GMR | October 2011 by MediaquestCorp.

18 OCTOBER 2011 - NO 201

SECTOR ANALYSIS MALLS & SHOPPING EGYPT’S RETAIL REVOLUTION A MediaquestCorp Publication

TOP 50

GCC CORPORATE

BRANDS

MARKETING

MEET THE ICONOCLASTS – THE POST-ARAB SPRING CONSUMERS

MEDIA

REAL-TIME, ALWAYS-ON COMMUNICATIONS VS BRAND CAMPAIGNS Registered in Dubai Media City

profile

From selling Chinese herbs to head of marketing, Nokia KSA, meet 54 Moussa Obeid

www.GMR-Online.com October 2011 – Issue No. 201

NEWS

Big McJob for MCN’s Jaikumar Menon. New Ethos at Al Rajhi. Beko drops Magna in Morroco. OMG’s DAS increases stake in Wolff Olins ME. Kambriss names ZenithMedia CEO. Etisalat dispenses m-health in Africa. Nokia N9 unveiled. Friesland Campaign adds premium variant to Rainbow range. Oman’s Khayrat expands into frozen vegetables. Arabic script domain names now available. ME version of Audi magazine launches. UAE’s first waste management app goes live.

World News

FT launches app for luxury title. Uniqlo is the first campaign on JC Decaux’s new Olympic rail corridor. Social networking underused by luxury fashion, says study. Kleenex announces skincare launch. M Star and Channel Islands team up to deliver targeted TV ads. Pepsi Co tops sustainability league. Google is launching its YouTube Partner Program in India.

Marketing

Stand-up and be counted: Performing arts are a powerful communications platform for Arabic consumers whose renewed sense of self empowerment and desire for self expression has never been stronger.

Cover Story GMR Exclusive: Top 50 GCC Corporate Brands 38

We teamed up with Brand Finance Middle East to assess the ratio between enterprise value and brand value of the GCC’s publically quoted corporate brands to reveal quite a few surprises among

the Middle East’s corporate movers and groovers.

Media

Time flies... marketing is rapidly evolving from a creative-led to a data-led function, so brand messaging must move to real-time distribution, argues Phd’s Elda Choucair.

Sector Analysis

Despite the continuing global crisis and Arab Spring, the region’s retail sector remains relatively buoyant. In Egypt the non-grocery sector continues to take a larger share in line with the burgeoning shopping centre culture. We report from Cairo. We also look at the inexorable rise of online buying groups. As consumers – Arabic and expat – spend more time online, on PCs and smartphones, etc – how is this changing consumer shopping behaviour? We also report from Bahrain where it’s business, but not quite as usual, as the kingdom’s retailers count the cost of the unrest earlier this year. It’s a different story in Saudi Arabia, however, where retail is boosted by retail sector buoyed by government spending and urbanisation. Reports also include Parc analysis and stats, plus top Sekari search terms and press coverage analysis from Mediastow.

November 2011

Sector Analysis: AUTOMOTIVES What’s new and driving the sector? We report back from the Frankfurt Motor Show.

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64 Sector analysis: Malls & retail MediaquestCorp. Dubai Media City Al Thuraya Tower 2, 24th Floor United Arab Emirates Tel: +(971) 4 391 0760 Fax: +(971) 4 390 8737 www.mediaquestcorp.com

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Reproduction in whole or part of any matter appearing in GMR is prohibited by law without the prior written approval of the publishers. Opinions expressed in GMR do not necessarily represent the views of the publishers and editorial staff of the magazine. The publishers do not hold out any guarantee as to its accuracy, neither do they indemnify any loss arising through use of the information. All dollar prices ($) are US dollars, unless otherwise specified. All marketing data is subject to confirmation. Printed by: Rashid Printers, Ajman

GROUP MANAGING EDITOR Siobhรกn Adams siobhan@mediaquestcorp.com SENIOR SUB EDITOR Elizabeth McGlynn e.mcglynn@mediaquestcorp.com ART DIRECTORS Sheela Jeevan, Aya Farhat CONTRIBUTORS Alex Malouf ADVERTISING: MEDIALEADER United Arab Emirates sales@mediaquestcorp.com Tel: +(971) 4 391 0760 Saudi Arabia: Ghassan A. Rbeiz ghassan@mediaquestcorp.com Europe: S.C.C Arabies 18 rue de Varize 75016 Paris, France Tel: +(33) 01 47 66 46 00 Fax: +(33) 01 43 80 73 62

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PUBLISHED BY: Medialeader FZ/MediaquestCorp FZ Europe: S.C.C Arabies, 18 rue de Varize 75016 Paris, France Tel: +(33) 01 47 66 46 00 Fax: +(33) 01 43 80 73 62 CO-CEO Alexandre Hawari CO-CEO Julien Hawari CFO Abdul Rahman Siddiqui Managing Director Ayman Haydar Regional Director for business development Bassel Komaty Creative Director Aziz Kamel

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News

Fashion-forward Nokia N9 makes regional debut Firm has 42 per cent of category in MEA, with sales of 3.2 million Symbian units. GCC The Middle East has become one of the first regions globally to launch Nokia’s latest smartphone, the N9. Roll-out is expected during Gitex this month. Aimed at the design-conscious, tech-savvy consumer, the N9 offers the only front-face button-free device on the market, says the company. Features also include its Near Field Communications technology – NFC. This works with other NFCoperated phones, as well as some headphones and speakers, allowing users to share photos, music, and content just by tapping the two devices together. Another innovation, says Nokia, is the replacement of the home key by swipe technology, allowing users to swipe from the edge of the display to return to home. Nokia would

IT crowd: Tom Farrell

A clean swipe: N9 debuts

not disclose the marketing spend, but tells GMR the support campaign includes print, online and activation. Carat Mena is managing all communication. “The best Nokia N9 consumers are considered the “it” crowd. They are image-conscious and style-driven, with high appreciation for innovative design that brings differentiation to their personal style and social currency,”

says Tom Farrell, GM Lower Gulf Nokia. According to Gartner Q2 data, Nokia smartphones command 41.9 per cent of the category market in MEA, with sales of 3.2 million Symbian units. “We believe consumers will be attracted to the Nokia N9 through the amazing MeeGo user experience that blends seamlessly with the hardware,” Farrell adds.

When asked specifically about Arabic features, Nokia said Arabic will be available shortly after sales start as a software update option to consumers who have already bought the N9. Nokia is currently testing the Arabic version of the N9 in different regions and with all operators across Mena to ensure the experience is seamless to our consumers. Retail price is $600-$650.

Etisalat to dispense m-health initiative in Tanzania UAE/Tanzania Etisalat is launching a m-health programme in Tanzania. The UAE teleco is working with Zantel, Qualcomm and D-Tree International in using mobile technology to support front-line healthcare providers in offering preventive care and treatment to women and children. Etisalat, Zantel and Qualcomm will provide connectivity, handsets and other technologies, while

Tower of strength: Etisalat supports patient welfare

D-tree International, in conjunction with the Ministry of Health of Zanzibar and

other NGOs, will deploy the service. The mobiles will be equipped with special

software to help medical professionals care for children and maintain a patient record. The risk of maternal fatalities are 50 times higher in Sub-Saharan Africa, compared to developed countries, says Etisalat. Nearly 500,000 women on the continent die every year during pregnancy and four million newborns die during their first 28 days, says Etisalat.

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News

Friesland Campina finds GCC Gold at end of Rainbow Brand extension and marketing campaign aimed at local and Asian consumers GCC Friesland Campina Middle East has developed a new variant of its Rainbow E va p orate d M i l k ra n ge specifically for consumers in the GCC. Called Rainbow Gold, the new line is ‘richer and creamier’ than the more established Original, Cardamon and Light, and was developed with the company’s International R&D center in Holland. Rainbow has a 40 per cent share of the GCC evaporated milk sector. In the UAE, however, it dominates with 85 per cent. The firm declined to reveal the marketing support spend, but said Gold was in line with its Route 2020 strategy, which sees increased focus on emerging markets. “We are investing strategically on bringing innovations that would secure a leadership position for Rainbow in the GCC dairy category,” says Sumeet Mathur, marketing director,

En Route 2020: Sumeet Mathur

Richer: New Rainbow Gold

Friesland Campina Middle East. The campaign primarily targets Arab and subcontinental Asian housewives, aged 25 to 40 years. Media includes pan Arab TV, radio, cinema, OOH, instore activation and social media. Mathur added that the focus is on ‘clutter breaking’ media apertures and quality executions that communicate the premium positioning of Gold. The most crucial element, he added, is wet sampling, which will take place in

selected malls and hypermarkets across the region. “We want consumers to indulge and experience the richer and tastier Rainbow Gold firsthand. We will do this in selected malls and hypermarkets and at various community events across the region.” The creative agency is Leo Burnett. Media is handled by Zenith Optimedia. Asked if any particular consumer insights prompted the launch, Mathur said resea rch revea le d t hat the main category drivers

were aroma, creaminess and after-taste. “We identified a need gap and saw the opportunity for a premium segment in evaporated milk – a richer and tastier offering that would elevate the everyday teadrinking experience.” Friesland Campina dairy products are available in the GCC, where Rainbow has been on the market since its launch in 1955. The firm is the regional subsidiary of Royal Friesland Campina NV, the world’s largest dairy-cooperative.

Sample Central ‘Trys’ out new concept in Dubai mall UAE Al Khayyat Investments has secured the Mena’s master franchise rights for the new ‘tryvertising’ retail concept, Sample Central. The first regional flagship store will open shortly in Festival City, Dubai. Called tryvertising (or try-before-you-buy), Sample Central is stocked full of

products. But for individuals who have registered to become members, everything is free. ‘Payment’ is via online opinion surveys, providing feedback. Once the survey is complete, members can visit the store to select products. Founder and global CEO of

Trying times: Anthony J James

Sample Central, Anthony J James, said: “Tryvertising i g n i te s t he i n te r a c t ion between brands and consumers and enhances brand visibility. “Our members, after trying products from Sample Central, regularly go on to buy the products they previously tested.”

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News

Kambriss and Suvi reach new Zenith MEN A Z en it h me d ia ha s announced two key appointments. Suhail Kambriss has been promoted to COO, a new position within the company. He was previously commercial director at Vivaki Egypt. Kambriss brings 14 years’ experience in media planning, buying and busi-

New role: Suhail Kambriss

Doha debut for The Brand Union ME Significant client gains in Qatar prompted expansion Qatar WPP-owned The Brand Union Middle East has opened an office in Doha. The move follows a major, but as yet unannounced, new business win in Qatar. Iain Webster, executive director, who joined The Brand Union Dubai as client service director in 2008, will set up and lead the new operation. He was previously a group account director at Saatchi & Saatchi Dubai, where he headed up Saatchi & Saatchi Design. Webster is tasked with developing the key client relationship and growing the Qatar business. “This is clearly a very exciting opportunity to build a business in a country that has real momentum,” Web-

Kick off: Iain Webster

ster told GMR. “By focusing on educational and political aspirations, Qatar has cleverly identified a unique positioning for itself within the region. It has also promised to deliver a World Cup-like no other in 2022.” Hermann Behrens CEO, The Brand Union Middle East,

added: “A couple of months ago we started working with a major player in Qatar whose global ambition has enabled us to take the leap and set up an office in Doha.” Asked what the next six months could hold for the region’s branding agencies, Behrens says: “We witnessed a marked pick-up in Q2 this year, with a flurry of existing and new clients requiring strategic brand consultation services as they readjusted their business ambitions. “We’re not getting carried away, though, and it would be naïve for us to think that the GCC economies are immune from the effects of recent happenings in the region and in the west.”

