker - Boutique) We spoke with the winners to discover how they used technology and other innovations to capitalise on the opportunities, factors that helped them win and their expectations extending into 2022.

ABDULLAH ALAJAJI Founder, Driven Properties

What are the factors that contributed to your win?

As an organisation, we are committed to improving every aspect of our business, but truth be told, the key to our success lies in our people. I feel very proud to be surrounded by true professionals in every department. To that effect, we welcomed 21 new partners to the organisation last year, with another 10 joining the partnership towards the end of the year, all by way of issuing new equity. These individuals have and continue to add immense value to the organisation, and it’s time for everyone to start reaping those rewards.

Another key differentiator is our continuous investment in technology. This has helped propel our service standards 44

March 2022

to another level. In fact, client retention has become a key aspect of our practice, using the best tech tools at our disposal. The culture and atmosphere at Driven Properties allows individuals the freedom to spread their wings, and reach for the sky. Winning three major awards in a market as competitive as Dubai is a true honour.

What are some of the lessons you’ve learned from the past two years?

Adapting to change is key. Companies and individuals who were quick to adapt to new circumstances were the ones succeeding. In our case, that meant paying close attention to our clients and their changing needs, and addressing them effectively.

One key thing that defines us as an organisation is that we are not afraid to take risks, even in these changing times.

We’ve started several verticals, made significant investment to complement our service offering and continue to pour large pools of capital into technology to automate all business processes to ensure we don’t miss opportunities.

Another example of that mindset is our approach to creating our award-winning video. Our marketing team wanted to take a completely different approach to what was considered the industry standard. It was a risk, and it worked. It helped send a message to the industry that the entire real estate ecosystem is an advocate of change and it’s inspiring all of us to find ways to raise the standard even higher.

What are the trends you see this year and how will they guide your business?

Dubai is a very dynamic city. In venture capitalist terms, it was a ‘startup’ in the past, and now, it’s a mature city that gulfbusiness.com

Special Report

continues to register impressive growth year on year. We cannot wait to see what the future holds for the city and are excited to be part of it. Of course, Dubai will always surprise us with initiatives and reforms aimed at attracting more foreign direct investment into the city.

In terms of our practice, we will continue to use experience and innovation as our guiding principles to doing business.

This is how we thrive. We will also continue investing in technology and always be the first to take risks.

KIANOUSH DARBAN Associate partner, Driven Properties

What are the factors that contributed to your success?

We’ve all faced challenges in the past two years, but the pandemic didn’t stop me from doing the job I love: selling luxury real estate. During the lockdown and even after, I kept in touch with all my loyal clients via phone or video calls. Technology played a major role in overcoming challenges we were facing. It kept us connected even though we were physically apart.

Once the lockdown was lifted, I was fully prepared to get into the sway. I’ve had one of the best years of my career because I kept my focus and my faith. I’m grateful to have a great rapport with my loyal clients, it has resulted in many big deals coming my way. There were some monumental and record-breaking moments, such as the sale of the most expensive penthouse in Dubai and of course, winning the Property Finder award for being the best agent in the luxury real estate space in Dubai.

Dedication to my clients and company has been a major factor as well my openness to learning and improving.

Any takeaways from the past two years?

The pandemic took everyone by surprise. Industries had to adapt quickly, and ours wasn’t an exception. My first priority was making sure my clients were safe and comfortable while we found ways to navigate through the crisis. I had to make sure all safety protocols were being followed.

I was closely connected to clients living overseas. I spontaneously started having virtual viewings. I would get them on a video call whenever I visited a property I thought they might like. Many of them started asking me to take videos for them, and in some cases, it even resulted in the purchase of a property that hadn’t even been seen in person. My biggest takeaway is I’m fortunate to help people find their dream home, and that I enjoy the trust of my clients.

What’s your outlook for the year?

Dubai is one of the most attractive destinations in the world as well as being the safest city in the world, with a location that offers a great bridge between the East and West. We see an increasing number of people relocating here; they all require a home or an office, and that’s great news for all of us in the industry. I have reasons to believe this year will be even better than the previous year.

I’m focused on expanding my network with trusted agents in various parts of the city to ensure my clients have the best experience buying and selling properties in Dubai.

LOUISE HEATLEY Owner and managing director, Exclusive Links Real Estate Brokers

How did you deal with challenges during the past two years?

We see challenges as opportunities to create a positive experience from what may initially seem like a problem.

Every obstruction faced can result in improvement, if you are effective and proactive. We’ve consistently and continuously tried to advance and enhance our customer service and productivity. We’ve had to constantly innovate and adapt to meet changes in the market. It’s not just about gulfbusiness.com

March 2022

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interest will continue in 2022 and our focus is to meet our customer requirements, so we are currently setting up business operations for our newly formed company, Exclusive Links Vacation Homes. Many of our international clients want access to their property, but they do not yet live full time in Dubai. Our short-term rental division will allow us to care and maintain their property while offering monetary returns.

Exclusive Links has the full property management license and we have been providing our management services since 2005.

reacting quickly and efficiently, but also about assessing risk and potential future considerations that we can prepare for in advance. We maintained our customer communications, offered a high level of service delivery and met our company policies and targets regardless of the additional external factors that impacted all of these.

What were the things you had to adapt to during this period to do your job better?

The demand in the market increased substantially in 2021 and our leads increased by 100 per cent through the Property Finder portal alone. We changed our customer relationship management system to remove some of the manual and human elements both to look after our customers and avoid any potential loss of business or reduced performance. We continuously drive our team to push their limits, try new things and face their fears. We started our series of agent videos to showcase their individual personalities — remember, people buy from people. Many of our team members are not comfortable in front of the camera and were very anxious, but our marketing and production team worked closely to produce amazing video content that truly captures our agents’ individual personalities. I’ve also pushed myself to do a podcast series called, ‘Property Talk from Louise’s Lounge’.

RICCARDO SCALA Director, The Private Client Office, LuxuryProperty.com

What are your plans for 2022?

What were the factors contributing to your win, particularly in the face of challenges caused by the pandemic?

There is greater international investor demand and more awareness of Dubai and its opportunities, with the government effectively managing the pandemic response. Expo 2020 Dubai has also helped create awareness. We believe consumer

I can honestly say I never stopped working at all. When the whole world shut down and Dubai went into lockdown, I got special permission to go out and help people who needed to find homes to rent or buy, as they were

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stranded in the city. It was hard work, but I kept at it.

I firmly believe hard work wins every time.

What were some of the things you did differently in your job last year?

For me, 2021 was the year of live video streaming tours.

Many clients were unable to visit Dubai due to lockdowns in different parts of the world, but they still wanted to buy property. I adapted quickly to being comfortable in front of and behind the camera, presenting properties to buyers all over the world. It was a challenge, but also a great learning experience.

What’s your outlook for the market this year?

I feel the demand for high-end luxury homes will not experience a slowdown this year, as there are still plenty of buyers out in the market looking for their dream home. One thing that has now become compulsory for all buyers is executing a full know-your-customer and proof-of- funding protocol – these are important anti-money laundering guidelines required by the government. These steps really help qualify buyers in the right way, reducing the time taken to complete the purchase process. Increasing efficiency at the front end certainly makes business smooth sailing on the home straight.

WINNERS Property Finder Real Estate Awards 2021 BEST QUALITY BROKERAGE Category

Dubai – Large

Dubai – Boutique

Abu Dhabi – Large

Abu Dhabi – Boutique

Northern Emirates

1st

Driven Properties

Exclusive Links Real Estate Brokers

MD Real Estate

Henry Wiltshire International

Hunt & Harris Real Estate

2nd

haus & haus

Treo Homes

Crompton Partners Estate Agents

First Choice Properties

Yas Properties

3rd

Espace Real Estate

McCone Properties

Nationwide Middle East Properties

Al Zaeem Real Estate

Emirates Properties

BEST QUALITY BROKER Category

Dubai – Large

Dubai – Boutique

Abu Dhabi – Large

Abu Dhabi – Boutique

Northern Emirates

1st

Driven Properties – Kianoush Darban

Luxury Property – Riccardo Scala

MD Real Estate – Sofia Balero

Henry Wiltshire – Aleksandra Corneo

Hunt & Harris Real Estate – Anthony Payet

MOST LEADS GENERATED Category

Dubai – Large

Dubai – Boutique

Abu Dhabi – Large

Abu Dhabi – Boutique

Northern Emirates

1st

Betterhomes

Exclusive Links Real Estate Brokers

Nationwide Middle East Properties

Al Mamzar Real Estate

Bader Al Marzoqi Real Estate

2nd

Allsopp & Allsopp

Real Choice Real Estate Brokers

United Gulf Properties

Al Zaeem Real Estate

Wahet Al Zabi Real Estate

3rd

fäm Properties

Treo Homes

Crompton Partners Estate Agents

Savoy Real Estate Management

Savills

BEST PROPERTY VIDEO Category Driven Properties

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Where to stay?

The most sought-out areas in Dubai’s residential real estate market, with details about the average sales and rental rates SALES: APARTMENTS Top 5 searched areas

SALES: TOWNHOUSE/VILLAS Top 5 searched areas

3 Bed 9.75%

Dubai Marina

4+ Beds 10.51%

Dubai Hills Estate

15.40%

9.80%

Downtown Dubai 13.20%

SEARCH BY UNIT TYPE

Others 52.74%

Palm Jumeirah

2 Bed 18.03%

1 Bed 15.21%

Jumeirah Village Circle 5.20%

Others 58.59%

SEARCH BY UNIT TYPE

3 Bed 14.22%

DAMAC Hills (Akoya by DAMAC) 4.50% Mohammed Bin Rashid City 3.80%

Studio 4.27%

AVERAGE PRICE PER TYPE OF UNIT

6.90% Arabian Ranches 6.20%

8.80% Business Bay 7.20%

4 Bed 12.73%

Palm Jumeirah

DHS MILLIONS * DHS THOUSANDS

Studio

2 Bed 3.95%

AVERAGE PRICE PER TYPE OF UNIT

DHS MILLIONS

2 Bed 1.1

413* 706* 719* 1.13* 1.17* 1 Bed

1.6 1.9

3 Bed 680*

1

1.2 1.5

2.2

1

2 Bed

2.1 2.8

3.6

10.1

4 Bed 1.1

1.7 1.9

2.9 3

1.4

3 Bed

4.4 4.5

10.1

14.8

5 Bed 1.4

3.1

2.5

4.6 4.8

5.7 6.2

1 .6

RENT: APARTMENTS

16.8

20

RENT: TOWNHOUSE/VILLAS

Top 5 searched areas

Top 5 searched areas 3 Bed 6.75%

Dubai Marina 10.90%

7.20%

2 Bed 15.79%

Downtown Dubai 7.90% 7.40%

6.20% The Springs 1 Bed 19.96%

Jumeirah Village Circle 5.50% Studio 11.73%

Jumeirah Lake Towers 3.80%

AVERAGE PRICE PER TYPE OF UNIT

4 Bed 12.76%

Dubai Hills Estate

SEARCH BY UNIT TYPE

Others 45.77%

Business Bay

4+ Beds 9.51%

Jumeirah

DHS THOUSANDS

Studio

Others 52.76%

4.60%

SEARCH BY UNIT TYPE

Umm Suqeim

3 Bed 18.26%

5% Arabian Ranches 4.40%

2 Bed 6.71%

AVERAGE PRICE PER TYPE OF UNIT

DHS THOUSANDS

2 Bed 31 36 46 50

88 90 103 118

96

1 Bed

150

3 Bed 46

56

66

78

148 156 161 168

91

2 Bed

216

4 Bed 69

84

103

116

192 192 206

161

3 Bed

250 260

5 Bed 95

111

133

174

271

221 250 260 278 312 SOURCE: PROPRIETARY PROPERTY FINDER DEMAND DATA, NOVEMBER 2021-JANUARY 2022

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March 2022

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Opinion/Luxury “WE EXPECT POSITIVE, BUT MODERATE GROWTH IN 2022, WITH A SINGLE DIGIT GROWTH IN PRICES IN THE LUXURY MARKET. BUYERS, THOUGH, WILL HAVE TO ADJUST TO THE HIGH ASKING PRICES” in 2022, with a single digit growth in prices in luxury market. Buyers, though, will have to adjust to the high asking prices.