Magna frozen out as Beko opts for OMD Promotion: CV Suvi

ness development across the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. He has been with Vivaki – Zenith’s parent company –since 2008. CV Suvi has been promoted to strategy and integrations director from his previous position as GM, Zenithmedia UAE. Suvi has been with Zenithmedia since its inception in the Middle East, and has held several key roles in his 14 years with the agency.

Morocco White goods manufacturer Beko has appointed OMD Morocco on its local media account. The account was previously held by Magna. The scope of work is full media service. Beko is the first white goods brand in Turkey to expand its sales to international markets with the ambition to become a world brand. Beko-branded products have now become an integral part of 280 million consumers’ lives in more than 100 countries. Today, every two seconds, a Beko-branded product is

Validation: Eric Bequin

sold, says the media agency. This is the latest win for OMD Morocco. Other recent local wins include McDonald’s and Beiersdorf ME’s digital media account. UM had been the incumbent.

“Not only have we been able to demonstrate our acute understanding of the local market and consumers, we’ve also managed to illustrate our ability to deliver results and apply international best practice,” says Eric Bequin, MD of OMD Morocco. “This exciting win adds to a stunning triple-digit growth in the last year and we’re confident that more will follow.” Elsewhere in the region, OMD Egypt secured the very significant Vodafone account during the summer, and the du account in the UAE.

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It is time to achieve.

seddiqi.com

Ibrahim Ahmed Seddiqi, the late Chairman joined the company in 1950 and soon signed the first franchise agreement with the iconic Swiss watch brand Rolex. Along side his father, he played a major role in expanding the brand portfolio for the family business. seddiqi.com

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News

Regional version of the Audi magazine Middle East A Middle East version of the international Audi magazine has launched following the recent introduction of its customer loyalty programme. The international title has been in circulation for 15 years and available in 35 languages in 70 countries. According to Audi, more than 8.5 million copies are printed each year.

Covertible: Dual-language Audi magazine

The regional version, which is dual language, will have an initial print run of 10,000. BPA auditing is under consideration. It will also be available online and via iPad and iPhone apps. “The ma ga z i ne ma kes the brand more tangible, communicates new model lau nches, tech nolog ies and news, and reinforces our bra nd, says a n Aud i spokesman. The magazine will be mailed to customers and available in Audi showrooms and selected five-star hotels and retail outlets in the UAE.

New dawn for Saudi Goody Products $200,000 behind BTL and activation will support campaign Saudi Arabia Saudi Goody Products Marketing Co. has expanded into the kingdom’s breakfast cereal category with a new brand, Goody Life. The range comprises Choco Balls, G-Fit and Cornflakes. Nestlé allegedly dominates the Saudi cereal market with a 45 per cent share, although the category itself is comparatively small since cheese, foul and breads are the traditional Arabic morning foods. According to the Bakery and Cereal in Saudi Arabia 2013 report, the category increased at a CAGR rate of 3.3 per cent (2003 to 2008). Bread and rolls dominate Saudi’s bakery and cereals market accounting for 98.3 per cent. “Breakfast cereal is not a big deal in Saudi Arabia, but it is a growing market,” says marketing director Waqas Moosa.

Crunch time: Category development slow in the kingdom

He added that the company had a good a track record of category growth citing its peanut butter and pasta, which he said soon became market leaders. “So it’s the same with cereals. Rather than waiting for the market to grow big enough and entering then, we felt that it is better to launch now and be a driver of the growth. “This is essentially why we feel that we will not really be competing with Nestlé and Kellogg’s head-on.

“There is more than enough potential in the market for all the brands to grow by growing the market.” Goody has put $150,000 to $200,000 behind the launch for Q4 focusing on BTL and instore activation to generate trial. Creative was handled by Leo Burnett Jeddah, media by OMD Jeddah. Paris-based CBa handled the artwork. Launch in the UAE is slated for early 2012, followed by the rest of the GCC. An ATL campaign will support the roll-out.

UAE’s first waste management app UAE Eco solutions company Averda has launched what it claims is a-first-of-itskind, high-tech waste management app. iaverda is the UAE’s first iPad and iPhone app that allows the community to participate in the cleaning of their environment, says the company. The initial launch is for the Abu Dhabi communities for which Averda provides services, but will soon be avail-

Waste not: iAverda

able across all of the UAE. Customers will utilise the technology to activate Averda’s quick response waste manage-

ment team whenever action is needed. The app features an interface giving residents within Averda’s coverage areas an interactive, direct link to the corporation. Residents can send an image or text via the app and Averda deals with the report, providing status updates and completion notifications. The apps can be downloaded from the iPad and iPhone App Store.

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Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time to analyze. Osama Ibrahim Ahmed Seddiqi, Vice President of Finance & Administration, joined the company in 2005. He is responsible for overseeing the creation of Seddiqi Holding to consolidate the familyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s diverse business interests in luxury goods and property. seddiqi.com

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News

Branding is ‘suffering’ due to lack of local talent Regional branding veteran Bibi decries ‘interference’ from global headquarters MENA A regional branding expert has warned that the sector is “suffering” due to a lack of locally based talent within both agencies and multinational client companies. “Branding is suffering in particular and marketing in general because they are losing out on local expertise,” industry veteran Abed Bibi tells GMR. “And by that I don’t just mean Arabs, but expats who have been here a long time and really understand the market.” He added that agencies which were part of global networks were especially vulnerable to “interference” from head offices in London or New York when building a local strategy. There was little chance of regional brands reaching global potential unless

t he sit uat ion cha n ges, he continues. “They [brands] will not develop in the outside world unless the outside world accepts our local expertise. It isn’t only the west which knows about our markets.” He cited Brownbook magazine and The Pavillion Downtown Dubai as examples of modern Arab branding. Bibi comments co-incided with the sale of his shares in Wolff Olins FZ-LLC to Omnicom-owned DAS, thereby increasing Das’ majority. Wolff Olins FZ-LLC officially opened in Dubai in January 2009 and was created by Wolff Olins board director, Charles Wright and Bibi. The Dubai office was Wolff Olin’s third global hub. It was set up to service the wider Mena region and Asia.

Over the Laimoon: Abed Bibi

The agency has now relocated within Dubai Media City to OMG’s regional HQ and has increased its focus on the Indian market. “We started with the Arab markets and they accounted for maybe two thirds of our business last year. The plan this year was to move to a more even balance, with a proactive new business effort in India,” Charles Wright told

GMR. “Net net, we should end this year where we wanted with 20 per cent growth, a decent profit and the Arab markets, and India at more or less 50:50.” Bibi has since formed a JV with former Zawya directors Ihsam Jawal and Hussain Makiya, among others, to create digital incubator Honeybee Tech. The first project from the Honeybee stable is marketing recruitment site Laimoon.com which, according to Bibi, offers a fresh approach to talent search. Currently in Beta form, the site encourages digital conversation between job searcher and prospective employer, almost like an online interview, says Bibi. “It’s a more fun way to connect professionals with jobs for which they are qualified.”

Arabic script domain names to offer greater IP safety UAE Dot Bra nd Solut ions Mena has launched in the Middle East. The initiative offers Arab companies greater protection for their trademarks; help in acquiring and operating their own TLDs (Top Level Domains) as alternatives to .com, .net and country codes; and domain names in Arabic script, says the company. DotBrand Solutions MENA is a partnership between “dot-brand” supplier, global domain name registry CentralNic, and a consortium

of Middle East businessmen, including UAE-based Nabil Alyousuf. New TLDs result from a policy change announced in June by domain name regulator ICANN. This allows new domain extensions, along with the traditional .com and country codes so companies can end their domain names with their own brand name, such as .canon or .unicef. Middle Eastern companies will also have the opportunity to run their own generic TLDs such as .music

Happy endings? Nabil Alyousuf

or .green. And all of these new domain names can be in Arabic. “The introduction of dot-

brand and Arabic top-level domains signals a new era of internet growth in the Middle East,” says Alyousuf. He added that it gives local businesses the opportunity to supply their markets with their own domain names, as well as putting local companies with international ambitions on the same level as their competitors from other regions. Dot-brand TLDs will also reduce cybersquatting, knockoff sites and brand abuse, says the company.

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News

Menon quits MCN for McDonald’s role Middle East Jaikumar Menon has left MCN after 18 years to join long-standing client McDonald’s. Throughout his time at MCN Menon held a variety of media r ole s, m o s t r e c e n t l y t h e regional post of VP MCN Media. He has now taken the newly created role of consumer and business Insights director at McDonald’s Middle East Development. Based in Dubai he will be responsible

New Ethos at Al Rajhi as agencies move Greater focus on digital sees specialist agency on media roster Saudi Arabia Al Rajhi Bank has handed its digital responsibilities to Ethos and media to Mediacom following a shakeup which sees previous incumbent Starcom off the roster. “Both Ethos and Mediacom are new to the mix. “Ethos will ensure digital thinking is at the forefront of all brand communications and Mediacom will bring a market muscle and expertise combined with a strong team who have previous experience of working with Al Rajhi Bank,” head of marketing and corporate communicat i on s Yu s u f Je n h a n g i r, tells GMR. The two agencies will sit alongside incumbent creative

Opening accounts: Yusuf Jehangir

partner WOM Communications whose remit has been extended to Jordan and Kuwait. Both territories were previously handled by TBWA. Creative direction will be developed in Saudi Arabia a nd exec uted loca l ly i n each market. The bank has increased its digital budget to 10 per cent

from the overall 2011 marketing, which according to Jehangir is in the region of $15m. “In terms of overall strategy, we are increasing our online engagement as the traditional communication model shifts from preacher to facilitator and consumers trust traditional advertising less and peer group endorsement more.” With offices in Riyadh, Jeddah, Dubai and Beirut, Ethos provides a wide range of online and digital services. The company has been active since 2005 and has worked with a number of Saudi brands such as Nadec, Al Baik and the Savola Group. Al Rajhi’s roster also includes Traccs and Asda’a for PR.

He’s lovin’ it: Jaikumar Menon

for 17 markets including the GCC, Levant, Turkey, Cyprus, Egypt, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. “My new role is to ensure that business strategies are grounded in appropriate consumer and business insights, as well as foresights to balance risk and rewards,” he tells GMR. He will also lead delivery of objective consumer and business insights and emerging trends that shape priorities for the region. MCN CEO Ghassan Harfouche is filling the position vacated by Menon, along with that of Initiative, until a replacement for CEO H isha m Ta n n i r who lef t before the summer.

TagBrands plans Saudi expansion for Q2 Lebanon/UAE/Saudi Arabia Brand consultancy Tagbrands is planning to expand into Saudi Arabia during the second quarter of next year. According to managing partner Joe Moufarrej, the move compliments the agency’s growing Saudi client base which includes Saudi Oger, Kaust and SACO. “A permanent presence in Riyadh is now required,” Moufarrej tells GMR. “The Riyadh office will not only help service our current clients, but help with the expansion of Tagbrands as a local regional agency.” Tagbrands UAE recently

Saudi-bound: Joe Moufarrej

relocated to JLT from Dubai Media City to facilitate further growth in the Emirates. Tag is the agency of the MENA Design Research Center which it claims is the first of its kind in the region. “The center is dedicated to developing projects aimed at

social innovation through various research methodologies borrowed from design and social sciences. “Through collaborations with NGOs, educational institutions, multidisciplinary designers, ethnographers, psychologists, anthropologists and sociologists, its main objective is to encourage creative and innovative problem solving for current social and environmental issues in the region.” Recent client projects include the Watania rebrand; creation of The Loubani Mastercard credit card for Bank Audi and the Pynkiss fashion brand.

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CMY

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WORLD NEWS

Feature phone apps market to almost double to $1bn Forty per cent of mobile users own smartphones; 40 per cent are android, study says US Some 40 per cent of mobile consumers aged 18 years and above have smartphones, according to July data from Nielsen. It found that android is the most popular operating system, with 40 per cent of mobile consumers owning a smartphone with an Android OS. Apple’s iOS is in second place, with 28 per cent. Among those who say they are likely to get a new smartphone in the next year, one third say they want an iPhone and one third an Android.

However, among those who claim early adopter status – “Innovators” – Android leads as the “Next Desired Operating System” with 40 per cent for Android versus 32 per cent for iOS. Among likely smartphone upgraders, it is the “Late Adopters” who are most likely to say they are “not sure” which OS they’d like in their next smartphone. These “undecideds” will be the ones device makers will be hoping to win over, says Neilsen.

MStar to bring targeted adverts

Deluxe fashion should tap social media

Taiwan/US Software firm Channel Islands and semiconductor maker MStar have launched a Next Generation TV Platform software. The new software allows premium TV services, such as Targeted Advertising, VOD, enhanced EPG and chat for end users of MStar set top boxes. Features include user profiling and geographic targeting for motion video ads, as well as audience measurement and response metrics The system is compatible with standard and HD set top boxes for IP, cable, terrestrial and satellite networks. “Smaller advertisers can participate in highly sophisticated ad campaigns over geographically targeted broadcast TV networks” says Ross Cooper, CEO Channel Islands.

US Despite its younger following, older HNWI are more influenced by social media than previously thought. Nearly half of ultra-affluents (incomes of $25,000-plus) and HNW ($1mplus in investable assets) are influenced by social media, says Unity Marketing. “Ultra-affluents and HNW fashion shoppers were far more likely to be influenced by social media than HENRYs (High Earners Not Rich Yet, $100,000 to $250,000) and low-net-worth shoppers (less than $1 million investable assets),” says Unity president Pam Danziger. “Fashion marketers need to make use of social media to build relationships.” The survey also found that 65 per cent (avg. income $301.8k; net wealth $856k (median);

Smartphone OS share/penetration

OS Share: May 11 to July 11. Mobile Insights, US

40%

28%

19% RIM Blackberry

7% Windows mobile

5% Other

1% Windows phone 7

Penetration: May 11 to July 11. Mobile Insights, US

60% Feature phones

40% Smart phones

Source: Nielsen 2011

In the past year, from July 2010 until today, did comments or information gathered via social media, such as Facebook, Twitter or FourSquare, influence any of the following... Total Young affluent (24-44 years) Mature affluent (45+) HENRY ($100K$249.9K) Ultra-affluent ($250k+) LNW (<$1m) HNW ($1m+) (%)

Internet website to visit Retail store in which to shop Designer brand to buy Avg. Income $301.8k Net wealth $856k (median) Avg age 45.3 years Male 46% / Female 54% n = 827 Luxury fashion buyers Source: Unity Marketing Luxury Tracking Study (www.unitymarketingonline.com)

avg age 45.3 years; male 46 per cent/female 54 per cent) reported buying one or more high-end brand of shoes, handbags, clothing or other fashion

accessories in the past year. Unity surveyed 1,237 consumers with incomes of $100,000-plus who bought luxury during July.

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WORLD News

How to app it for a luxury lifestyle

Uniqlo on starting block for Olympic rail

UK London’s Financial Times has launched a free iPad app for its luxury lifestyle magazine How To Spend It. Features include a backcatalogue of 60 past editions, content from new issues posted seven days a week, plus postings such as blogs, columns and interviews. Content is free to download.

UK Uniqlo’s autumn collection comes to London’s Stratford Regional Station in the first campaign on JC Decaux’s new ‘Stratford Corridor Gateway Domination’ opportunity. The five-week campaign promotes the launch of Uniqlo’s new store at Westfield Stratford City mall. Westfield is the gateway to the London 2012 Olympic Part and at 1.9 million square feet is the largest mall in Europe serving a catchment area of four million people. The ‘Stratford Corridors’ comprise two high-flow passenger tunnels that link all the platforms at Stratford Regional Station to the Olympic Park exit.

Japanese retailer inaugurates Decaux’s new Underground sites

Running ahead: Uniqlo nabs Decaux’s Olympic rail corridor

Visitors travelling by tube, train or Docklands Light Railway to the Olympic Park and shopping mall will pass through these corridors, reaching an audience of 432,390 a month, says Decaux. The boardings comprise giant wall wraps

and multiple creatives on 11 newly-installed D6 screens. The campaign was booked through Kinetic-planned Eden (the media agency JV between Adam & Eve and the 7stars) with the creative agency Dentsu London.

Extra app: New from the FT

Indian debut for YouTube partners

FT deputy CEO and global commercial director, Ben Hughes, says: “The app offers new mobile possibilities for advertisers, including a brand hub where advertisers can showcase their brand and products in detail.” According to Mediaweek. co.uk the FT is running a dual strategy regarding apps. In August it removed its core newspaper app from Apple’s store. It cited the FT’s unwillingness to meet Apple’s requirements to retain subscriber data and a 30 per cent cut of subscriptions sold through the App store. Some apps, such as its Chinese issue, are still available at the Apple store.

India Google is launching its YouTube Partner Program in India. The initiative enables original video creators to become content partners of YouTube and help them monetise their work through advertising. Once a video creator is accepted for the programme, ads will appear overlaid or ne x t to t hei r v ide os, reports info@bestmediainfo. com.YouTube splits the revenue generated by those ads with the partner. The company has been inducting handpicked Indian members – such as Yoboho New Media and Jai Hind TV – to the Partner Program since last Decem-

Making money: Some partners make up to $100,000 a year

ber and is now opening it to all Indian users who might be eligible. David Macdonald, head of YouTube content operations, Asia Pacific, says: “YouTube has been a great platform for Indian content as demonstrated by the successes of the Indian Premier League and our Bollywood studio partners.”

The Program boasts a 20,000-strong community of content creators across the globe. Every year it pays out millions of dollars through the programme, with some partners making more than $100,000 a year or making more than $1,000 a month. India companies such as Yoboho New Media and Jai Hind TV are already members.

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W O R L D N e ws

Romantic liaison for Gossip Girl USA A fa sh ion col lec t ion inspired by US teen drama Gossip Girl has launched in the US. Gossip Girl by Romeo & Juliet Couture has been listed by Kitson, Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue to co-incide with the show’s fifth season. The collection retails from $80 - $200. Handbags and accessories will be added to the spring collection. “The designs are intended to empower young, independent women to embrace their feminine side and still

Wear it well: TV show inspired fashion

maintain their strength,” says David Shamouelian, CEO Romeo & Juliet Couture. Based on the series of young adult novels by Cecily von Ziegesar, the series is narrated by an unseen blogger and revolves around the scandalous lifestyle of Manhattan’s young elite. The show debuted in 2007 on The CW Network and, with the fifth series, is approaching its 100th episode. Marketing support for the new collection includes onair ads, online promotions, in-store signage and various line-launch events.

NNA takes leading role in reality show Mesh of branded entertainment, gaming & social media says VP

Leading role: NNA, SCEA and Polyphony Digital in new reality show

USA Nissan North America, Inc. (NNA), Sony Computer Entertainment America LLC (SCEA) and Polyphony Digital Inc are co-producing a new reality show. Called GT Academy USA the show takes 16 Gran Turismo 5 gamers and gives them a chance to become a professional race car driver. GT Academy USA is divided into three phases: tournament, driver develop-

ment and reality show. The programme is a five-part reality series on Speed TV. Content is collected from each phase and is culminated with a reality show scheduled to air on Speed, which will announce the season one winner. Originally launched in Europe in 2009, GT Academy is being brought to the US for the first time and is adapted for local audiences.

“GT Academy USA is a mesh of gaming, branded entertainment, and social media, all designed to entertain, engage, and reward the audience across multiple platforms from gaming consoles to social networks and primetime,” said Jon Brancheau, VP marketing NN America. Digital marketing includes several auto and gaming sites plus a custom made Nissan site. “To maximise excitement around the tournament we created a custom GT Academy USA driving tips and sign up process video,” he added. GTA is being supported by multi-media including: TV across multiple networks, video seeding and behaviourial targeting and sites such as Facebook and YouTube. The campaign was created by OMD, TBWA\Chiat\ Day Los Angeles, Critical Mass and Radical Media.

Samsonite lifts top Spikes Asia award Singapore Sa mson ite has been named Spikes Asia Advertiser of the Year 2010. Throughout the decades, the 100 year old band has promoted its hard-side luggage by emphasising its durability with taglines such as “Strong Enough to Stand On” and “Tough Luggage for a Tough World”. More recently it has turned to more localised marketing across multi-platforms.

Earlier this year it carried off five Cannes Lions for its Heaven and Hell campaign created by JWT Shanghai. Lions chairman Terry Savage: “has not only put the spotlight on the great creative work coming out of Asia but has also highlighted Samsonite’s willingness to embrace creativity a nd push the boundaries in their product communications for the Asian market.”

Ramesh Tainwala, president of Samsonite Asia-Pacific a nd M idd le East added, “Key agency relationships are vital for growing Samsonite’s brand awareness and image in Asia as we strive to increase our footprint in the region’s top growth markets.” Last yea r Sa mson ite’s products were sold in more than 37,000 points-of-sale in more than 100 countries.

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Marketing

Message to the masses: Tunisian rap singer Hamada Ben Amor, also known as The General

Rocking the casbah

A counter-cultural revolution spawned by the Arab Spring has created a new Arab consumer – the Iconoclast. we are now very familiar with the term ‘Arab Spring’. In this article we talk about a different aspect of the Arab Spring – a counter-cultural revolution which has been quietly but steadily fermenting behind the scenes. Powered by the Arab Spring, this cultural movement has instilled a new rebellious spirit within Arab consumers. We are witnessing the birth of a new consumer archetype – the Iconoclasts. Iconoclasts are young and restless, yet brave and bold. They are rising and subverting the established order to design new cultural spaces. Empowered by social media and armed with creativity, they are escaping repressive conformity, expressing themselves in unique ways and breaking existing stereotypes. Their impact is best manifested in the mercurial

rise of anarchic art forms. Be it music, theatre or fine arts – these avant-garde art forms are flowering and heralding a new art renaissance across the region. Just check out the Arab Spring-inspired art at this year’s Venice Bienale which is captivating audiences around the world. This art renaissance led by the Iconoclasts is the new marketing reality of the region which presents a huge opportunity for brands. Let’s understand some of these seminal art forms closely and gain an insight into what makes them tick. Stand-up comedy Comedy has always been serious business in the region, with celebrated TV shows such as Tash Ma Tash exerting huge cultural influences. Yet comedy

in the region has nearly always been equated with slapstick and satire. Contrast this with stand-up, a quintessential American art form, almost unheard of a few years ago, now making waves in the Arab world. So how did this shift come about? It was an Arab-American troupe of comedians who brought the art form to the region through the ‘Axis of Evil’ tour in 2006. Back then stand-up was not a standard performance art. Moreover, none of the members spoke fluent Arabic, which meant the shows were all in English. It was a huge gamble which no one thought would work. They were wrong. All of the shows were a sell out, and the gamble paid off – big time. The key driver in its success was the role played by the region’s dominant