The types of luxury properties in demand include: WATERFRONT PROPERTIES

A N A LY S I S

Ayman Youssef, vice president, Coldwell Banker UAE

Prime property Despite the impact of the pandemic, luxury homes in Dubai remain in high demand. We look at factors driving this growth

T

he year 2021 was an extraordinary one for Dubai’s real estate market. The shifts, which were set in motion due to the pandemic, realigned priorities towards home, family, health and wellness. These profound lifestyle changes, combined with other factors, such as increasing numbers of people working from home, have led to a luxury real estate boom and a migration of wealth to new markets.

By the end of 2021, there was a 17 per cent increase in prices citywide across the entire market. In 2021, we witnessed a plethora of buyers for luxury villas and penthouses who demanded better quality properties, and bigger layouts and sizes.

Transactions in certain luxury areas such as Palm Jumeirah and Emirates Hills have soared, with some incredible properties sold in 2021.

Owing to the strong demand in the luxury segment, the inventory is low. Many major developers are striving to bridge this gap in inventory by planning luxury property launches in 2022. We expect positive, but moderate growth gulfbusiness.com

The pandemic, lockdown and social restrictions elevated the need and value of a good home. A strong shift in preference towards waterfront properties has been observed since 2020. In Dubai, the demand for spacious beachfront villas for sale and rent was also high the last year.

PROPERTIES AFFILIATED WITH LUXURY HOTEL BRANDS

The hotel apartment model prevalent in popular resort destinations has allowed buyers to earn income when they’re away by placing their property into a rental pool managed by a hotel.

This has recently given rise to new developments of apartments and townhomes, creating affiliations to gain access to five-star services and amenities offered by a luxury hotel, but without the necessity of being managed or rented.

Luxury residences are associating with brands such as The Address, Dorchester Collection, Fairmont, Four Seasons, Ritz-Carlton and Rosewood.

These models have also become widespread throughout Asia, Middle East and North America.

RESIDENCES WITH FAMILY-FRIENDLY FEATURES

New luxury residences under construction reflect that buyers are being more flexible on size than they are on amenities. In luxury communities, amenities such jogging and bicycle tracks, tennis courts, retail, health and wellness facilities, recreational areas and concierge services are expected.

FOCUS ON WELLNESS

Luxury homebuyers view the place where they live as playing a critical role in promoting their overall sense of wellness. Spas, pools and gyms are becoming ubiquitous, but the modern concept of wellness encompasses far more than exercise and fitness to include a broad array of holistic health and environmental concerns.

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COMMENT

Debbie Cope, owner and managing director, House Hunters Real Estate

A favourable outlook Early indicators show positive trends for the secondary residential market, with forecasts predicting a 5-10 per cent price rise in the secondary villa segment

T

he year started out on a very bullish note, healthy levels of transactions were recorded in January which came off the back of a strong finish in the last two months of 2021.

Consumer confidence is evident with buyer registrations increasing steadily in the last month.

Buyers aren’t window shopping, they are serious; they know what they want and are committed.

It takes me back to 2007, when properties were selling at fever pitch and we were demanding preapprovals to be in place before entering a sales contract. It’s a must to have all your ducks in a row, with the deposit ready and pre-approval in hand as there are multiple buyers for most properties.

Bidding wars are also becoming the norm, with the financial status of the buyer determining who will secure the deal, based on who can complete fastest.

WHO WANTS WHAT AND WHY?

Residents who are going to make Dubai their long-term home have decided that they should buy rather than rent. Eighty per cent of the deals closed by our team in January were for owneroccupiers rather than investors. The lack of rental inventory on the market is driving prices 50

March 2022

through the roof. Some units are fetching up to 40 per cent more than two years ago.

More so than ever, tenants have been subjected to landlords issuing more vacating notices. Many owners are trying to leverage the rising prices. In turn, the tenant has now become the first-time buyer waiting to occupy his new home.

We will also welcome new rental inventory into the market when Emaar and Dubai Properties hand over new properties in Arabian Ranches 2 and Villa Nova, which should be more affordable.

Buyers are on the lookout for villas on large plots with potential to extend the property and are more adventurous than ever with their renovation plans.

The demand is still high for larger living spaces, which is a direct result of Covid-19 and families spending more time at home. In Arabian Ranches, the highest price was recorded for a number of years at Dhs1,764 per sq ft in late January.

UPGRADED AND UPSIZED

Sellers who bought properties two or three years ago are now coming back onto the market with their upgraded properties, showcasing what is possible. Many buyers are happy to pay for the upgraded property, as they want a turnkey solution and do not have the know-how or the time to do the renovation themselves. As a result, upgraded and vacant properties are commanding a premium.

A lot of buyers are upsizing to their next property on their Dubai real estate journey. We have experienced a high volume of chain deals this month where the buyer has to sell one property in order to buy another. It’s all very doable with a knowledgeable broker who pushes the deals in tandem to complete with both timelines in mind.

One cautionary note, a hike in US interest rates will be reflected in the UAE’s lending rates for 2022. The Central Bank of UAE adjusts the domestic interest rates in conjunction with US rates meaning that the interest rate hike could happen as early as March and would impact the cost of funds for borrowers.

Early indicators are favourable for the market this year. As Expo draws to a close, we expect to see more transactions in the second quarter of the year. However, we believe the prices will remain steady with the volume of buyers in the market.

Dubai property values now stand on average at Dhs990 per sq ft. Forecasts are predicting a price increase of 5-10 per cent this year in the secondary villa market. Last year, we saw prices rise as much as 35 per cent in Arabian Ranches, but we are still about 23 per cent off the all-time high of 2007-08, so the recovery period has further to run. gulfbusiness.com

Opinion/Residential

“VILLA PRICES JUMPED 13.3 PER CENT YEAR ON YEAR, WHILE APARTMENTS REGISTERED A GROWTH OF 3.3 PER CENT DURING THE FIRST NINE MONTHS OF 2021, AS REPORTED BY CITYSCAPE INTELLIGENCE”

COMMENT

Evgeny Ratskevich, CEO, Metropolitan Capital Real Estate

Gaining ground Abu Dhabi is offering an expansive portfolio of affordable, sustainable communities, with high projected rental yields of 7 per cent

R

ated as the most liveable destination in the Middle East both in 2020 and 2021 – by Economist Intelligence Unit’s Global Liveability Index – Abu Dhabi has been rapidly gaining popularity with local and overseas real estate investors over the past years.

The emirate’s construction sector has been aiming to meet this demand despite being hit by delays due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The sector’s recovery in 2021 saw the delivery of 7,000 units to the market, bringing the overall stock in the UAE’s capital to a whopping 273,000 units.

While official data from the Department of Municipalities and Transport has not yet been released, judging by the market climate and trends, the estimated real estate sales in the fourth quarter of 2021 amounted to approximately Dhs19.8bn, increasing by about 20 per cent compared to the same period in 2020. Taking these figures into account, the full year is expected to have recorded a total number of property deals gulfbusiness.com

worth Dhs59.5bn ($16.2bn), further proving the resilience of the emirate’s property market.

That being said, with the momentum of expansion seen in the real estate sector, the annual estimated price growth in Abu Dhabi has reached about 11 per cent. Villas, in particular, have witnessed strong demand, with end users seeking more spacious homes to meet the requirements of remote working and homeschooling. Villa prices jumped 13.3 per cent year on year, while apartments registered a growth of 3.3 per cent during the first nine months of 2021, as reported

by Cityscape Intelligence. Meanwhile, in terms of the sales transactions by value, the top three areas in the emirate were Al Reem Island, Saadiyat Island and Yas Island.

As a rule, local residents have dominated the emirate’s property market; however, Abu Dhabi is increasingly being seen as a highly appealing prospect for expatriates living and working here, and institutional and individual investors from overseas. This is largely due to the following factors: 01. Efficient Covid-19 measures and easing of related restrictions: It is worth noting that the UAE ranks first in the Bloomberg Covid Resilience Ranking. As of December 2021, more than 90 per cent of the country is fully vaccinated, with 100 per cent of eligible individuals taking at least a single dose. The UAE’s authorities were one of the first in the world to introduce preventive measures, including localised quarantine and airport screenings. That being said, in 2020, the UAE was the first country globally to not only reopen, but also ease Covid-19 restrictions, including conditions to cross the border between Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

02. Strong demand among foreign investors: A number of government initiatives introduced within the past five years are aimed at attracting investors from overseas to the UAE and Abu Dhabi in particular. These include long-term visas, Golden visas, 100 per cent foreign business ownership and more. In addition, Abu Dhabi boasts outstanding market access, with two major March 2022

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seaports, international air connectivity, Khalifa Industrial Free Zone and the region’s biggest industrial, logistics and trade integrated hub.

03. Government’s investment into infrastructure and business development. The Government of Abu Dhabi is focused on applying advanced technology to develop its non-oil sector in order to diversify its economy, reduce reliance on hydrocarbons and create jobs. That being said, Abu Dhabi National Energy Company, or Taqa, is set to invest a total of Dhs80bn ($21.7bn) in networks, power and water for the future, as well as the expansion of power capacity by 27GW by 2030. In terms of business development, the Abu Dhabi Investment Office launched a Dhs2bn ($544.4m) Innovation Programme in 2021 to

Dhs80bn TAQA IS SET TO INVEST IN NETWORKS, POWER AND WATER FOR THE FUTURE

support innovation led-companies and startups in the financial services, health services and biopharma, ICT and tourism sectors.

04. Inflow of investors from Dubai to Abu Dhabi: While Dubai is seen as a major tourist destination, Abu Dhabi is preferred for living and working, as it has established itself as one of the most family-friendly and stable cities worldwide. The emirate was declared the safest city on the planet for the sixth time in a row, according to the Numbeo Safety Index 2022. At the same time, Abu Dhabi offers an expansive portfolio of affordable, sustainable communities, with high projected rental yields of 7 per cent, and ultra-refined island developments with premium facilities.

Fintan Flannelly , head of Developer Sales, Allsopp & Allsopp Group

A N A LY S I S

Off to a roaring start The market is seeing a rise in first-time buyers, taking 80 per cent loan-to-value mortgages, payment plans and offers from developers

I

believe 2022 – also the Year of the Tiger – is set to be a roaring one for developers in Dubai.

It’s almost two years since the lockdown was enforced in the city due to Covid-19.

The period that followed was filled with uncertainty and trepidation not just globally, but also for developers in Dubai.

As Dubai transitioned through the lockdown in a cautious yet sustainable manner under its visionary leaders, developers adopted a ‘wait and see’ approach. Prices in the secondary market, already at the bottom of a sixyear cycle, took a momentary plunge as a result of job losses in industries directly affected by the pandemic. While this was

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not a normal market, it was definitely not the climate in which to launch new projects.

However, this did not mean developers were dormant, construction sites across Dubai remained active and developers were still busy planning projects for the future with a focus on sustainability and smart technology, while also planning communities for post Covid lifestyles where people would work from home or in a hybrid model.

As normal life resumed in Dubai, the volume of secondary transactions rose towards the back end of 2020.

It continued to soar throughout 2021 with Dubai Land Department (DLD) announcing a record number of

transactions. As secondary transactions rose, so did prices in the secondary market. There was renewed confidence in Dubai, both domestically and internationally. This confidence was buoyed by the attitude and actions of the leaders of Dubai who saw the pandemic as an opportunity to thrive rather than just survive.

Some of these actions included the decision to postpone Expo 2020 Dubai for 12 months, announcement of the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan, implementation of changes to visa programmes and 100 per cent company ownership, the successful rollout of the vaccination programme and DLD’s introduction of fractional ownership.

Complemented by these, Dubai was back stronger than ever. Developers sensed this and began not just launching, but also selling out in record times.

I have always likened the relationship between developer sales and secondary sales to the pendulum of a clock, swinging from one to the other. When secondary prices are low, developers, hesitant to reduce prices, get creative with their offers that include DLD waivers, service fees gulfbusiness.com

Opinion/Residential

“MO’ASHER, AN INITIATIVE OF DUBAI LAND DEPARTMENT IN COOPERATION WITH PROPERTY FINDER, RELEASES A MONTHLY REPORT OF DUBAI’S OFFICIAL SALES-PRICE INDEX. AGAIN, ANOTHER STEP TOWARDS TRANSPARENCY IN DUBAI’S EVER-MATURING MARKET” waivers, post-handover payment plans and even guaranteed returns for fixed term periods.

Evidence that the pendulum has swung back towards developer sales is clear. In December 2021, 54 per cent of DLD transactions were title deed transactions compared to 71 per cent in January last year.

According to Property Finder data, month on month (October-November 2021) there was a 6 per cent swing in favour of primary sales. It’s only a matter of when rather than if primary sales will reach parity with secondary sales.

What is most encouraging is that Dubai is no longer just seen as an investor market or a place for high-net-worthindividuals. While the prime and super prime market has witnessed some incredible results and growth in the past 18 months, there has also been a rise in first time buyers now availing of 80 per cent loan-to-value mortgages, and payment plans and offers from developers. Residents are looking at Dubai as being their home for the mid to longterm rather than the typical short to mid-term. They are buying across all segments and no longer only in prime gulfbusiness.com

locations. The levels of launches of new projects planned for 2022 are reminiscent of 2016-17. Of the big differences I have already noticed in the past year is that products being offered today are vastly superior than ever before. They feature well-thought-out floor plans, more contemporary finishes in line with global trends and increased amenities and facilities for the residents to enjoy.

Today, developers need to offer something that is not readily available in the market, and it’s genuinely refreshing to see the products being offered now to buyers.

We live in the age of information being available at the touch of a button.

Today’s consumer is more educated than ever before, and makes informed decisions based on data. Mo’asher, an initiative of Dubai Land Department in cooperation with Property Finder, releases a monthly report of Dubai’s official sales-price index. Again, another step towards transparency in Dubai’s ever-maturing market. Buyers know what they want and recognise value for money when they see it.

Dubai as a city continues to demonstrate value for money per square foot

on a global scale. This hasn’t gone unnoticed and I expect that international buyers across Europe, UK, Canada and Russia amongst others to continue to grow.

The Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan is the seventh development plan for the emirate since 1960. Between 1960 and 2020, the population of Dubai has multiplied 80 times from 40,000 in 1960 to 3.3 million and the expected population growth will exceed 5.5 million. Areas highlighted include Deira and Bur Dubai, Downtown and Business Bay, Dubai Marina and JBR, and two new centres – Expo 2020 Centre and Dubai Silicon Oasis Centre.

There has also been a surge in branded residences globally in the past decade. According to a Saville Branded Residence global report (2021) the UAE ranks third in the world, with Dubai being the number one city, ahead of Miami, New York, Phuket, Bangkok and London.

This popularity is set to continue in Dubai with developers collaborating with leading global brands from hospitality (Emaar-St Regis, Select Group-Six Senses and the iconic One Za’abeelOne&Only), fashion (Emaar-Elie Saab, Dar Al Arkan-Missoni) and luxury cars (Emaar-Lamborgini, Dar Al ArkanPagani) to name but a few.

My thoughts for what lies ahead are that prices will continue to rise due to supply chain issues and inflation, but more importantly, so will demand. Even with the expected interest hikes to be implemented during the year, we have already noticed an increase in rents across many communities, which in turn, encourages investment in Dubai’s real estate market.

A word of caution to developers is to continue offering value-for-money homes and communities that enhance the quality of life that aren’t available in today’s market.

They should in these times of high demand resist the temptation to withdraw offers such as DLD waivers and/ or post-handover payment plans, which could result in the pendulum swinging back towards the secondary market.

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THE OFFICIAL SALES PRICE INDEX FOR THE EMIRATE OF DUBAI

Mo’asher: Sales DECEMBER 2020 - JANUARY 2022

INDEX NUMBER

DUBAI OVERALL INDEX

KEY FINDINGS • In January 2022, the monthly index equalled 1.197, while the apartments index stood at 1.228 and the villas/ townhouses index at 1.262 • A total of 5,797 sales transactions worth Dhs16.68bn were recorded in January 2022

Index value Dhs1,016,208

Index value Dhs1,007,529

Index value Dhs 1,065,816

Index value Dhs 1,164,956

1.2 1 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2

March 2022

Jan 2022

Dec 2021

Nov 2021

Oct 2021

Sep 2021

Aug 2021

Jul 2021

Jun 2021

Apr 2021

May 2021

Jan 2022

Dec 2021

Oct 2021

Index value 2,077,358

Nov 2021

Sep 2021

Aug 2021

Index value 1,940,843

Jul 2021

Jun 2021

Index value 1,773,164

May 2021

Jan 2022

0 Nov 2021

0 Dec 2021

0.2

Oct 2021

0.2

Sep 2021

0.4

Aug 2021

0.4

Jul 2021

0.6

Jun 2021

0.6

Apr 2021

0.8

May 2021

0.8

Mar 2021

1

Feb 2021

1

Jan 2021

1.2

Dec 2020

1.2

54

Mar 2021

Index value 1,678,567

Apr 2021

Index value 1,049,652

Mar 2021

Index value 931,311

Feb 2021

Index value 904,476

Jan 2021

Index value 952,825

DUBAI VILLAS/TOWNHOUSES INDEX

Dec 2020

DUBAI APARTMENTS INDEX

Feb 2021

Dec 2020

Jan 2021

0

INDEX BASE: JANUARY 2012

gulfbusiness.com

THE OFFICIAL RENTAL PRICE INDEX FOR THE EMIRATE OF DUBAI

Mo’asher: Rental DECEMBER 2020 - JANUARY 2022

INDEX NUMBER

DUBAI OVERALL INDEX

KEY FINDINGS • In January 2022, the monthly index equalled 0.938, while the apartments index stood at 0.943 and the villas/ townhouses index at 0.868

Index value Dhs52,282

Index value Dhs50,779

Index value Dhs 51,815

Index value Dhs51,101

1.2 1 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2

Jan 2022

Dec 2021

Nov 2021

Oct 2021

Sep 2021

Aug 2021

Jul 2021

Jun 2021

Apr 2021

May 2021

Jan 2022

Dec 2021

Index value 131,882

Nov 2021

Oct 2021

Sep 2021

Aug 2021

Index value 130,443

Jul 2021

Jun 2021

Index value 127,616

May 2021

Jan 2022

0 Dec 2021

0 Nov 2021

0.2

Oct 2021

0.2

Sep 2021

0.4

Jul 2021

0.4

Aug 2021

0.6

Jun 2021

0.6

May 2021

0.8

Apr 2021

0.8

Mar 2021

1

Feb 2021

1

Jan 2021

1.2

Dec 2020

1.2

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Mar 2021

Index value 126,044

Apr 2021

Index value 46,994

Mar 2021

Index value 47,116

Feb 2021

Index value 46,924

Jan 2021

Index value 48,460

DUBAI VILLAS/TOWNHOUSES INDEX

Dec 2020

DUBAI APARTMENTS INDEX

Feb 2021

Dec 2020

Jan 2021

0

INDEX BASE: JANUARY 2013

March 2022

55

Record growth THE AREAS IN DUBAI THAT RECORDED THE LARGEST NUMBER OF RESIDENTAL SALES TRANSACTIONS FOR NOVEMBER 2021- JANUARY 2022 APARTMENTS

VILLAS/TOWNHOUSES

OFF-PLAN

OFF-PLAN

Business Bay Dubai Harbour Mohammed Bin Rashid City Downtown Burj Khalifa The Lagoons (Dubai Creek Harbour) Jumeirah Village Circle Dubai Marina Arjan Dubai Hills Estate Palm Jumeirah

1,121 748 624 534 445 440 412 384 192 184

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Tilal Al Ghaf 518 Villanova 348 Arabian Ranches 3 289 Town Square 218 The Valley 172 Dubai South (Dubai World Central) 170 Rukan 76 Arabian Ranches 2 31 Dubai Hills Estate 29 Mohammed Bin Rashid City 13

Dhs151,066,813,966 SALES 24,761 units SECONDARY

OFF-PLAN

36,480 units

**Off-plan areas transferred as land are not included such as Murooj Al Furjan

SECONDARY Business Bay Jumeirah Village Circle Dubai Marina Downtown Burj Khalifa Jumeirah Lakes Towers International City Palm Jumeirah The Lagoons (Dubai Creek Harbour) Jumeirah Beach Residence Dubai Sports City

YEAR: 2021

624 578 500 448 309 298 226 211 183 176

Dhs99,052,436,949

SECONDARY Damac Hills 2 (Akoya Oxygen) Nad Al Sheba Dubai Hills Estate The Springs Arabian Ranches 1 Al Furjan Arabian Ranches 2 Town Square Serena Damac Hills (Akoya By Damac)

255 159 110 95 87 75 59 55 54 51

MORTGAGE SECONDARY

OFF-PLAN

15,224 units

109 units SOURCE: DUBAI LAND DEPARTMENT

gulfbusiness.com

Market Outlook

2021:

A RECORD-BREAKING YEAR Bolstered by a fantastic year both in terms of sales value and volume, Dubai’s real estate market has emerged as one of the top-performing sectors, supporting the country’s economic recovery. This year also started off on a great note, but will the upward trend persist through 2022? Lynnette Sacchetto, director of Research and Data at Property Finder, shares the market outlook

W

hat a year 2021 was for Dubai real estate, and consumers alike. This is breaking all sorts of records in sales volumes, one of the factors contributing values and mortgages. To highlight the year’s to the resurgence of demand achievements, we broke a 12-year record in the off-plan market coupled in terms of the value of real estate sales transactions, with with the fact that current supply is low in prime, popular properties worth Dhs151.07bn sold. There were a total of areas and prices have increased in the secondary market.