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youth community (which is almost 70 per cent of the region’s population). The internet-savvy young population had already been exposed to stand-up via Youtube and couldn’t get enough of it. The video portal had created a huge appetite for stand-up content. In a place such as Saudi Arabia where performing arts opportunities are so limited, stand-up came as a breath of fresh air. Local shows, often deemed risqué, nevertheless thrive in remote locations and underground cafés. They are usually advertised using social media at close networks of people and have grown from performances for 50 people to audiences of thousands. Laughter has created a ripple effect in the region. The region now has its own stand-up festival in Amman. Created in 2008, the annual festival brings together the growing community of Arab comedians and celebrates their work with the outside world. Not to be left behind, Comedy Central was recently launched by Abu Dhabi’s TwoFour54 to provide Arab comics a content platform to realise their talent, while in Saudi Arabia Century 21 Events hosted standup shows in Jeddah. Nescafé, Rabea and Helen Cupcakes were sponsors with MixFM as media partner. Stand-up is not the only art form inspiring free expression, however. Hip-hop As a form of music, hip-hop is hardly new to the region. It has been in the limelight for a while, but only has it recently emerged from the underground to the mainstream, evolving from entertainment to a medium of subversion. Hip-hop had an integral role to play in recent uprisings. The young Tunisian rapper, El General in his track ‘Rais Le Bled’ bluntly pointed to the country’s ills. Within days it went viral and was on everyone’s lips during the street demonstrations. Not only did the song become the anthem of the Tunisian uprising,

Hello sweetie: Cadbury’s Academy of Joy stand-up comedy tour

El General was recently named in Time Magazine’s 100 most influential personalities but also travelled borders, inspiring the Egyptian protesters in Tahrir Square. El General was recently named in Time Magazine’s 100 most influential personalities. It’s often been argued that rap music in the US originated as a counter-cultural response to oppression and racism. Therefore it’s always representing anger and struggle. No surprises, then, that it provided a channel for the youth to express themselves freely. Another reason on why youth love hip-hop is because it’s based on poetry – something of which Arabs are very proud. The music has rapidly gained momentum across the region to the extent that now there’s a new website MidEastTunes(www.mideastunes.com) that provides a platform for underground artists to upload and share their music with the world.

Comic books Although the region’s comic book industry is still niche, recent developments have renewed interest in this graphic art form. The biggest success story in this sphere has been The 99. Billed as the world’s first Muslim superheroes, the series is a creation of Kuwaiti psychologist Naif-Al Mutawa. The comics feature Islam-inspired superheroes who preach a code of peace and non-violence. There’s even a burqa-clad character called ‘Batina the Hidden’ from Yemen. The 99 has in turn inspired the growing comic book sub-culture in the region. Qais Sedki, a former IT professional, created UAE’s first Manga novel The Gold Ring. Illustrated by celebrated manga creators in Japan, but with the text in Arabic, the work is a great example of bridging cultures through cartoons. With rising interest in comics, the region

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Marketing

Winning words: Saudi poet Hissa Hilal arrives at Million’s Poet’s grand finale

...a Saudi veiled woman became a finalist on Million’s Poet ...Her performance became an overnight sensation... now boasts its own comic convention – Middle East Film & Comic Con. What’s in it for marketers? So how do marketers participate in this culture of change? And how can they engage with Iconoclasts on a meaningful level? The biggest challenge for marketers today is posed by the dawn of the new era of marketing communications where the 30-second TVC is gradually becoming ‘moving wallpaper’ and continues to slide in the hierarchy of communications. With consumers taking control of the marketing conversation it’s getting harder and harder to connect with consumers. Meaning is being derived by brand experiences – experiences which are simple, human and enduring.

And that’s exactly what art is all about. It gives a sense of meaning for humanity in an unstable world. Hence it’s inextricably linked to the experience of being human. In a society where freedom of speech could be restrictive, art becomes more than just entertainment. It’s a mode of self-expression and as well as subversion the sheer power of which can be witnessed through the social change sweeping the region Some leading marketers have been quick to tap into the growing art movement to design meaningful human experiences to captivate their consumers. These experiences are about designing active engagement platforms, not the typical ‘wallpaper’ sponsorships like the old days. It’s not just the luxury marketers who are active on the art scene,

but the mass brand marketers which have realised its mainstream potential. We should make it clear that most of the examples here were instigated pre-Arab Spring. What makes them pertinent is that these brands were among the first to recognise the power of art in helping to promote a greater sense of self identity and empowerment. In a post-Arab Spring world this latent quest for freedom in expression will become increasingly acute. Stand-up comedy To bring to life its promise of spontaneous joy, Cadbury created ‘Academy of Joy’– a stand-up comedy tour across the region. The GCC-wide comedy tour was not just about spreading laughter, but also inspiring and nurturing budding comic talent through special workshops. The best ones were then given a chance to perform live with the professionals. Poetry Research clearly showed that Arab women used poetry to celebrate who they are as people. Not only is there a rich tradition of poetry in Arabic

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Marketing

Art of the matter: Al Rajhi Bank created Saudi’s first painting competition for women

In a society where freedom of speech could be restrictive, art becomes more than just entertainment. literature, the art form also provides an outlet for self-expression which especially resonates among Saudi women. This was exemplified when a Saudi veiled woman became a finalist on Million’s Poet – a talent show for poets aired on Abu Dhabi TV. Her performance became an overnight sensation as her poem lashed out against the authorities. Galaxy tapped into this phenomenon to connect with Arab women. We helped Galaxy create the region’s first poetry segment on MBC1 entitled ‘Passion for Words’. More than 4,300 women submitted their poems willing to read them out on air. Fine Arts There’s also a rich tradition of calligraphy and Islamic art among Saudi women.

Al Rajhi Bank created Saudi’s first painting competition for women last year, showcasing 300 select paintings at an art gallery. The bank’s purpose was to give women a voice in society, financially and emotionally. Audi recently named artist Sacha Jafri as its brand ambassador in the Middle East. Their first project was the transformation of an Audi TT Roadster into a piece of art. The proceeds of the vehicle go to START, an NGO supporting art education among under-privileged children. Skywards, Emirates’s frequent flyer programme, also has long supported the arts through its ‘Future Artists’ initiative, a worldwide competition to find the world’s most exciting artists.

The above are a few examples of some brands which dared to venture into the unchartered’ territory of arts. But the question is how pertinent and effective are these brand-art partnerships? Recent research from UK-based Bauer Media has confirmed that consumers appreciate and welcome these brand-art marriages, as long as they deliver a meaningful experience. With the success of popular entertainment platforms such as Arabs’ Got Talent, Million’s Poet and the forthcoming Arab Idol, the love of art among the common man appears to have reached a tipping point. These platforms will continue to inspire artistic creativity among our Iconoclasts. These platforms, coupled with brand-art partnerships, will continue to fuel the art renaissance in the region. n

Mohit Lodha Human experience director, SMG Dubai

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The only way is up...

GMR Exclusive: Working with Brand Finance ME we reveal the winners and losers in 2011’s Top 50 Corporate GCC Brands survey. Brand Finance is an independent brand valuation consultancy which publishes an annual study of the top 50 portfolio brands in the GCC. In this feature we look at how the brands performed this year compared to 2010 and how they stack as an indicator of short- to medium-term growth potential. The region is largely dominated by family-owned and government-controlled enterprises. Most brands are domiciled in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Unsurprisingly Bahrain and Oman feature less. Brand selection was restricted by lack of financial information, which is generally only available for publicly quoted companies. Because of this some strong Gulf brands don’t appear as they are privately held or reliable financial data is unavailable. As was the case in 2010, banking and telecos continue to dominate, while property declined dramatically. Telecos and, to a certain extent, banks have recovered from the crisis in much better shape and faster than other sectors.

Since the start of the global financial recovery, many regional brands have increased their brand value (BV) through strategies such as international expansion, disposals, focusing on core competencies and brand repositioning. According to David Haigh, Brand Finance’s global CEO, consumer-orientated brands were the most buoyant. The top 50 This year’s top 50 GCC BV of $37.9bn is up seven per cent from 2010’s $35.9bn. The Brand Value Enterprise Value (BV/ EV) ratio measures how ‘hard’ the brand is working, ie how much value the brand adds to the EV. This year seven per cent of the total GCC Enterprise Value comprises BV, which is consistent with the result in 2010 (seven per cent). Brand portfolios The UAE and Saudi Arabian brands continue to dominate with about 70 per cent of the BV.

Brands portfolio Winners Etisalat Qtel Al Rajhi Bank Mobily Samba Financial Group National Bank of Abu Dhabi Emirates NBD Riyad Bank First Gulf Bank STC Losers Saudi Electricity Co. Zain Kuwait Finance House Petro Rabigh Americana TAQA DP World Agility Emaar Properties Emirates Integrated Telco

Change in BV (US$ millions) 783 584 582 448 317 307 295 290 234 222 Change in BV (US$ millions) -806 -596 -422 -351 -341 -236 -91 -69 -57 -48

Source: Brand Finance plc 2011

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C O V ER S T O R Y

TOP 50 ME Brands (US$ millions) – brand splits

Ranking 2011

Ranking 2010

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50

1 3 5 4 2 11 9 10 12 8 25 17 27 24 14 18 20 6 N/A 30 19 29 29 22 31 15 33 26 40 34 35 49 36 13 16 37 38 41 43 39 47 – – – 50 – 45 – 21 n/a

Brand

Sector

Domicile

Emirates Etisalat Qtel STC Zain Al Rajhi Bank Mobily Emirates NBD National Bank Of Abu Dhabi DP World Samba Financial Group Sabic Riyad Bank First Gulf Bank NBK Almarai Co. Ltd QNB Saudi Electricity Co. Industries Qatar ADCB Du Banque Saudi Fransi SABB Agility Arab National Bank TAQA Mashreq Emaar Properties Pjsc QIB Ahli United Bank Dubai Islamic Bank Commercial Bank Jarir Bookstore Kuwait Finance House Americana Omantel Dar Al Arkan ADIB Bank Muscat Batelco Woqod RAKBANK Doha Bank Arab Banking Corporation Dubai Investments Union National Bankk Burgan Bank Saudi Hollandi Bank Petro Rabigh Air Arabia

Airlines Cellular Telecom Telephone-Integrated Telecom Services Cellular Telecom Commer Banks Non-US Telecom Services Regional Banks-Non US Commer Banks Non-US Whsing&Harbor Trans Serv Commer Banks Non-US Chemicals-Diversified Commer Banks Non-US Commer Banks Non-US Commer Banks Non-US Food-Dairy Products Commer Banks Non-US Electric-Integrated Chemicals Commer Banks Non-US Telephone-Integrated Commer Banks Non-US Commer Banks Non-US Logistics Commer Banks Non-US Electric-Generation Commer Banks Non-US Real Estate Oper/Develop Commer Banks Non-US Commer Banks Non-US Commer Banks Non-US Commer Banks Non-US Retail-Office Supplies Commer Banks Non-US Food-Misc/Diversified Telecom Services Real Estate Oper/Develop Commer Banks Non-US Commer Banks Non-US Telecom Services Oil Refining & Marketing Commer Banks Non-US Commer Banks Non-US Commer Banks Non-US Venture Capital Commer Banks Non-US Commer Banks Non-US Commer Banks Non-US Chemicals Airlines