61,241 real estate sales transactions that took place, the We had a great start to the year, with January being the allhighest since 2013. When compared to the previous year, 2021 time best on record with 5,797 real estate sales transactions had a 110.19 per cent increase in sales value and 74.77 per cent worth Dhs16.69bn. This also includes the off-plan segment, increase in sales volume. as off-plan volume increased by 183.05 per cent and value The secondary market transacted 36,480 properties worth increased by 307.88 per cent compared to January 2021. a total of Dhs105.5bn, the highest since 2008. When compared In January, 53 per cent of sales transactions were in the to 2020, last year showed an increase of 74.77 per cent in secondary/ready market and 47 per cent were off-plan. sales transactions volume and an increase of 110.19 per cent Lewis Allsopp, group CEO of Allsopp & Allsopp, says, “We in value. To put it in perspective, when we compare these are now two months into 2022 and I have been cautiously figures to pre-Covid times, such as 2019, last year showed an optimistic when it comes to Dubai’s property market increase of 55.47 per cent in volume and an increase of 90.10 performance this year. I have remained careful due to the per cent in value. huge climb in prices we witnessed last year. However, sales When it comes to mortgages, 2021 was an all-time recordin the first month of 2022 were extremely strong, resulting in breaking year, with a total number of 19,520 mortgage January being our best month in business, ever. transactions, exceeding the previous high recorded back in “Big ticket sales are being traded to high-net-worth 2017 by 26 per cent. The total value of mortgage transactions individuals (HNIs) and we are seeing a huge demand in the reached Dhs127.8bn. luxury segment of the market. In some cases, In addition, off-plan sales rebounded in 2021 we were getting calls from clients who wanted coming back to a 50/50 split of total market to be fetched for viewings from hotels while on sales transactions. When we look at the volume holiday or a business trip, with many of them of sales transactions, the off-plan market PROPERTIES SOLD purchasing properties. For luxury property transacted 24,761 properties, worth a total of sales to become the growing trend after such a Breaking a 12-year Dhs45.5bn. turbulent time has been extraordinary.”

During the pandemic, many developers took record in terms of the Allsopp added, “As we move further into a step back and really assessed the market to value of real estate 2022, I feel that we will start to see the market understand what type of projects they could sales transactions level out a little and I believe we will see some build that checked all the boxes for investors stability in Dubai’s real estate market. I often

Dhs151.07bn

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Market Outlook

speak about the maturing Dubai property market and what I mean by this is a property market that is sustainable and reliable. Demand for properties is still there and is still high; however, both buyers and tenants are in favour of staying put with their current properties, as they are Lewis Allsopp beginning to be outpriced.”

In 2021, the shift to villa/townhouse communities, especially in the suburban areas of Dubai, continued from 2020.

Demand was high, causing supply to dwindle and prices to increase by over 20 per cent in some communities, and it looks like the trend will continue into 2022.

Sam McCone, managing director of McCone Properties comments, “The most significant surge in demand has been in the villa and townhouse communities near the city, including Dubai Hills, The Springs and Meadows. As we saw across the globe, the pandemic caused many people to reconsider where they lived. All of a sudden, tenants and homeowners alike wanted to trade in their apartments and move to townhouses and villas, as they enjoyed the extra room and outdoor lifestyle that comes with such communities. Dubai Hills, in particular, has done well as it is the one community that offers relatively new townhouse and villa options just 10 to 15 minutes from Downtown and Dubai Marina.

“In 2022, I believe we will see the more established and well-situated apartment communities, such as Downtown and Dubai Marina, increase in demand as the effects of the pandemic subside, and we all start to realise all the benefits that come from the central areas of Dubai.”

Allsopp adds, “We have seen a continuation of price increases in the first few weeks of 2022, in both villa and apartment communities.

This is a great start to the year for sellers, and further demonstrates the demand in the market. However, I do anticipate this stabilising Sam McCone as we move through the year. Buyer and tenant price appetite is beginning to level off. This will stabilise property prices in both sales and lettings.

“There will be new property launches this year and we will see the handover of a number of luxury developments such as the Royal Atlantis, One Palm and villa community, Tilal Al Ghaf. As we see with many development handovers, there will be a shift in pricing of comparable communities to level up with the new supply, which will bring some price stability in the market.”

It will be interesting to see how the market adjusts to the lack of certain high demand stock such as villa/townhouses and luxury properties.

DEMAND WAS HIGH, CAUSING SUPPLY TO DWINDLE AND PRICES TO INCREASE BY OVER 20 PER CENT IN SOME COMMUNITIES, AND IT LOOKS LIKE THE TREND WILL CONTINUE INTO 2022

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March 2022

Allsopp says, “We reported a trend of undersupply in the villa market for 2021. This trend has continued into the first quarter of 2022 and this is where we need to accept that we can no longer talk about the Dubai property market as a whole. We can note overall trends, but certain segments of the market will buck the trends.

“For example, we can say that overall there’s been a pull back from buyers and tenants as prices increase, but in certain communities it is evident that buyers are willing to pay, or in some cases, go above asking prices. We often see a number of clients trying to secure these units and it is now common to see buyers competing to out-bid each other.”

He adds: “With such an undersupply, it is rare that a property is available for longer than a week, with most available units now selling the same day they are listed, or even before they go live across property portals. The post Covid-19 lockdown effect is still being felt within the Dubai property market. The lockdown forced families to re-evaluate priorities, with many coming to realise they wanted a property with more space. This factor, coupled with the increase of international investment, a rise in HNIs moving to Dubai and a growth in new businesses or businesses shifting to Dubai, has been a catalyst for the surge in interest for villa communities, in both lettings and sales, that has yet to slow down.”

McCone adds, “There is definitely a lack of townhouses and villas at the moment. It is tough to find reasonably priced options in the communities I mentioned before in the rental market. The sale market does have more options available, but in many cases, the owner’s expectation of what they should be selling for is about 10 per cent over the actual prices. As a result, all the major developers (Emaar, Damac, Nakheel and Majid Al Futtaim) are introducing new villa communities into the market, with many selling out in days.”

It appears that this year will continue on an upward trajectory when it comes to sales volumes and price increase in prime, popular areas. With new supply being low in prime areas and in certain asset classes, such as villa/townhouses, we can continue to expect price increases in these areas, as demand continues to be strong. The off-plan segment will most likely not cool down anytime soon due to investor sentiment, attractive pricing, the lure of Dubai and overall good projects launching in the market.

Allsopp concludes, “Dubai is an incredibly attractive city to live, work and invest in at the moment based on a host of reasons, including the way the government has steered us through the Covid pandemic and the future vision it is working towards. For this reason, going into 2022, I think we will see more of the same in terms of demand: areas with villas will continue to be highly sought after complemented by a continuing resurgence in areas with apartments, particularly with the anticipated population increase in the emirate.” gulfbusiness.com

Opinion/Property Tech Tymour Fisher General manager UAE, Nomad Homes

Personalisation takes priority The real estate market is seeing a more personalised experience to home buying, with the innovative use of technology and a focus on addressing the growing preference for sustainable developments

T

here have been some truly remarkable changes in the way people live and work since the Covid-19 pandemic. Rapid technology development, transformation of the real estate financing industry and the introduction of new business models have catapulted the real estate industry into overdrive. In the past year, the market witnessed a home-buying frenzy of first-time millennial homebuyers, largely fuelled by mortgage rates at an all-time low. With the increased interest from prospective home buyers to expand their portfolios and secure the right home for themselves and their families, 2022 will continue to be labelled as a strong buyer’s market. In the UAE, especially in Dubai, real estate brokers are anticipating a more balanced market, but with high demand continuing. Moreover, home buyers are increasingly relying on their chosen real estate professional to become their eyes inside the house by capturing a video tour instead of actually visiting the property.

A survey conducted by the National Association of Realtors found that 35 per cent of realtors are seeing sellers rely on virtual tours. The increased gulfbusiness.com

use of this technology means this trend will continue as the primary means of viewing a home and engaging clients.

Some of the top trends we will continue seeing this year include: PROP-TECH INNOVATION

When restrictions were implemented during the pandemic, virtual home tours and 3D mapping were the solution. Now that these features are bound to stay, what’s next? Advances in technology, data and analytics will soon allow realtors to create more personal experiences across the home buying process. According to a report by McKinsey, personalisation has proven to drive 5 to 15 per cent increases in revenue.

Millennials are now becoming the largest real estate buyers. Marketers today need not only to reach out to millennials but do so in the manner they expect, which means offering personalisation in everything, from small tasks such as shopping for a gift and ordering takeaway to bigger items such as buying a house. iBUYING

Companies known as iBuyers, meaning

instant buyers, will muscle head-on with conventional brokers by using algorithms to set home prices and provide an instant offer to sellers. This instant method of buying and selling homes is set to revolutionise the real estate market.

Using artificial intelligence and mathematical algorithms, an iBuying company can generate an automated valuation, giving the seller a more streamlined approach to sell the house, eliminating the banks and brokers in the process. These instant transactions will offer a quick and less complex procedure, resulting in an easy house sale.

Sellers aren’t the only ones who can benefit from the iBuying process. For buyers, the instantaneous nature of iBuying means constantly new inventory is added to the market and they have the option to choose a property that fits their requirements. It is easy to schedule viewings and homes are always in turn-key condition, enabling a smooth buying process.

THE IMPACT AND DEMAND OF NEW CONSTRUCTION

Until just recently, the importance of sustainability in the construction of homes or commercial buildings was merely a distinct minority. Since millennial buyers have entered the real estate market, there has been increased focus on environmental sustainability in the real estate industry. As the space continues to transform, sustainability can no longer be considered ‘niche’ by real estate developers.

According to a recent survey by Nielsen, 81 per cent of consumers around the globe believe it is very important for companies to have environmental improvement as an objective. Green building initiatives have now gone mainstream, and buyers expect a certain amount of sustainability in their homes and commercial buildings.

According to the National Association of Homebuilders, homebuyers want and are willing to pay more for sustainable features such as energy-efficient appliances and windows alongside features that ensure better air quality.

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Interview/D&B Properties

Building on experience and trust Husni Al Bayari, chairman and founder of the awardwinning real estate company, D&B Properties as well as portal, houza, shares his outlook for the real estate sector and how his company is well poised to meet the demands of the market What’s your outlook for the property sector in 2022?

Based on trends and developments in 2021, we saw real estate property transactions in Dubai touch a staggering Dhs300bn. This coupled with strong sales in January and February portend a positive outlook for the year.

What are some of the factors driving this growth?

The Dubai government has done a great job of getting the city back up and running as quickly as possible after the onset of Covid-19. The vaccination roll out was also effective and successful.

This brought new businesses and a new wave of expats to Dubai, looking to stay here for the long term. Expo 2020 Dubai 60

March 2022

has also played a great role in the sector’s recovery, attracting people from all over the world and introducing them to Dubai and its wonderful offerings.

Going into 2022, we’ve observed that buyer appetite is still strong. Being one of the highest performing economies in the world, coupled with high capital appreciation and gross rental yields of 5-9 per cent, Dubai is the ideal place to invest in property right now. A few other attractive incentives for buyers and investors include low interest mortgages and residential visa opportunities. We’ve noted that investors are moving toward higher quality and more sustainable properties, even sacrificing immediate return on investment to capitalise on longer term yields. There are young

professionals who come here on holiday and end up staying for the safety, opportunities and lifestyle that Dubai offers.

Which areas in Dubai are most preferred by buyers or renters?

Towards end of 2020 and through the first half of 2021, the market saw a large number of sales and investments in luxury properties and gated villa communities with high quality facilities. The majority of people already living in Dubai sought to move from apartments to villas due to reasons such as working from home or adopting pets during the lockdown – these often require extra room and garden space. These factors contributed to rising demand in Palm Jumeirah, Dubai Marina, Dubai Hills Estate and Downtown Dubai.

We expect to see the upcoming Emaar Beachfront to join the thriving luxury communities of Dubai in 2022.

An island within the city, the community provides private beach access and beautiful views of the Gulf. There is already an increase in interest for leasing and end users. Following the footsteps of Downtown Dubai, we are also gulfbusiness.com

Interview/D&B Properties “Short term rentals are a hidden gem in the property market right now, both for investors as well as renters. Our analysis has revealed properties such as short term rentals and holiday homes receive an extra 20 per cent rental income compared to traditional residential properties” expecting Dubai Creek Harbour – which is slightly more affordable – to do well, with many retail and hospitality developments in the works already.

Tell us about your company in brief.

D&B Properties has developed and expanded from an agency exclusively selling off-plan to a multicultural firm with several successful divisions: D&B Properties, Real Estate Asset Leaders, Real Estate Commercial Experts, D&B Valuation and Be Our Guest Holiday Homes. In August 2021, we were presented with Bayut’s ‘Agency of the Month’ award.

I was honoured to receive RERA’s ‘Real Estate Brokers Award - 4 Star Rank’, which is the highest rank presented by the agency. We have strong collaborations with leading developers, such as Emaar, Nakheel, Dubai Properties, Damac,

Sobha, Aldar and RAK Properties, as well as listing platforms such as houza, Bayut, Property Finder and Yalla Deals. We have more than 170 staffers who hail from 32 nationalities. We’ve also touched Dhs5bn in transactions so far.

How will D&B Properties further leverage the growth the market is witnessing?

It always comes back to the client.

We plan to remain focused on continuing to build our relationship with clients and investors through trust and transparency. We aim to further work with the best developers and developments that are reputable. Our team is highly trained, and are always ready to assist residents and newcomers to find their dream home.

Tell us about your decision to launch Real Estate Asset Leaders.

This division was born purely from the relationships we’ve built with our clientele. Most often the investors we work with are based overseas, so once we provide our expertise to help them purchase a property, their next question is: ‘do your services extend to managing our new asset?’

With trust and transparency being key factors in our dealings, we now provide our clients with an ‘A-Z’ service list, ranging from the systematic upkeep of their property and maximising revenue through rentals, to analysing market trends and handling government

proceedings. Our services include property, financial, lease and tenant, and facility management, allowing the investor to rest assured that their property is under great care and yielding income.

Short term rentals are becoming a popular option. What are some of the opportunities and challenges faced in this segment, and how are you serving this market?

Short term rentals are a hidden gem in the property market right now, both for investors as well as renters. Our analysis has revealed properties such as short term rentals and holiday homes receive an extra 20 per cent rental income compared to traditional residential properties. However, people are cautious of entering this segment because of the perceived risk. As this is still a new industry, investors must proceed with caution, ensuring the real estate agency handles legal proceedings if needed as per government regulations.

Be Our Guest Holiday Homes is an integrated division under D&B Properties and an officially licensed operator with Dubai’s Department of Economic Development and Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM).

We serve homeowners and holidaymakers with short-term rentals. Our properties are ideal for people with part-time or contract-based jobs, longer vacation days, or for those seeking to experience the city before moving here. We ensure our investors’ property is registered with DTCM, furnished, marketed and maintained with precision. Our guests are provided with concierge services, ranging from airport pick-up and dropoffs to advice on living in Dubai.

What are some of your tips for people looking to buy property in Dubai?

Find an agent you can trust and who is well informed on market trends and regulations. An experienced agent will be well-versed with established and reputable development portfolios and recommend the right product for your needs, ensuring you get a home and not just a house. gulfbusiness.com

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Painting by Mai Majdy

Photograph by Lord Patrick Lichfield

The United Arab Emirates 50th Anniversary Navigator Clock – Limited Edition by David Galbraith

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Lifestyle / Auto

A design to remember Dr Jan Becker, CEO of Porsche Lifestyle Group, is taking the powerful brand name and applying it far beyond the automotive world – across hotels, residential towers and accessories – and then pushing even further

BY VARUN GODINHO

A

s far as car designs are concerned, the 911 retains legendary status. It has remained in production since 1964, with well over a million units sold to date. Its exterior design has only been marginally tweaked with every successive generation update over the last nearly six decades. The credit for its original design lies with none other than Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, grandson of Ferdinand Porsche. “In 1972, the family decided to resign from the car business. FA Porsche decided then to establish his own design studio in the small Austrian town of Zell am See. That’s how he founded Porsche Design in 1972, and we still operate out of that studio,” Dr Jan Becker, CEO of Porsche Lifestyle Group, told Gulf Business recently during a brief visit to Dubai.

FA Porsche’s first product out of that studio was a revolutionary watch – the Porsche Design Orfina Chronograph – which was the first commercially available timepiece with a full black case. As Becker 64

March 2022

explains, there was always a meticulous method that FA Porsche followed, and one that the design studio follows to this day. “Back then, watches were mainly in silver and gold, and were considered to be jewellery pieces. FA Porsche asserted instead that the main function of a watch is to show the time. So, he went to the car and looked at the dashboard, the speed indicators, and that’s what he transmitted into the watch. It was a black watch with white indices, and it represents our philosophy of [merging] design and functionality,” notes Becker.

The Porsche branding can today be seen across five main products categories: watches, sunglasses, luggage, electronics and athleisure offerings, including sneakers and clothing.

Becker and team though are now going much further and expanding into the hotel business, with the Middle East likely to see the debut of this new venture. Last year, Steigenberger Hotels entered into an agreement with Porsche Design to establish Steigenberger Porsche Design Hotels.

“Steigenberger is a very traditional German hotel brand that is over 90 years old. It typically operates conservative-style fivestar grand hotels. What we have in mind is to combine this excellent traditional approach with our [modern] lifestyle gulfbusiness.com

Lifestyle / Auto

Dr Jan Becker, CEO of Porsche Lifestyle Group

branding. So what we are going to do with a Steigenberger Porsche Design Hotel is to be a lifestyle luxury hotel brand that is not so stiff and is a bit modern,” says Becker.

“We want to open the first hotel by 2024, and then a total of 15 hotels globally over the following five years. We want to go into absolute top locations – so that would be the US, probably something in Shanghai, a few in Europe, and maybe two here [in the Middle East]. And there’s a good chance that we will open the first hotel here in this region,” he adds.

Porsche has also deftly moved into the real estate business. In 2016, by way of an agreement struck with real estate magnate Gil Dezer, the first Porsche Design Tower debuted in Miami. The 60-storey oceanfront residential project netted over $840m in apartment sales before it was even opened, demonstrating the appetite among the very rich to opt for luxury branded homes. Porsche is set to capitalise on it. “There’s a second project under construction in Stuttgart,” says Becker of the

Porsche Design Tower Stuttgart. “We have a third project coming up in Canada, which is already designed, and which will hopefully be signed this month. “And,” reveals Becker, “we’ve just started talks here in Dubai for a fourth tower.”

With Porsche’s plans to debut the first of its hotels within this region, and possibly a tower too, the significance of the Middle East to its overall business is not lost on Becker. “Porsche Design opened its first stores here back in the late Eighties, and early Nineties. Historically, this is an important market to us because we are targetting travellers and business people.

Dubai, for example, with its airport hub is very important to international travellers.

“We have roughly 100 stores globally, and about a dozen within the region. While we run our own stores in Europe and the US, here in the Middle East, we have franchise partners. We work with Jashanmal [in the UAE, Kuwait and Bahrain],” says Becker.

Along with Jashanmal, Porsche Design is set to open a new store in Dubai Mall

“Porsche Design opened its first stores here back in the late Eighties, and early Nineties. Historically, this is an important market to us because we are targeting travellers and business people”

gulfbusiness.com

– its second in the city after the Mall of the Emirates – later this year. “We have a new shop concept for our stores. The Dubai Mall store will be one of the first in the world to showcase that new concept,” says Becker.

He does see, however, avenues where Porsche Design still has scope to grow within the region. While e-commerce accounts for roughly 20-25 per cent of its business in markets such as Europe and the US, he says that it ranks significantly less here and that’s something he’s keen to remedy.

This year marks the 50th anniversary for Porsche Design, and there are several limited-edition collectables coming out of its studio. It includes the Chronograph 1 1972 Limited Edition, limited to 500 pieces, which Becker says is aesthetically identical to the original piece made by FA Porsche 50 years ago, only that the 21st-century version has a case made from titanium and a COSC-certified movement.

Then there’s the one-off Porsche 911 S 2.4 Targa from 1972, which has been fully restored by Porsche Classic and Porsche Design, and will be auctioned by the latter at Sotheby’s this November. One of the big reveals for the anniversary celebrations though is the Porsche 911 Edition 50 Years Porsche Design car, limited to 750 units.

“Each region will have a quota of this car allotted to it. Of the 80 cars that were committed to the US, 78 customers have already placed their orders. We have transferred materials and colour schemes, for example, from our Porsche Design products into this car. Also, for every customer that buys one, they will be given a special-edition watch which is available only to the owners of this car – if you see someone wearing this watch, you will instantly know that they own this limited-edition car too,” says Becker.

Becker’s role as CEO is to guide the design process of all the products, but more importantly to draw a line and refrain from partnerships that are potentially detrimental to its brand value. “The most challenging job is to say no to business requests that would actually bring in a lot of money. There was a big corporate enquiry about smoking accessories, and we even had a request to design weapons.

Those collaborations would have brought us a lot of money, but it is not in line with our overall policy,” says Becker. Fifty years in, the queue knocking on Porsche Design’s door is only getting longer.

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A strong game Adam Scott has been playing at the highest level of golf for over two decades, though he’s far from done. At the level he is performing, a second major is a very real proposition

BY VARUN GODINHO

A

ustralian golfer, and now Swiss resident, Adam Scott turned professional midway through the 2000 season.