UAE UAE Qatar Saudi Arabia Kuwait Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia UAE UAE UAE Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia UAE Kuwait Saudi Arabia Qatar Saudi Arabia Qatar UAE UAE Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia Kuwait Saudi Arabia UAE UAE UAE Qatar Bahrain UAE Qatar Saudi Arabia Kuwait Kuwait Oman Saudi Arabia UAE Oman Bahrain Qatar UAE Qatar Bahrain UAE UAE Kuwait Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia UAE

Brand Value 2011

Brand Rating 2011

Enterprise Value

3,622 3,390 2,949 2,616 2,293 1,504 1,423 1,238 1,142 942 792 791 751 750 743 738 703 650 629 584 599 507 476 462 457 449 425 411 368 366 350 342 330 326 324 323 311 305 300 292 256 245 224 220 216 209 203 196 189 175

AAAAAAA A+ AAAA+ A+ AA AA A+ AAAA AAAA+ AA+ AAAA+ A A AAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAA+ A+ A A+ A AA A A+ AA A+ AAAAAAA A A+ A

22,740 18,067 29,151 20,193 30,919 12,215 4,464 7,651 14,394 15,140 99,482 11,290 5,615 17,804 7,617 16,786 31,488 17,093 3,091 3,681 9,387 9,276 1,988 7,140 18,453 n/a 6,352 4,909 4,145 2,389 5,305 1,751 10,743 2,753 2,412 2,808 1,874 3,007 1,990 1,268 1,352 2,826 1,555 947 2,193 2,354 2,938 12,331 598

Source: Brand Finance plc 2011

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–

Brand Value / Enterprise Value (%) n/a 15% 16% 9% 11% 5% 6% 28% 15% 7% 5% 1% 7% 13% 4% 10% 4% 2% 2% 19% 7% 5% 5% 23% 6% 2% n/a 6% 7% 9% 15% 6% 19% 3% 23% 15% 11% 16% 10% 15% 20% 18% 8% 14% 23% 10% 9% 7% 2% 29%

Brand Value 2010 3,518 2,607 2,366 2,393 2,889 922 976 943 835 1,033 475 639 461 517 685 621 545 1,457 – 394 572 334 400 531 356 685 330 468 241 323 315 177 300 748 665 285 277 222 202 246 181 132 169 159 174 144 186 147 539 –

Enterprise Value 2010* 12,131 19,951 4,265 32,607 24,170 30,899 10,049 6,734 8,228 13,004 13,380 90,871 11,720 7,319 12,910 6,095 13,165 24,211 – 2,750 3,738 8,755 10,550 2,267 8,233 18,469 3,968 6,401 4,753 2,903 3,083 4,430 1,452 10,172 2,470 2,586 4,046 1,701 2,566 2,245 908 1,179 2,424 1,380 972 2,196 1,440 2,999 15,787 –

Brand Value / Enterprise Value 2010 (%) 29% 13% 14% 7% 12% 3% 10% 14% 10% 8% 4% 1% 4% 7% 5% 10% 4% 6% – 14% 15% 4% 4% 23% 4% 4% 8% 7% 5% 11% 10% 4% 21% 7% 27% 11% 7% 13% 8% 11% 20% 11% 7% 12% 18% 7% 13% 5% 3% –

Brand Rating 2010 AAAAA AA+ A+ AAAA A AAAA AAA AA A+ AA AA AAAA A+ – A+ A A+ A+ A+ A+ AAA+ AA A+ AA AAA A+ A+ AA+ A+ A A+ AAAA+ A A+ AA+ A+ A A –

$57m Amount Emaar lost in Brand Value in 2010 $260m Emirates’ global advertising budget for 2010 Qtel The third most valuable GCC brand with a BV of $2.95bn Mobily Smartphone and tablet PC usage contributes 20 per cent to total revenue October 2011 Gulf Marketing Review 41

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WWW

COVER STORY

Top brand portfolios by country Brand bahrain Ahli United Bank Batelco Arab Banking Corp Kuwait Zain NBK Agility Kuwait Finance House Americana Burgan Bank UAE Emirates Etisalat Emirates NBD National Bank Of Abu Dhabi DP World First Gulf Bank ADCB Du TAQA Mashreq Emaar Properties Dubai Islamic Bank ADIB RAKBANK Dubai Investments Union National Bank

BV 2011

BR 2011

BV / EV 2011 (%)

BV 2010

EV 2010

BV/EV 2010 (%)

BR 2010

Banks Telecoms Services Banks

366 292 220

AA A AA-

4,145 1,988 1,555

9% 15% 14%

323 246 159

2,903 2,245 1,380

11% 11% 12%

AA AA+

Cellular Telecoms Banks Logistics Banks Food Banks

2,293 743 462 326 324 203

AAAA+ A A+ A+ AA

20,193 16,558 1,988 10,743 1,393 2,354

11% 4% 23% 3% 23% 9%

2,889 685 531 748 665 186

24,170 12,910 2,267 10,172 2,470 1,440

12% 5% 23% 7% 27% 13%

AAAA A+ A+ AA+

Airlines Cellular Telecoms Banks Banks Commercial Services Banks Banks Telecoms Services Electric Banks Real Estate Banks Banks Banks Venture Capital Banks

3,622 3,390 1,238 1,142 942 750 584 524 449 425 411 350 305 245 216 209

AAAAAAA AA A+ AA+ AAAAAAAAAAA AA AAA-

n/a 22,740 4,464 7,651 14,394 5,615 3,091 7,271 18,453 n/a 6,352 2,389 1,874 1,352 947 2,193

n/a 15% 28% 15% 7% 13% 19% 7% 2% n/a 6% 15% 16% 18% 23% 10%

3,518 2,607 943 835 1,033 517 394 572 685 330 468 315 222 132 174 144

12,131 19,951 6,734 8,228 13,004 7,319 2,750 3,738 18,469 3,968 6,401 3,083 1,701 1,179 972 2,196

29% 13% 14% 10% 8% 7% 14% 15% 4% 8% 7% 10% 13% 11% 18% 7%

AAAAA AAAA AAAA A+ A AAA+ AA AAA A+ AA+

Sector

Source: Brand Finance plc 2011. Reference: BV = Brand Value; BR = Brand Rating; EV = Enterprise Value

The two remaining real estate brands in the top 50 are Emaar and Dar Al Arkan. Only two property brands remain: Emaar and Dar Al Arkan. Emaar lost $57m in BV to $411m in 2010 and has a lower brand rating of AA-. It fared better than other property companies. However its hotels, in line with Dubai tourism, performed much better than expected. It expanded internationally, which now accounts for more than 10 per cent of revenues. International expansion is forecast to compensate for declining revenue in Dubai. Dar Al Arkan increased its BV to $34m and moves up one slot to 37. Telecos Telecos are operating in a region reaching maturity with projected CAGR of six per

cent, compared to 2010 and 2015, and to a historical CAGR of 28 per cent from 2005 to 2010. Domestic operations remain important as they account for the bulk of revenues, forcing telecos to adopt a number of strategies. Etisalat and STC are pursuing brand expansion; Zain is focusing on key markets and improving brand loyalty, while Qtel is consolidating its brand portfolio. The common aim among telecos is the pursuit of next-generation networks and services. Middle Eastern countries could surpass European countries in adopting LTE led by Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain. Consequently, broadband has become

the battleground for brand growth. This is driven by the expanding data market, underpinned by the fast-growing global handset and media device segment. Banking The sector is recovering due to improved economic growth driven by high oil prices and various government initiatives. Some banks are performing better depending on the country in which they operate. Qatar, for example, is witnessing runaway growth driven by higher economic growth, sky-high public spending and lower systemic risks. Overall, banking brands have performed well with an increase in brand value of $3.4bn. Top brand analysis Emirates is the most valuable GCC brand for the fifth consecutive year, with an

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WWW

C O V ER S T O R Y

Top brand portfolios by country Brand Oman Omantel BankMuscat Qatar Qtel QNB Industries Qatar QIB Commercialbank Woqod Doha Bank Saudi Arabia STC Al Rajhi Bank Mobily Samba Financial Group Sabic Riyad Bank Almarai Saudi Electricity Co. Banque Saudi Fransi SABB Arab National Bank Jarir Bookstore Dar Al Arkan Saudi Hollandi Bank Petro Rabigh

BV 2011

BR 2011

BV / EV 2011 (%)

BV 2010

EV 2010

BV/EV 2010 (%)

BR 2010

Telecoms Services Telecoms Services

323 300

A AA

2,171 3,007

15% 10%

285 202

2,586 2,566

11% 8%

A+ A+

Cellular Telecoms Banks Chemicals Banks Banks Oil&Gas Banks

2,949 703 629 368 342 256 224

AA AA+ A AAAAA+ A+

18,067 16,786 34,182 4,909 5,305 1,268 2,826

16% 4% 2% 7% 6% 20% 8%

2,366 545 – 241 177 181 169

4,265 13,165 – 4,753 4,430 908 2,424

14% 4% – 5% 4% 20% 7%

AA+ AA – A+ A AAA

Telecoms Services Banks Cellular Telecoms Banks Chemicals Banks Food Electric Banks Banks Banks Retail Real Estate Banks Chemicals

2,616 1,504 1,423 792 791 751 738 650 507 476 457 330 311 196 189

A+ AA+ A+ AAAA AAAAA AAAAAAAAA+ A A+

29,151 30,919 24,429 15,140 99,482 11,290 7,312 31,488 9,387 9,276 7,140 1,751 2,808 2,938 12,331

9% 5% 6% 5% 1% 7% 10% 2% 5% 5% 6% 19% 11% 7% 2%

2,393 922 976 475 639 461 621 1,457 334 400 356 300 277 147 539

32,607 30,899 10,049 13,380 90,871 11,720 6,095 24,211 8,755 10,550 8,233 1,452 4,046 2,999 15,787

7% 3% 10% 4% 1% 4% 10% 6% 4% 4% 4% 21% 7% 5% 3%

A+ AA A A AA A+ AAA+ A+ A+ A+ A+ A+ A A

Sector

Source: Brand Finance plc 2011. Reference: BV = Brand Value; BR = Brand Rating; EV = Enterprise Value

estimated BV of $3.62bn, a three per cent increase. This is driven by a 25 per cent growth in passenger revenues and important strides in the long haul passenger market. Secondly, the focus on brand building and ability to match forecasted demand with a continuous investment in onboard service made a significant contribution. The brand rating has remained at AAA-, while maintaining its position as the only airline in the top 50. Emirates has one of the youngest fleets so it is not burdened with high maintenance or replacement costs, while its perception as a dynamic carrier attracts business and first-class passengers, from which it makes most of its profit. Its massive order book for the next 10 years of Airbus A380s and 190 aircraft means it is projected to record double-digit

passenger growth, leaving competitors such as British Airlines and Singapore Airlines trailing in its wake. Continued investment in quality for both premium and standard level customers has built brand loyalty across the board. With tourism recovering in Dubai, the brand links with Emirates should help it achieve its short-term growth targets. It has taken advantage of its perception as an Asian airline and capitalised on the reputation of carriers such as Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific for excellent customer service. In addition to having an open skies policy, it operates wide-body aircraft and flies mostly long haul, which lowers its per-seat-mile costs. Last year it awarded its $260m global advertising budget to Amsterdam-based Strawberry Frog, which is currently roll-

ing out a new brand platform across 80 markets as the national airline for Dubai. Ultimately it aims to be one of the world’s most recognised global names, increasing its marketing focus on DM, digital and event marketing. Emirates also spends substantial amounts on sports marketing, including sponsorships. One of its biggest challenges is opening enough routes quickly enough to ensure the new airplanes are used efficiently. There is also a risk of spreading its resources too thin and encountering a quality-based challenge. Etisalat Etisalat is the second most valuable brand with a BV of $3.4bn. It is heavily dependent on its home market as the UAE contributes 78 per cent to revenues. In addition the UAE is highly saturated and penetration