The former world number 1 ranked player, has won 11 DP World Tour and 14 PGA Tour events. The highlight, of course, was winning the Masters in 2013 when Bubba Watson presented him with the coveted green jacket.

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Having played around the world over all these years, there was however a noticeable absence from Dubai. The last time he competed at the Dubai Desert Classic was back in 2002. Earlier this year in January though, he returned to the recently renamed Slync.io Dubai Desert Classic.

“Coming back to the Middle East has been really exciting. I enjoyed the first Rolex Series event of the year in Abu Dhabi at

Yas Links, and although I’m not so familiar with the course here at the Emirates, I remember certain holes and the shot shapes required. They’ve put some new tee boxes in, and have some new greens. It does feel familiar to me, although the skyline is very different. I played at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai in 2009, but the famous shot from the eighth tee here looks very different,” says Scott when we meet on the eve of the Desert Classic.

Like most professional athletes, Scott has had his fair share of professional peaks and rough patches. Unlike other athletes though, he’s frank about the latter. “I was very frustrated in St Georges at The Open, especially since my main goal now is to win major championships. Last year felt gulfbusiness.com

Lifestyle / Sport

like a bit of a wasted year for me and I didn’t really threaten in 2020 either,” he admits. “My driver wasn’t behaving for me last year.

Once I began to make changes, the foundation of my game began to improve.”

After over two decades playing at the top, Scott is at a point where he is finding a balance between golf, and a life away from it. He says that there are nine months of the year where he prioritises the sport, but then gives himself some time away from the game for the remaining three months.

That isn’t to say that he has any less of a packed calendar of events in which he will participate this year. He confirms the plan is to compete in all five Rolex Series in 2022, having already done so at Abu Dhabi and Dubai earlier this year. Next, he will be at the Genesis Scottish Open and the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth too.

Devoting nearly his entire life to the sport, but also spending a few months away from it each year, has meant that Scott doesn’t have a myopic and insulated view of the sport which has richly rewarded him. He’s able to be objective of its drawbacks too – particularly those that are at a disadvantage to individuals trying to break into the sport. “I think it would be great to have some different rules for amateurs and professionals, but it is a big conversation. We can’t go backwards as golf already has a reputation for being quite elitist, but there are lots of little areas within the game that could be explored to benefit everyone. For example, I think

golf’s decision-makers should shrink the driver head size. The longer clubs were traditionally always the hardest to hit, but this has totally flipped on its head now and I think that somewhat goes against the evolution of golf,” says Scott.

Away from the course, he’s passionate about watches, and specifically vintage timepieces. He’s been a Rolex Testimonee since 2001 and has amassed a sizeable collection of timepieces during that period. “It is hard to resist buying these watches, but I have about twenty or so,” he says of his Rolex collection. “When I first became a Testimonee, I got the opportunity to choose a timepiece. I was 21 years old, and I chose a pink gold DayDate with a black dial. I still wear that.”

“Coming back to the Middle East has been really exciting. I enjoyed the first Rolex Series event of the year in Abu Dhabi at Yas Links, and although I’m not so familiar with the course here at the Emirates, I remember certain holes and the shot shapes required.

They’ve put some new tee boxes in, and have some new greens” gulfbusiness.com

“I was given a Rolex Sky-Dweller the year I won the Masters which is extremely special to me. I think it’s quite an interesting watch because it is probably the most complex with all of its various mechanisms. I like that watch, but I tend to wear smaller watches like the Rolex Day-Date,” he adds.

There are times when his passion for collecting watches – he’s built a reputation of keeping a close eye on auctions globally – has intersected with golf itself.

He notes the example of the Day-Date he showed up with for the interview. “The watch I am wearing now was bought at an auction and I was on the 11th hole during a practice round of the Memorial Championship. An alert went off on my phone as we began to walk down the fairway, I ended up winning the bid for the watch having eyed it for quite some time.”

S

cott turned pro at the age of 20, and has spent more years than that as a professional golfer. It’s worth a listen then to know who from the younger crop of players in his opinion currently shows potential to rise to the top of their game. Scott’s choice is an interesting one. “I played with this young kid Nicolai Højgaard and I feel like he is a 20-year-old version of Dustin Johnson. Although it’s very tricky to piece everything together at such a young age, he is going to be a force in world golf if he does. He hits the ball very hard, but in an easy way, and is certainly one to keep an eye on.”

Scott will undoubtedly be keen to win his second major, though he reiterates that this year his big focus will be the 150th edition of The Open at St Andrews.

“You never know how many more chances you’re going to get so I am really looking forward to that one,” he says. Off the course, he’s also got his horological priorities well in order. “If I could pick one watch right now that I haven’t had, it would be an early Rolex Submariner reference 6538. It is called a Big Crown and it was worn by James Bond in one of the movies.” If you’re up against an anonymous potential buyer at an auction who is bidding strong on the 6538, it won’t be difficult to guess his identity.

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Lifestyle / Auto

An electric buzz New Zealander Emma Gilmour has become the first woman to bag a driver’s role at McLaren Racing – and she’s doing so at the equally revolutionary Extreme E series

BY VARUN GODINHO

B

urning fuel, shredding tyres, wrecking cars, tons of carbon emissions emitted while moving those vehicles, teams and spectators from one destination to the next – and then repeating it all over again. The nature of international motorsport competitions is inherently damaging from an environmental standpoint.

So, when Extreme E, a new series that puts sustainability – as well as gender equality – at the centre of the conversation debuted last year, it naturally stole the spotlight.

The inaugural season of the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA)sanctioned electric off-road racing series kicked off last year with full attention 68

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from the pinnacle of motorsport – F1 itself. Among the 10 teams competing in the second season that began earlier this year in Saudi Arabia is X44, a team founded by seven-time F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton. In the 2021 season, X44 finished in second place behind X Racing, a team established by former Formula 1 world champion Nico Rosberg.

Cementing the championship’s reputation even further was when McLaren Racing decided to participate in the second season. McLaren’s entry was a thumping vote of confidence for Extreme E. To participate though, there has to be one male and one female driver on each team who have equal driving duties. To fulfil this criterion McLaren Racing signed

on its first-ever female driver in its nearly six-decade history – Emma Gilmour from New Zealand. “I’ll never forget the moment [when they contacted me]. It was an email from [the CEO of McLaren Racing] Zac Brown saying he wanted to speak with me. Initially, I thought it was just a scam email, but then I looked at the footer and realised it was not. At the time I didn’t quite recognise that I would be the first female [driver signed onto McLaren]. Because I never dreamed of being an F1 driver, I never dreamed of driving for McLaren,” says Gilmour.

To be clear, it wasn’t gender that landed her the coveted role. It was Gilmour’s talent – and none of the naked nepotism or blinding commercial pulls that sometimes gulfbusiness.com

Lifestyle / Auto

“It was an email from [the CEO of McLaren Racing] Zac Brown saying he wanted to speak with me. Initially, I thought it was just a scam email, but then I looked at the footer and realised it was not” aid drivers to bag a seat in top motorsport competitions such as F1 – that earned her a place on McLaren’s Extreme E team. Her career highlights include winning the FIA Women in Motorsport and Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation Cross Country Selection in 2015. She also became the first woman to win a round of the New Zealand Rally Championship (NZRC), claiming victory at the 2016 Rally of Canterbury.

Poignantly, Gilmour shares her nationality with Bruce McLaren. The number 58 on McLaren’s Extreme E car is a throwback to the number used in the first race that Bruce entered in 1952 while driving his father’s Austin 7 at the Muriwai Hillclimb in New Zealand.

The new Extreme E spec car that Gilmour and her teammate drive is a fully-electric 2.3m wide SUV that weighs 1,780kg. It’s powered by a 54kWh battery that produces a maximum power output of 630hp and can propel the car from 0-100kph in under five seconds up a 50-degree incline. The vehicles are charged by hydrogen fuel cells.

AFC Energy uses solar power and water to generate hydrogen that fuels the generator.

“It’s a brand-new kind of motorsport. gulfbusiness.com

They haven’t taken an existing form of motorsport, electrified it and made it 5050 male and female driving ratio,” explains Gilmour of the positioning of the new series. “We’re going to remote locations that would never see live sport, generally speaking, and whilst we’re there, we’re educating people about what is happening there with regards to climate change and environmental damage.”

The inaugural race of the 2022 season began last month with Desert X-Prix in Saudi Arabia’s Neom area. It will be followed by the Island X-Prix that returns

to Sardinia in May, followed by the Ocean X-Prix in July which will be held either in Scotland or Senegal. Thereafter, the action heads to Antofagasta, northern Chile for the Copper X-Prix, followed by the season finale in November at the Energy X-Prix at Punta del Este, Uruguay.

To minimise the carbon footprint of the races, all the cargo travels onboard the 6,700 tonne, 105m St Helena, a former Royal Mail Ship which was launched in 1989, and has now been refitted to act as Extreme E’s floating paddock. Importantly, St Helena also acts as a floating laboratory.

The swimming pool aboard the ship has been converted into a laboratory where scientists can study environmental issues at the destinations where it sails to. The carbon footprint of the first series was clocked at 8,870 tonnes CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalent) which was completely offset by investing in environmental certificates for a wind farm in Patagonia.

By the end of the first season, the inaugural series became carbon neutral.

Also, team sizes have been restricted to seven: two drivers, one engineer and four mechanics, and no live spectators are present to further reduce carbon emissions resulting from travel. Gilmour’s teammate is Tanner Foust – who won the Global Rallycross Championship twice and is also a four-time and current US rallycross champion.

“Tanner and I were able to test together for a small period at the end of last year.

As part of the Extreme E messaging, we’re not doing countless miles and we aren’t tearing up vehicles. We’re very limited in the mileage that we get to do in the vehicle.

Tanner is a great teammate and is big on rallycross and drifting. He’s got a wealth of experience that he shares with me,” observes Gilmour.

IT’S POWERED BY A 54KWH BATTERY THAT PRODUCES

630HP

THE CAR CAN GO FROM 0-100KPH IN UNDER FIVE SECONDS UP A 50-DEGREE INCLINE

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“There’s many areas of motorsport that women can take part in such as engineering. Obviously, they don’t have the spotlight shone on them the same way as drivers, but there are a lot more doors opening up for women”

She studied design at university and ended up with a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy and history – which makes us wonder at what point racing became Plan A for the Kiwi? Initially, Gilmour says, she was a co-driver for a friend who was rallying, but soon discovered that she too had the natural ability to drive really fast.

“It became my Plan A because the people around me at the time encouraged me to pursue [racing as a] career.” Racing though is an expensive sport, with the cost of entry being a big barrier to many who want to compete. “The hardest thing within motorsport is the cost of it. It’s such an expensive sport and the whole goal was to get sponsorship so that I could keep funding myself.

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money involved at some stage. I was very lucky in that my dad and my brother-inlaw were mechanics so they could help with my costs initially by helping me work on the vehicle. Now, at the level that I am competing at in New Zealand, the cost of paying someone to work on my car takes a lot of my sponsorship dollars,” says Gilmour.