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ÂŠ Getty/Gallo Images

C O V ER S T O R Y

Winning streak: Saudiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Al Rajhi Bank was named the most outstanding Islamic Bank at the Kuala Lumpur Islamic Finance Forum 2010

...broadband is turning out to be the next battleground for brand growth. levels are the highest in the region at 140 per cent. Increased competition from du meant decreasing market share and increasing pressure on profit margins. In spite of this BV has increased by $700m. There has been a shift towards value creation and profitability, infrastructuresharing, outsourcing, and shared services within the company. With a brand rating of AA- Etisalat has stretched its product offering to innovative new packages and services, such as bundled triple play services, 3D TV and a new fibre-tothe-home network. Its international market expansion bodes well, accounting for 23 per cent of revenues. A successful rebranding of its Sri Lankan operation was followed by useful results from its Afghanistan operation and it has so far been able to distance itself from the 2G Indian Telecoms scandal that could still threaten its operations in the country. Emirates NBD Emirates NBD is the eighth most valuable GCC brand overall and the third

most valuable in the UAE, with a BV of $1.24bn. The bank unveiled its new brand identity in 2009 following the merger of Emirates Bank and NBD in 2007. Rebranding has meant increased cost efficiencies of marketing a single brand. The brand has also been leveraged to enable cross-selling along the range of services it now provides. It is one of the few Middle Eastern banks to focus on maintaining a consistent image while also having three distinctive levels of service in its branches. As a result the brand rating has improved to AA from AA- this year, as well as a year-on-year increase in BV of $295m. Emirates NBD has benefited by associating with Brand Dubai in a similar way to Emirates Airline. It is a sponsor of the Dubai Shopping Festival, for example. Since the rebrand it has maintained the strength of the name through 360-degree marketing reaching all stakeholders through consumer insights, product innovation, internal branding, brand activation, events and sponsorships, local area marketing, digital marketing and communications.

It has navigated the crisis better than its rivals and as markets begin to recover is poised to take advantage of improving economic fundamentals. Key factors driving growth include the return of Asian business investment, better underlying financial performance through lending and credit growth, and sustained high oil and gas prices. Al Rajhi Bank Al Rajhi Bank is the sixth most valuable brand in the GCC with a BV of $1.5bn. It updated its brand identity in 2005 and has since leveraged it to strike the right balance between increased competitiveness in the local market, while expanding internationally into some of the most active Islamic finance destinations of Malaysia, Kuwait and more recently Jordan. It won a 2010 award for the most outstanding Islamic Bank at the Kuala Lumpur Islamic Finance Forum and this is reflected by a brand Rating of AA+ and a year-on-year increase in its BV of $0.5bn. STC STC is the fourth most valuable brand with a BV of $2.6bn, a nine per cent increase from 2010. BV rose steadily from $2.1bn since it rebranded in 2008.

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COVER STORY

Top scores: Mobily has become one of the fastest-growing brands in the region

...telecos and to a certain extent banks have recovered from the crisis in much better shape and faster than other sectors. It is one of the top advertisers in the GCC, with an estimated annual budget of $130m. The rebrand was instrumental in repositioning STC in the domestic market as a multi-play operator with a focus on the youth segment. While mobile penetration is one of the highest in the region, the most important avenue for growth is broadband which has seen a CARG of almost 123 per cent since 2006. STC operates fixed lines (nextgeneration network) as well as mobile communications. This enables it to provide triple-play services in addition to data services for data-hungry smart phones. It is also one of the few companies in the region to invest in a 4G LTE network. It has retained its brand rating of A+, with potential for improvement in the near future. STC recently expanded into

countries such as Indonesia and Kuwait where revenues doubled year on year. Its presence in Indonesia holds a lot of promise as Indonesians are one of the largest set of expatriates – approximately one million – in Saudi Arabia, so it presents a great opportunity to build brand loyalty in a market that is set to become one of the five largest by 2030. Mobily Mobily is the seventh most valuable brand in the GCC, with a BV of $1.4bn and a year-on-year increase of 46 per cent. It is one of the fastest-growing mobile operators in the region and, since its launch in 2005, has been responsible for a number of firsts in Saudi Arabia, such as the Iphone 3G, Blackberry Internet Service, and a series of value-added services to attract new customers. Its impressive performance has earned it a brand rating of A+.

Mobily’s smartphone and table PC usage now contribute 20 per cent to total revenue, underscoring the importance of the mobile broadband (this segment has one of the highest margins in the industry) in the region. The provision of network coverage for the tablet market, which is still in its infancy in Saudi Arabia, is expected to produce dramatic growth. As part of its growth strategy, Mobily has adopted GED (growth, efficiency, differentiation), to provide integrated teleco services built around fixed and mobile broadband technologies. Following LTE trials last year, it plans to roll out 4G services by the end of this month. It is also expanding its online presence through social networking platforms, which should help improve its current A+ brand rating. Zain Zain is the fifth most valuable brand in the GCC with a BV of $2.3bn. It has fallen to fifth place primarily due to the sale of its African operations to Bharti Airtel. However it has maintained its brand rating of AA-. This is because the change in its strategy to focus more on more profitable and distinct business in the Middle East is

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widely seen as positive. Apart from the higher margin Middle East markets, it also operates in rapidly growing economies such as Iraq and Sudan. This means the brand is well balanced between value and growth. Qtel Qtel is the third most valuable brand in the GCC with a brand value of $2.95bn. The Qatari teleco sector has seen similar trends to other GCC markets in that mobile penetration exceeds 100 per cent. Competition has also meant eroding market share. In response Qtel carried out a brand refreshment in 2010 complemented by new service offerings. The latest tag line, “Fuel Your Senses,” is intended to engage customers in its entire range of entertainment and media services. This positioning is in line with its strategy to develop the lucrative broadband market. To complement the refreshed brand identity Qtel opened a network of new concept shops. Other enhancements include the launch of a next-day installation service, value-led promotions across the product range, and significant improvements to both the indoor and outdoor 3G network. The new brand architecture should facilitate better group synergies and leverage efficiencies. This will be key going forward as Qtel is now one of the most diversified telecos in the region, with several rapidly growing brands under its portfolio such as Wataniya, Nedjma, Nawras, Tunisiana, Indosat and Asicaell. National Bank of Abu Dhabi The National Bank of Abu Dhabi is the ninth most valuable banking brand in the GCC with a BV of $1.1bn. It is one of the most internationally diversified banks in the UAE and is poised to increase as it expands in Malaysia to offer niche products and services to the SME segment. The National Bank of Abu Dhabi is consistently ranked as one of the safest banks in the world which has helped it retain its brand rating of AA. It is also repositioning its brand to unify itself across all customer touchpoints. This

Definitions Definition of brand – Within brand finance literature, we refer to a brand as a trademark or associated Intellectual Property (IP). A fuller description of a brand would be a collection of images/ideas representing a producer; such as a name, logo, slogan, and design conveying the essence of the company, product or service. Brand Value Brand Value is considered to be the net present value of the estimated future cash flows attributable to the brand. Brand finance uses the Royalty Relief methodology to value a brand. Brand Value is also referred to as Brand Equity. A brand can be an intangible asset to rationalise the variation between a company’s “book value” and market value. For example, research conducted by Brand Finance shows that 62 per cent of the world’s business is intangible. This represents $19.5trn of $31.6trn global market value. Royalty Relief Royalty Relief is based on the notion that a brand holding company owns the brand and licenses it to an operating company. The notional price paid by the operating company to the brand company is expressed as a royalty rate. The Net Present Value (NPV) of all forecast royalties represents the value of the brand to the business. The attraction of this method is that it is based on commercial practice in the real world. It involves estimating likely future sales, applying an appropriate royalty rate to them and then discounting estimated future, post-tax royalties, to arrive at a NPV. Enterprise Value Market capitalisation + preferred equity + minority interest + total debt (long term and short term) – cash and equivalents = Enterprise Value Headquartered in London, Brand Finance plc is an independent intangible asset valuation consultancy, with offices in 22 countries including the UAE. The consultancy publishes an annual study of the top 50 portfolio brands in the GCC.

is possibly in response to the brand being perceived as conservative and protective – even in the boom times. The brand’s growth is bound to be tied to the performance of Abu Dhabi and its diversification of the economy away from oil. The extent of the emirate’s success in implementing this will affect the group’s vision of becoming the world’s best Arab bank. DP World DP World is the 10th most valuable brand in the GCC with a BV of $942m and a few terminal operators. It grew at eight per cent in volume. The brand is highly exposed to fast-growing, emerging markets and trade growth, with

65 per cent of volume flowing through the Middle East, India and Asia; this is projected to rise this year. DP World’s brand rating is A+, which is set to improve next year on the back of its £1.5bn investment in the London Gateway Project and its listing on the London Stock Exchange. There is no comparable European-listed player with a focus on emerging markets’ container n terminal operations.

Gautam Sen Gupta Managing director Brand Finance ME

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COVER STORY

Concrete evidence

The continuing economic crisis has wiped $6.3trn off the global value of intangible assets, but are there brighter days ahead?

Further panic in world stock markets has caused a 25 per cent ($6.3trn) reduction in intangible asset values according to the Brand Finance Global Intangible Financial Tracker League Table (GIFT). Despite the fall an update of the Brand Finance Global 100 brands shows that there has only been a 2.4 per cent drop in their combined value. Financial brands Financial service brands have been hit hardest. Tougher legislation, sluggish activity in the corporate market and ongoing fears regarding exposure to sovereign debt has meant banking and insurance brands suffered. Bank brands in the top 100 have lost $25.9bn from their total brand value

(seven per cent) since January. HSBC has become the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most valuable bank brand, keeping a steady position at 10. Bank of America experienced a brand value fall of $5.3bn, taking it down to 14. Likewise Wells Fargo saw a 12 per cent reduction in brand value. Santander also fell in the league table, with a reduction of $3.3bn. Insurance brands saw a drop of six per cent, with AXA fairing the worst with a loss of $1.6bn of brand value taking it out of the top 50. Tech brands The crisis has not led to a blanket reduction in brand value, however. Technology and electronics brands are prospering with Google, Apple and Microsoft taking the top

three slots. Apple has increased its value by 33 per cent, making it a more valuable brand than Microsoft for the first time. Established economies The total brand value for the 46 US headquartered brands declined by two per cent from January. US brands dependent on their home market suffered bigger losses than global brands such as McDonaldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, Nike and CocaCola, which all improved their position. Japanese brands dropped three per cent due to the tsunami disrupting business. Europe also felt the pressure with Spanish brands down 13 per cent and France five per cent. Both are exposed to issues within the financial services sector.