She is well aware of her accomplishment reaching the highest rungs of motorsport in McLaren, but she also forces the conversation to extend beyond gender diversity, citing F1 as an example. “F1 is an incredibly tough sport to get into, regardless of gender. There are so many other things that come into play including money, opportunity and timing. There is a lot of female talent out there and that talent pool is

growing. We just need to keep feeding that talent pool so that the odds of [women competing] increases,” notes Gilmour.

Gilmour makes a case for women to looks at other avenues of motorsport, beyond just the driver’s seat.

“There’s many areas of motorsport that women can take part in such as engineering. Obviously, they don’t have the spotlight shone on them the same way as drivers, but there are a lot more doors opening up for women,” she says. A case in point is sisters Teena and Leena Gade are McLaren’s Extreme E’s performance and race engineer respectively.

With McLaren placed fifth in the championship after the Neom race, the team has everything to play for in the remaining four races. Gilmour’s sheer thrill at being associated with McLaren and Extreme E is palpable. “In no other sport do you have women and men competing in the same equipment and on the same platform.

That’s gives the next generation of girls something to aim for. It’s an amazing buzz to be representing a brand like McLaren in a series like Extreme E where you’re flying the flag for women in sport and being the role model for what is possible through never giving up on a dream.” gulfbusiness.com

BRAND VIEW

Peru on the rise

A business networking event this month at the Peru pavilion at Expo 2020 shines a spotlight on the business opportunities for foreign investors seeking inroads into the Latin Americana country

P

eru’s economy is the strongest that it’s been since 1922. Its economy rose 13.31 per cent in 2021, one of the highest growth rates since the Peruvian Central Bank began tracking GDP back in 1922. Its positioning as a stable economy and as one that has growth drivers across varied sectors has made it a prime magnet for foreign direct investment (FDI) in South America.

In the first quarter of 2021 alone, it attracted $3.47bn of FDI – more than the whole of 2020. Analysts expect the South American country to continue its upward trajectory as The World Bank predicted GDP growth of 3.9 per cent this year and the International Monetary Fund shared more bullish figures while forecasting a 4.6 per cent GDP growth. At comparative levels in South America, in 2023, Peru is estimated to be the second-fastest growing economy, according to The World Bank.

Independent rating agencies are also giving the country a vote of confidence.

Moody’s (Baa1), S&P (BBB+), and Fitch (BBB) ratings demonstrate that Peru has the second-highest credit rating in the region after Chile. Importantly, it also has the second-lowest public debt to GDP ratio. With inflation levels well in check, businesses can find several more

opportunities to ramp up their operations within the country. Peru is also projected to have the second-lowest inflation in Latin America until 2025.

According to the National Institute of Statistics and Informatics in Peru, in December 2020, the economic activity index recovered to its pre-pandemic level.

The recovery gathered momentum in 2021 driven by productive sectors that have registered significant advances, such as agriculture, manufacturing, accommodation and restaurants, all of which have been on a recovery path throughout 2021.

The infrastructure network supports the country’s growth with eight port terminals and five international airports. Peru ranks third in South America, sixth in Latin America, and 76th worldwide in the Doing Business 2020 Ranking.

Peru has 21 Free Trade Agreements (FTA) in force. It has also entered into 28

Bilateral Investment Treaties (BIT) and also Double Taxation Avoidance Agreements (DTA) with countries including Canada, Brazil, Chile, Japan, and Switzerland, among others.

According to data shared by the Commission for the Promotion of Peru for Exports and Tourism (PROMPERÚ), whose parent organisation is the country’s Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism, between 2011 and 2021, renewable energy, manufacturing and food were the top sources of industries for driving FDI into the country. Meanwhile, real estate, tourism, retail and technology could be the next biggest growth avenues for FDI in Peru. In terms of the maximum impact that every million of FDI invested in the country has had over the past decade, the textile sector was a clear winner generating 102.8 jobs for every million of FDI that flowed into this sector.

Peru has meanwhile implemented legislative action to encourage the growth of FDI. The Legislative Decree 662 accords a legal stability regime for foreign investments, through the recognition of certain guarantees. The Legislative Decree 757 meanwhile provides a framework law for the growth of private investments. Accordingly, it guarantees all sectors of economic activity free initiative safeguarded by both the Constitution and the country’s laws. Furthermore, Law 30309 gave rise to the reduction of up to 215 per cent in income tax for companies that develop Research, Development and Innovation (R&D&I) projects. Between 2016 and 2019, 68 R&D&I projects qualified for this benefit.

Giving entrepreneurs and companies a chance to witness the potential opportunities in doing business within Peru, PROMPERÚ will be holding a business conference at the Peru pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai, from 9am-6pm on March 8. The event includes 150 small companies that will identify opportunities – across exports, tourism and investments – that allow them to do business with the most economically attractive countries in the Middle East. With the booming Peruvian economy, its investment landscape is in rude health.

For further information about investing in Peru, please contact: inversionesperu@ promperu.gob.pe.

Lifestyle / Arts

Left-right : Raed Barqawi with Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum

Transforming futures

Journalist Raed Barqawi has spent more than three decades observing the meteoric rise of Dubai and the UAE. His first book chronicles the formative years of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who has played an instrumental role in transforming the country into a global powerhouse

BY VARUN GODINHO

I

n 1999, UAE-based journalist Raed Barqawi got the phone call that most people can only dream of – an invitation to visit Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. At the end of that event as guests were being escorted out, an aide of the Dubai Ruler pulled Barqawi aside and asked him to stay behind – Sheikh Mohammed wanted to meet with him one-on-one. “His Highness took me to his 72

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car and we drove around Dubai for two hours. He explained his vision for Dubai.

He also spoke about his overall vision for the economy, and how he wanted to put the country on the world map for business, tourism and infrastructure. He wanted to know my views about the media too.”

Over the course of that conversation, Barqawi asked Sheikh Mohammed a question that he had harboured for nearly a decade. In August 1990, when Barqawi was working as a journalist with Al Khaleej

newspaper, Iraq invaded Kuwait. While ominous coverage of that invasion led to unfounded speculation that the region was set to be incinerated in a deadly conflict, his newspaper office received a message from the UAE’s local media agency saying the country’s Defence Minister, Sheikh Mohammed, was announcing plans to build the second golf course, the Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club.

Flummoxed by the timing of that announcement, Barqawi brought up the topic with Sheikh Mohammed. “His Highness told me, ‘At that time, everyone was in a negative frame of mind. I wanted to send a positive message to those people who thought that we in Dubai and the UAE were finished. We wanted to show that we were, in fact, at the beginning of what we could achieve, and we were going to continue building our country.’ ” The conversation that Barqawi had with Sheikh Mohammed that day was fortuitous, with the journalist deciding over two decades later to author his first book.

The idea came to him during the early days of the pandemic lockdown. In February this year, he launched Dare to Dream: How Mohammed bin Rashid Made His Dream Come True, at Dubai’s Emirates Airline Festival of Literature. gulfbusiness.com

Lifestyle / Arts

Over three decades ago, upon graduating from college, Barqawi started his career as a business journalist with Al Khaleej. He rose through the ranks to become the newspaper’s business editor, followed by the managing director of the editorial team leading on to the position of editor-in-chief, which he remains till today. He says it took deliberate effort to transition from a “newspaper style” of writing to that required of an author.

The book, initially published in Arabic, has three chapters titled: Working Wonders, A Man Destined to Lead and The Oasis of Imagination. Barqawi cites several examples that shaped his approach to compiling these chapters and which indeed informed the formative years of Sheikh Mohammed.

He cites the example of when Sheikh Mohammed visited the top of the Empire State Building with his father Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum in the Sixties. The future Dubai ruler gazed at the horizon of New York City’s skyscrapers, dreaming of one day building the world’s tallest building in his home city. Then there was also that moment many decades ago when Sheikh Mohammed accompanied his father to London, and upon landing at Heathrow, envisioned creating a mega airport in Dubai that could rival the best in the world. Also, early on Sheikh Rashid appointed Sheikh Mohammed as the head of Dubai Police and sent his son on trips to

“I wrote the book to tell a story of His Highness, of Dubai and of the UAE. It is a story that should be known for generations to follow. How did a leader transform a desert from nothing to something?” the US and UK to study best practices and learn how policing was carried out in those countries. The Burj Khalifa, Dubai Airport and Dubai being regularly featured today as one of the world’s safest cities are all examples of Sheikh Mohammed’s dream for his city coming true.

“One day, I asked His Highness why was he continuously building up the infrastructure in the city much more than what was needed at the time? Sheikh Mohammed said, ‘If I have a target to be a tourist or business destination, then I cannot invite people to my home when my food is not yet ready. We have to be ready, and after that, we invite people to our country. That’s why I’m building even bigger...to be ready when needed’.”

Last year, Dubai alone received 7.28 million international overnight visitors, a 32 per cent year-over-year growth showing how a far-sighted vision can have ramifications decades after the foundation for it was laid.

The book was published by Dubai-headquartered Motivate Media Group whose managing partner and group editor-inchief is Ian Fairservice. “I’ve known Ian

Left-right : Raed Barqawi with Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum and Ian Fairservice at the book launch

gulfbusiness.com

for many decades now, and he is a success story. He became a publisher and is very respected in this city. He delivers what he promises. Motivate is well established and professional, which is why I chose them for this book,” says Barqawi.

Fairservice notes the reason he was so excited to publish the book. “Raed is one of the most distinguished voices in journalism and this will be a fascinating read for anyone who has marvelled at the incredible growth story of Dubai and the UAE. We are proud to have published this phenomenal book about His Highness. It talks about the wisdom and foresight of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid and the impressive development of the UAE.” Present at the launch on February 6 at the Emirates LitFest was Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, chairman and chief executive, Emirates Airline and Group.

That night Barqawi also flew to the Cairo International Book Fair, where he says the book was well received too.

Barqawi has decided to donate all the royalties from the book to Al Noor Training Centre for Persons with Disabilities. He explains that since he’s still working with the newspaper, the book wasn’t meant to serve as a source of income. “I wrote the book to tell a story of His Highness, of Dubai and of the UAE. It is a story that should be known for generations to follow.

How did a leader transform a desert from nothing to something? Understanding that is the aim of my book,” he says.

At the moment, Barqawi is working on the English edition of the book which is expected to launch this month. What’s next? Barqawi says that he’s closely following the reactions to his book and might consider writing another one – the subject of which he is yet to decide. With over three decades observing the region, he will not likely face any dearth of first-hand insights from riveting subjects.

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The SME Story A dedicated hub for the regional startup and SME ecosystem

INTERVIEW

A step ahead

An HR tech services platform founded in the UAE, a pay-per-minute chauffeur service and a growing classifieds business in Kuwait are the SMEs on our radar this month

ability to execute new ideas and the speed of that execution. I think building a framework of decision-making can help a lot in prioritising and identifying the opportunities and challenges to address.

What is the core concept of RemotePass?

Kamal Reggad, co-founder, RemotePass

What’s the most important lesson to learn about being an entrepreneur?