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Developing countries In contrast, emerging economies including China, India and South Korea all show strong performances. In China the total brand value increased with two new brands entering the top 100; PetroChina and China Life Insurance Company. Argricultural Bank of China increased brand value by $1.5bn, rising from 99 to 71 in the league table. Samsung is another notable performer, increasing the value of its brand to $26.6bn – up 24 per cent. The South Korean company has not experienced the supply chain disruptions by its Japanese competitors and is developing a stronger hold on both the TV and smart phone markets. Similarly in India TATA moved up the league with a new brand value of $14.8bn at 41 – previously 50. Additional insights • Coca-Cola has reversed the decline noted in BrandFinance® Global 500 and is now the 11th most valuable brand. This shift creates a greater lead over its rival, Pepsi ($19.1bn/ 25). • The auto sector has also performed well in the past six months, with crisisplagued Toyota re-entering the top 10 with a value of $28.8bn. • In Europe, Germany maintained a steady position, underpinned by a stable economy and strong auto industry including brands BMW, Mercedes Benz and Volkswagen. The UK saw two additional brands enter n the top 100; BP and BT. About the study • The Brand Finance plc. Global Intangible Financial Tracker League Table (GIFT) is a 10-year study of the intangible asset values of all public stock exchanges worldwide • GIFT is released in January each year, but due to the exceptional economic conditions was updated in August.

–

Global Brands portfolio

Ranking 2011

Ranking 2010

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

1 8 2 4 3 5 7 14 10 11 16 18 9 6 13 12 17 27 15 19

Brand

Domicile

Google Apple Microsoft IBM Wal-Mart Vodafone General Electric Toyota AT&T HSBC Coca-Cola Samsung Wells Fargo Bank of America HP Verizon McDonald’s Intel Santander Tesco

United States United States United States United States United States Britain United States Japan United States Britain United States South Korea United States United States United States United States United States United States Spain Britain

Winners Apple Samsung Intel eBay Amazon Bank of China PetroChina Volkswagen Sberbank McDonald’s

Losers Movistar Panasonic Carrefour Bank of America Bbva Itaù Oracle Goldman Sachs Cisco Bradesco

Brand Value 2011

Brand rating 2011

48,278 39,301 39,005 35,981 34,997 30,740 29,060 28,800 28,354 27,100 26,994 26,578 25,451 25,346 24,992 24,687 24,211 23,491 23,403 21,640

AAA+ AAA AAA+ AA+ AA AAA+ AA+ AA+ AA+ AAA AAA AAAAA+ AAAAA+ AA+ AAA AA+ AAA AAA

Change in BV Jan-Sept 2011 (%) 33 24 23 18 17 16 16 12 12 11

Change in BV Jan-Sept 2011 ($mn) 9,758 5,067 4,413 1,417 3,106 1,530 1,308 1,525 1,385 2,370

Change in BV Jan-Sept 2011 (%) -24 -24 -18 -17 -17 -16 -15 -13 -13 13

Change in BV Jan-Sept 2011 ($mn) -3,572 -2,944 -2,171 -5,273 -1,769 -2,723 -2,225 -1,754 -1,505 -2,397

Source: Brand Finance plc 2011

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ADVERTORIAL

Reconnecting with customers through online marketing “Go to the people. Learn from them. Live with them” (Lao Tzu) In an increasingly cluttered and skeptical market, brands are faced with the ongoing challenge of how to maintain and in some cases reconnect with their customer base. Both international and regional research findings indicate growing mistrust in traditional advertising, whilst the impact of peer group endorsement is increasing. Within the banking sector, which is still struggling to recover from negative consumer sentiment over the global financial crisis, the need to rebuild lost trust is even greater. The online shift Online engagement represents an ideal opportunity to connect with new and existing customers. For Al Rajhi Bank the increased online focus is driven by 3 factors: 1. Brand Fit: the online platform provides an ideal opportunity for the brand to engage with customers 2. Consumer Insights: traditional engagement with financial services brands is low relative to other categories and the role of the peer group influencer in the decision making process is high 3. Competition: In an increasingly price sensitive market, online activity provides the ideal opportunity for a brand to reinforce its emotive bond through greater interaction The online journey begins It started with the simple idea of building on the success of the 2010 Ladies Painting Competition (www.paintcompetition.com ). Using customer feedback as the catalyst, the competition was transformed into an online for-

mat for 2011. From a voice of customer perspective, this resulted in a more transparent and engaging experience. Not only did the competition exceed all business expectations with a 200% increase in the number of submitted paintings over 2010 (from 1,200 to 2,800 paintings). The approach resulted in the saving of both time and cost with improved levels of consumer engagement. Paintings from the Competition later inspired the development of an online greeting cards website (www.alrajhigreetings.com ), where visitors customize their own messages and send e-greeting cards to their friends and family in an environmentally friendly manner. In the first month of the micro-site going live, over 5,000 cards were sent with visitor engagement across multiple markets. An online interactive initiative supporting personal financing products came in the form of an Online “Tell us your need” Competition (www.tellusyourneed. com). Visitors were encouraged to share their stories about financial difficulties on the microsite. By using social media more friends and family viewed their story and voted, with the most voted for stories winning. The Competition was a phenomenal learning experience, with over 700 emotive stories and 200,000 unique visitors. An iterative learning experience The online journey represents a brave new world, one that is treated with a mix of hope and uncertainty by most brands. This journey into the unknown requires an open mind and a mindset willing to risk and always learn. To reach success, brands need to embrace both positive and negative experiences, learn from them and treat them as

building blocks. Lessons learned from our online journey include: 1. Everyone wants “15 minutes of fame” Andy Warhol accurately remarked that in the future everyone will want their 15 minutes of fame. The future is here and the online world gives every person the chance to broadcast their customized message. There are multiple ways for a brand to give back; the traditional approach is based on prizes for participation. The evolving approach provides a platform for people to showcase and share their achievements, hence giving them their 15 minutes of fame. The ARB Ladies Painting Competition developed this very platform for ladies from across KSA to showcase their fine works of art, resulting in an online community of over 70,000 people. 2. Maximizing customer interaction Online campaigns should be engaging but also simple so as to accommodate the lowest possible denominator of targeted visitors. The “Tell us your need” Competition followed 3 easy steps: step 1: submit your story; step 2: get friends and family to vote for your story; step 3: get the most votes and win. An interesting observation was that some voters converted to becoming participants themselves. This resulted in a viral snowball effect, which optimized participation and positive engagement with the brand. 3. Addressing the ROI question Online engagement is attractive ROI option on two fronts; 1. from a brand perspective, the potential for real time engagement is high; 2. from a business perspective, the opportunity to measure cam-

paign impact is more precise and time effective than traditional offline media. However, the opportunity is often offset by the lack of historical benchmarks. To overcome this, a phased approach was used to set targets for the “Tell us your need” Competition. The first phase acted as a dry run in setting up achievement campaign metrics. This allowed us to develop more accurate metrics for phase 2. 4. Embracing the new communication challenge Traditional media is based on the way one way communication model, with the brand speaking to the audience. Whereas online media presents more of an equal playing field with both brand and audience able to interact, alter and influence thoughts, with the brand often taking the role of facilitator for consumers to engage, exchange thoughts and often reach a consensus based on the key influencers present in the online tribe. For the Online Ladies Painting Competition, engagement was increased by shifting the voting mechanism from expert judges in 2010 to visitor voting in 2011. 5. Breaking down geographical borders With expansion into Malaysia, Kuwait and Jordan markets, there is a need for both message consistency and synergies of advertising efforts. The online greeting cards website allowed the brand to communicate across borders, with over 5,000 cards sent across multiple markets, a task difficult to achieve using traditional media in a cost effective manner. Yusuf Jehangir: Head of Marketing & Corporate Communications, Al Rajhi Bank

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Profile

The GMR Interview

Moussa Obeid, Nokia’s activities development director for Saudi and Yemen, recalls a varied career. Shams Ahsan reports from Jeddah. From selling Chinese herbs during his college days to head of marketing for Saudi Arabia and Yemen Nokia, via a stint at Starcom, 37-year-old Moussa Obeid has enjoyed a richly diverse career. The Chinese herbs period was during the hay days of his college years at the American University of Beirut, from where he did his BA in 1995 and MBA in 1999. He was multitasking even when he was doing his MBA, specialising in corporate finance, working as a graduate assistant and tutoring. “[The] MBA years were very rich in terms of exposure,” Obeid, a Lebanese national tells GMR from his eighth-floor office at Bin Hamran Centre on Jeddah’s ritzy Tahlia Street. Introducing Chinese herbs to the Lebanese market was not easy. He came up with a novel idea of displaying the products on a notebook-size stand. Pharmacies agreed to it. So popular were the products, within three to four months Obeid was finding it difficult to cope with the demand.

“What really matters is display.” This was the lesson he learnt from his very first marketing experience. “What you study is based on theory, but in practice it’s different,” he says. After his MBA Moussa joined the army where he worked for one year as second lieutenant in material management. fantasy cv Born 1974 Marital status Married, with two children: Yasmin four-and-a-half, Ali one year First job Graduate assistant at American University of Beirut Career high The moment I am outside and I see someone using Nokia and enjoying it. That’s the ultimate satisfaction for me. Career low Just the other way round. When I see someone using a competitor’s device. Dream job Photographer

In January 2000 he moved to Lebanon’s Blom Bank, “In Lebanon the banking sector is the best industry, and a career in a bank is considered good,” Moussa says. But he was not happy there. “I realized that this is not what I want to be. It was a routine job. I was not someone to sit at a work station the whole day. I am not someone to follow procedures. The routine killed me.” So he left Blom Bank four months after joining its management trainee programme. It was around then that he received an offer from media agency Starcom to join its Riyadh office. Instead he ended up as media executive in its Dubai-based regional HQ. “Within 20 days I packed up and landed in Dubai. That was the beginning of my corporate journey.” The moment he took up his assignment, he was involved in the global launch of Dubai International Airport, which is now Terminal 1.

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Connecting people: More than 1.3bn use a Nokia device every day

Profile

List of marketing support agencies Media Creative Public relations Digital agency

Aegis Media owned Carat MENA JWT Asda’a B-M Wunderman

Company creds Every day more than 1.3 billion people connect to one another with a Nokia device – from mobile phones to advanced smartphones and high-performance mobile computers. Today Nokia is integrating its devices with innovative services through Ovi (www.ovi.com), including music, maps, apps, email and more. Nokia’s NAVTEQ is a leader in comprehensive digital mapping and navigation services, while Nokia Siemens Networks provides equipment, services and solutions for communications networks globally.

“I had to have a campaign in five months for five continents. Those three months were hell, a nightmare.” Being still relatively new to the media sector, Moussa started reading about media history, often staying at the office late. “When everyone was gone, I would put all folders and files related to the media on the floor and start taking notes.” His labour bore fruits. The airport campaign was a huge success. He was promoted to senior planner and given responsibility for a team. But after two years he left. “I wanted to look at the bigger picture.” He joined Showtime in 2002 as brand manager, moving a year later to Siemens, where he worked until 2006 as marketing manager, handling the Saudi and African markets. In 2006 he joined Nokia as an ad and campaign manager for the Middle and Near East, and in January 2008 transferred to Jeddah. When he took up his assignment in Saudi, Nokia was already a market leader, yet there was only one person to look after marketing. He formed a team of nine people, including three Saudi nationals. “My first task was to hire local talent. If you want to be a successful brand you have to have a local team. Saudi Arabia has a unique culture; it’s very hard for outsiders to infiltrate so as to communicate.” He does, however, consider Saudi Arabia a dream market for any marketer. “Image drives the market. Image here implies uniqueness and newness. “If someone wants to test a new brand, he should come to the Saudi market.” Moussa continues: “Technology is style here; it’s part of the Saudi identity. People always look for ways to express themselves, be it clothes or gadgets or appliances,” he says about Saudi consumers. “Saudi consumers always look for the best, no compromise.” So taking into account these market dynamics, Moussa adopted a six-pronged marketing strategy. The first prong was Arabisation. Nokia, which entered the Saudi market in 1995,

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BY ON TI TA VI IN LY ON

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Profile

Good call: Nokia was the first to offer custom-made devices and applications in Arabic

It is not about screaming. It’s not just about tagging Ramadan into products; that’s very commercial… very clichéd was the first to offer custom-made devices and applications in Arabic, which they are now replicating with solutions and services. The other key elements are: local relevance; being close to consumers; hiring local talent; investing in retail and easy availability through widespread distribution network. One of the most successful Nokia campaigns running in Saudi Arabia for the past four to five years is the 2010 Ramadan campaign. It’s was a unique campaign, different from other “clichéd” Ramadan campaigns in that it has the whole look and feel of the Holy Month. “It is not about screaming. It’s not just about tagging Ramadan into products; that’s very commercial… very clichéd,” says Moussa. “What I did was come up with a service,” he says.