Like most entrepreneurs, when I began building my first startup, I wanted every decision to be perfect. In reality, the intrinsic quality of a decision accounts for maybe 15-20 per cent of the final outcome. The remaining 80 per cent depends on the team’s 74

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We’re working to create a world where anyone can work from anywhere while having access to benefits and financial services. By taking the complexity out of the process and making it a clickthrough experience, we are reinventing payroll and benefits for forward-looking companies and their remote teams.

Companies of different sizes use our platform to build and manage global remote teams. They rely on our solution to establish employment and contractor contracts, manage day-to-day HR operations and process mass cross-border payroll in over 120 countries and in more than 80 currencies.

toughest challenges, as labour laws and processes differ from country to country. Certain technical aspects require a lot of research, external advisory and documentation (payroll, taxation, legislation, etc.)

There is also the complexity of building a flexible and compliant platform with global standards and finding the right resources. You can add to that the difficulty in convincing global providers to dedicate time and resources in the beginning when we had registered only a few transactions.

Give us a business overview of RemotePass’ operations.

We’ve recently secured a pre-series A

What were the challenges you encountered when setting it up?

I think understanding the global HR industry was and is still one of the gulfbusiness.com

The SME Story

100%+

COMPANY GROWTH QUARTER-OVER-QUARTER Aim: to maintain this growth by growing the team from

25 to 60 people over the next three-six months

funding from leading investors. We’ve been growing at over 100 per cent quarter-over-quarter, and our goal is to maintain this growth by growing the team from 25 to 60 people over the next three-six months.

We started in the UAE with a special focus on the region, but today we are a global company. Our clients are spread across the globe, ranging from seed startups to publicly listed and government companies too.

What are your expansion plans?

We aim to continue to grow in the GCC market where we are far from our full potential. We’ve decided to double our teams across the region, as we want every company that has regional or

global ambitions to rely on RemotePass to streamline their compliance and payroll for their remote teams. We are also building an international sales team to conquer new markets in APAC and Europe.

Tarek Sakr, founder and CEO, 4Sale Give us a business overview of 4Sale.

4Sale is Kuwait’s largest online classifieds platform – a platform where people come together to buy and sell goods and services. Our easy-to-use platform is hugely popular, we connect over a million active users a month – that’s one in four people in Kuwait.

Since our inception, we have helped 1.7 million registered users sell over 13.1 million items and services. Currently, we receive over 6,000 new listings every day, and that number is growing. gulfbusiness.com

We charge a flat fee for individual listings in specific categories and have a wide sector coverage, including automotive, electronics, human resources, property and services.

Our growth is reflected by our commercial performance. We are profitable and from 2015-2019, our EBITDA grew at a CAGR of 35.3 per cent. In the same period, our revenue grew at a CAGR of 27.4 per cent.

We have already successfully divested a 56 per cent holding to NBK – its

endorsement as a strategic investor, speaks volumes.

What are the company’s expansion plans?

Our operations are deliberately [focused on] Kuwait only. We have a deep understanding of our market. It is a Kuwaiti solution for Kuwaiti consumers, and appeals to the trading culture of Kuwaitis.

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Kuwait is the most tech-enabled population in the Arab world, and every day digitisation in the country increases, which is reflected in the growing online element of our business model. While our Kuwaiti user base is still growing, it does not make strategic sense for us to divert resources into any new markets.

How have purchasing habits of Kuwaiti consumers evolved in recent years?

We’ve seen a huge transition in the Kuwaiti consumer from physical to online purchasing. We were one of the first players in the online space to enable customers to look for purchases online, and we’ve managed to stay ahead of the competition by consistently offering the customer more in terms of buying and selling.

How has the pandemic affected the online classifieds market?

I can only speak for 4Sale, but our performance was resilient throughout the pandemic. We remained profitable and healthy. As with many sectors, the pandemic encouraged consumers to trade more online, and now 70 per cent of our transactions take place this way. The more traditional customers (30 per cent of our market) prefer cash payments, but I would expect that to gradually reduce. People will always trade, even if their methodology changes. As digitisation increases, we are making a concerted investment in technology, to optimise the user experience, and expand in each vertical.

Bunty Monani, founder and CEO, Zofeur

What inspired you to start Zofeur?

It all started when I wanted to send my car to the service station. The customer service agent there said it would cost me Dhs150 one-way for a driver from JLT to Al Quoz. The price seemed expensive, and I remember thinking that there should be a more affordable option. So, I approached Ishrath [Hasmin] who was my colleague back then, and after conducting extensive research we concluded that there’s a big gap in the market.

That’s how Zofeur was born.

anyone who doesn’t want to compromise time, money and comfort. We onboard highly-trained chauffeurs onto our platform, enabling users to instantly hire chauffeurs to drive their car from one tap on their mobile. Although there are substitute services in a traditional form, there is no direct competition in the market within the tech space. We’ve built a unique technology platform allowing users to hire chauffeurs payper-minute basis, within 30 minutes, share ongoing trips with loved ones, track the car remotely while driven by a chauffeur, and of course, seamless payment methods.

Give us a business overview of Zofeur’s operations.

Tell us about your background.

We launched in July 2020, and since then we have received tremendous traction. We raised our first external funding in May 2021 which was a seed round amounting to $500,000. Currently, we are amidst our pre-series A round of $2m which is already partially closed. To date, we have over 60,000 downloads. We have more than 130 drivers, and are onboarding more every week. We have a total office staff strength of 20.

We both come from a strong finance background and used to work for an oil company as senior financial controllers before starting Zofeur.

What are some of the biggest challenges that you are facing in expanding the business?

How does Zofeur’s business model differ from that of the competition?

Zofeur is a lifestyle platform serving

The biggest challenge for us, and in my opinion which would apply to any startup, is to find the best talent. I strongly believe, it’s your people who

13.1 million

items and services sold by 1.7 million registered users since 4Sale’s inception (L-R) Co-founders Ishrath Hasmin and Bunty Monani

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The SME Story COMMENT

130+ drivers

and more are being onboarded every week To date, Zofeur has over 60,000 downloads

will help your company grow, so it’s of critical importance to find the best candidate for every role, and at a startup pay scale, which often is a challenge.

What are your expansion plans within the region?

Currently, we are operating in Dubai and plan to expand to Abu Dhabi and Sharjah in Q1 this year. Zofeur has found a great product-market fit and we are all set for our international expansion to Saudi Arabia and Bahrain by Q2. gulfbusiness.com

Ammar Al Malik Managing director, Dubai Internet City

Dubai: A breeding ground for startups The emirate’s strategic location has created a fertile landscape for entrepreneurs and startups within the region

A

longside the obvious who, what and why of audience mapping, business planning and funding, the oft-neglected “where” of a business location must be an essential consideration for startups.

The resources and infrastructure you have access to as you lay the foundations of your company determine how far your business can go, figuratively and literally; physically and digitally. You must

consider political climate and governance, the investment landscape and business policies.

There is seldom a one-place-fits-all solution, but Dubai is a viable contender.

Dubai has made credible strides in establishing itself as a destination of choice for businesses and entrepreneurs.

The city has evolved from a hub geared towards attracting global business leaders to nurturing its own crop of March 2022

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independent thinkers and changemakers.

We are seeing a growing volume of ambitious entrepreneurs and SMEs who are developing and exporting new technologies and solutions in an exciting chapter of economic growth.

A highly connected business hub, the emirate is the bridge between the East and the West, and a gateway into the Middle East, South Asia and Africa. It has invested in state-of-the-art physical and digital infrastructures that enable startups and SMEs to access a large and diverse audience with great scope for regional expansion.

Businesses can seamlessly import and export products via air, sea and land, reaching two-thirds of the world’s population in eight hours. Dubai International Airport remains the world’s busiest airport by international passenger traffic, according to global travel data provider OAG. Tripadvisor has also ranked Dubai as among the most popular destinations for 2022 based on the high vaccination rates and strict precautionary measures adopted in the city.

Along with the transformative Etihad Rail heralding a new age for the transport of people and goods across the UAE, an expansive highway network links Dubai to all remaining emirates, as well as Oman and Saudi Arabia. You can trust these infrastructural developments to continue evolving in line with future urban needs as the Dubai Government allocated 9 per cent of the general budget for the next three years to maintain the volume of investments in infrastructure.

When it comes to the digital realm, Dubai’s pursuit of innovation and digital transformation has been unwavering. Today, we have some of the highest

72,152 NEW BUSINESS LICENCES IN 2021 ISSUED BY THE EMIRATES Up by 69% from 2020

$46.4bn

THE AMOUNT OF FOREIGN CAPITAL THAT THE UAE ATTRACTED LAST YEAR With foreign direct investment accounting for nearly half that value

internet penetration rates in the world at 99 per cent, while 93 per cent of our population uses mobile devices to access the internet supported by the availability of 4G at affordable price plans. Our extensive digital infrastructure even allows for Dubai to adopt 5G technology seamlessly.

We are at a stage where industries are converging at the intersection of technology. Healthcare, industry, design, government services and other key industries are embracing the digital revolution to enhance services and offerings, expanding market opportunities and creating room for collaboration between leading companies, SMEs and entrepreneurs.

Dubai’s fertile landscape for business and investment speaks for itself. The Department of Economy and Tourism reported that the emirate issued 72,152 new

DUBAI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT REMAINS THE WORLD’S BUSIEST AIRPORT BY INTERNATIONAL PASSENGER TRAFFIC, ACCORDING TO GLOBAL TRAVEL DATA PROVIDER OAG. TRIPADVISOR HAS ALSO RANKED DUBAI AS AMONG THE MOST POPULAR DESTINATIONS FOR 2022 BASED ON THE HIGH VACCINATION RATES AND STRICT PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES ADOPTED IN THE CITY

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business licences in 2021 – up by 69 per cent from 2020.

A testament to our economic resilience and recovering business sector, Dubai continues to enhance tax-free and business-friendly policies to attract new and retain established businesses alike.

According to the latest estimates by the Institute of International Finance, the UAE attracted $46.4bn in foreign capital last year with foreign direct investment accounting for nearly half that value.

New industrial property laws and labour regulations are expected to support the investment environment, while government-led initiatives such as ‘Make It in the Emirates’, a drive to promote locally manufactured goods, the Cybersecurity Strategy, Industry 4.0 and even the UAE’s roadmap to net-zero emissions by 2050 are generating prospects in a myriad of innovation-centric industries.

Home to 90 investment funds in the digital sector and 12 business incubators in the UAE, there is an immeasurable opportunity for startups and entrepreneurs to find their niche and launching pad.

The pool of skilled talent is constantly replenishing. Local universities are nurturing a new generation of students and independent thinkers, paired with the 10-year Golden Visa initiative, which is attracting specialised professionals and STEM graduates.

Dubai is constantly delivering innovative platforms to highlight its complete startup and entrepreneurial community before a global audience.

Flagship exhibitions such as the recently concluded Step Conference and GITEX play a significant role in elevating the breadth and diversity of businesses and innovation in our region, highlighting the scope for investments and partnerships.

To top it off, many of the features that make Dubai a spectacular place to work and do business are also what make it one of the best places in the world to live.

The UAE is ranked among the top 30 happiest countries in the world according to the 2021 World Happiness Report, and examining the quality of life available here, it is no surprise that Dubai is a destination of choice for families and skilled professionals. gulfbusiness.com

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