“We identify Ramadan hotspots and put activation stands. The whole look and feel is Ramadan. Nokia is very minimal. The objective is to retain consumers by giving them value. It’s not about pushing new devices.” These activation stands offer applications for prayer time, a calendar or the Qur’an on the mobile. “We never ever tell them [visitors to activation stands] to buy the device,” he emphasises. But Nokia, which enjoyed unmatched leadership in the 90s, has seen its market share fall in recent years because more players have joined the market. Moussa, however, looks at competition in a different way: “We believe that market dynamics are now balancing. There are more choices; viable options.” Seeing the changing dynamics of the market, Nokia spent $6126689 in 2010

on pan-Saudi marketing as opposed to $5810560 spent by its nearest rival Sony Ericsson, according to figures issued by Carat media, Nokia’s media agency. Moussa admits that the times are tough, and so Nokia is not complacent. It has taken radical measures and teamed up with Microsoft. Saudi Arabia, however, is one of the top markets for Nokia globally. In July the company launched its Nokai E6 in the kingdom. The device is the first Nokia smartphone to contain the updated Symbian software, with new icons and usability enhancements such as improved text input, a faster browser and refreshed Ovi Maps. “We are further strengthening Nokia’s smartphone portfolio with the Nokia E6, which offers a more beautiful and intuitive user experience that will soon be available across our latest Symbian range,” says Moussa. “With Nokia E6 and more Symbian devices and user enhancements coming in the near future, we are confident we can keep existing Nokia smartphone customers engaged, as well as attract new first-time and competitor smartphone users.” n

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By invitation only

MEDIANOMICS Business and media science combined Sunday, October 2, 2011 Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai

At a time when businesses aim for the essential and the effective, OMD Predicts unveils the latest data, thinking and practice to make marketing communications more precise and accountable. The speakers we have lined up will share their expertise in removing uncertainty and approximation in the planning process.

The Speakers Economic trends

Philip McCrum Economist Intelligence Unit

Behavioral economics

Alex Johnston Jigsaw Research

Engagement metrics

Dan Hill Sensory Logic, Inc

The business value of data

Damian Blacken & Ian Woods Annalect Group

For more information: loret.wessels@omnicommediagroup.com

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MEDIA

Keepin’ it real-time

Brands will no longer live through campaigns, but will be always-on, targeting consumers and their networks.

There are two words that will reverberate for years to come. Real-time. It may not sound like much but describes a significant shift that we in the marketing community are about to experience. A lot will driven by technology, of course. We’re well used to the rapid evolution of technologies, be they in infrastructure or devices, but also in terms of services made possible by these. Most of the infrastructure changes are about speed. Significant investments are being made in Fibre to the Home/Building (FTTH/B). They promise speeds of up to 100 Mbps, possibly 1Gbps. By 2016, just five years from now, most markets will have FTTH/B penetrations in excess of 50 per cent. In the region, 30.8 per cent of the UAE is already equipped.

Doha now has 1,000km of high-speed fibre optic cables, ready for to be subscribed to and homes to be connected. The story is similar in the mobile arena with 4G (also known as LTE or Wimax), the focus for regional telcos du, Etisalat, STC and Zain. This technology promises speeds of up to 50 Mbps. And then there’s the cloud. Even if it’s largely an international development, it will affect us as the next-generation devices, starting with the Google Chromebook and gaming platforms, will not store any content but access it remotely from the servers where users place it. Consumers in the region have a strong affinity with gadgets and technology. If 3D TV sets seem to struggle somewhat, connected TVs appear to have some traction, as have HD sets. This is good news for the forthcoming OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode)

screens, which will have 16 times higher resolution than HDTV. Although linear/ traditional TV viewing will remain very significant, connected TV viewing will appeal to younger demographics, using the screen more as a monitor for web content than to receive broadcast material. Connected TV sets will allow viewers to access clickable embedded content and socialise with others. In other words it will bring another dimension to TV viewing. The ‘social overlay’ will facilitate what already happens through mobile phones: a quarter of UAE smartphone owners use them while watching TV. This social dimension of TV is already being experimented with in the USA with HBO and also here at Abu Dhabi Media, for example. The aim, ultimately, is to tailor advertising to the viewer. This is already happening in some markets where different versions of an ad are being served

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MEDIA

Reaching out: Brands will be able to attract the attention of the individual in an individual way, says Choucair

…a quarter of UAE smartphone owners use them while watching TV… in real time based on interaction rates. Eventually we will reach the point where facial recognition technology will tailor the ad break based on the individual viewer. TV is and will increasingly be only one of the many screens through which people will access content. Smartphones will continue to claim an ever larger share of the market. Our C.Web study has shown that already 20 per cent of the consumption of online videos is done through a mobile device here in the Middle East. Smartphones will become increasingly powerful and sophisticated, with silicon replaced by graphene, touchscreen technology enhanced with haptic feedback or the introduction of predictive computation algorithms that basically allow devices to understand what we need. Augmented Reality will no longer need a marker, giving rise to video content more seamlessly embedded into print material. A lot of new technologies are about adding another layer to the media

experience, enriching it for the consumer and making it more personal. This is also the agenda for developments on the internet. The socialisation of the Web, whereby sites are being linked to individuals through “Like” functionality, is set to grow. The web-browsing experience will increasingly be a social experience, with friends being involved in the ‘journey’. Search will also become more personal, with results affected by information from users’ own social feeds. The combination of social data with sharper contentmarking, along with refined algorithms, means that search will be able to answer questions, giving answers that are more nuanced, geo- and time-based. What makes all this significant to both marketers and consumers is that they will have the best opportunity to connect at the right time and in the right place. These technological advancements remove all manners of approximation and educated

guesses as to what is relevant to, and desired by, consumers. Our media, even the world around us for those who’ll walk with their devices in front of them, will become much more personal and tailored to our requirements, even without us formulating them. Our devices will recognise us and adapt what we see/hear accordingly. Our friends will be involved and help shape what we see. This means that brands will be able to reach the individual in an individual way. Clearly many elements need to fall into place before ads are IP-based and served but just imagine what can happen when consumers see ads based on their own behavioural data. What’s more, consumers will get more out of this relevance and interaction options than ever before. They could even be rewarded for it. The marketing communications function is set to evolve rapidly from what was more a creative-led function, centered around the message and its distribution, to one much more based on data. Acquiring, managing, analysing and optimising the data will be the main attributes of the role. Messages will be crafted and distributed in a much more tailored manner, right down to the individual, and in real-time. Less and less linear, brand communications will live and evolve across networks, platforms and devices, served when algorithms decide it’s the right time and place. Brands will no longer live through campaigns but will be always-on, meaning constant monitoring and tweaking, targeting individuals as well as their networks. As well as exciting opportunities, this will present formidable challenges and even threats. n This, at least, is nothing new. Beyond the Horizon by PHD. Available on Amazon. Proceeds to Unicef.

Elda Choucair General manager PHD Dubai

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MALLS & RETAIL Clicks and mortar; online shopping is growing albeit on a small scale, while post-Spring Egypt sees a rejuvenated retail sector Online shopping Egyptian retail revolution Bahrain back in business Buoyant Saudi Top SEO terms Parc ad spend analysis Pushing sales Mediastow coverage tables Parc ad spend stats

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Convenience shopping Famed for its lavish malls and luxury boutiques the GCC is perhaps not the first place one would associate with an online retail revolution, but during the past 18 months there has been noteable growth in internet shopping. A study by Euromonitor International in August revealed that the UAE internet retail market is expected to grow by 6.5 per cent in 2011 and will continue to grow by 11 to 15 per cent during the next five years Growth has been fuelled by a number of Dubai-based sites which have pioneered secure payment and harnessed the high internet penetration in the UAE to open up specialist online markets. Many of these sites have expanded GCC-wide and into Lebanon, Egypt and Turkey as more consumers gain the confidence to purchase goods online. In August alone two new shopping sites – Sartori Sartori and JOYoffer – dedicated to women’s fashion launched and will benefit increasing usage via laptops, tablets and mobile phones as well as PCs. One of the pioneering group-buying sites, GoNabit, which launched in May 2010, experienced a phenomenal success and in June was acquired by livingsocial. com, which offers daily deals across the US, Canada, Australia, Europe and now Dubai. Sohrab Jananbani, COO Co-founder GoNabit, says attracting such investment is the next step for e-commerce in the region. “It just shows you what can happen,” he says. “We had several offers but we

Adrian Murphy sits down for a spot of retail therapy – online.

Debut: Two fashion shopping sites opened this summer

chose LivingSocial as it had similar values and it gives us the ability to scale very quickly in the hundreds of markets we are not in and the knowledge, tools and resources. “It’s early days for e-commerce but we are seeing a dramatic rise in the premium sites

Early days: Sohrab Jananbani, COO and co-founder, GoNabit

Crowd puller: Ahmed Alkhatib, Founder and CEO, MarkaVIP

region in the next few years. We are page one, chapter one.” A recent study by GoNabit and YouGov Siraj, surveying 2,470 online consumers, found that 75 per cent of respondents felt confident buying online from local websites, an increase of 18 per cent since a pilot study in March 2011. Respondents said they are more than twice as likely to buy from the region where they are residents (60 per cent buy once a month or more) than from other areas of the world (25 per cent buy once a month or more). In the past six months, 38 per cent said they had made their first online purchase. “We market and sell online, but the experience is off line because the vouch-

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experimental: Group-buying site YallaBanana launched in June for those who want ‘to try new things’

We have moved from 100 orders to 100,000 per day... ers we offer are from bricks-and-mortar shops,” adds Jananbani. “We are a channel for them and a lot of the businesses have not been online, don’t have a website or a Facebook page.” Another group-buying site, YallaBanana was set up in June and goes by the tag line of “Live, life for less,” and says that it specifically caters to people who want to try new things and offers an alternative to standard retail buying. But a bargain is still the big crowd puller with companies such as ‘flash-sales’ site MarkaVIP, which launched in November 2010, to sell exclusive designer brands and fashion from regional designers. Having recently raised $3m in funding from the US, European and Middle Eastern investors, MarkaVIP has expanded

from Jordan and Saudi Arabia to the rest of the GCC, Lebanon and Turkey. It now reports seven-figure monthly revenues and is on track to become the fastest-growing Middle East e-commerce brand with nearly 500,000 members and 160,000 fans on Facebook. FAst ForWArD

Well ahead: martin Waldenström, Ceo, CashU

expansion: Warrick Godfrey, Cmo Cobone. com

“There are around 385 million people living in the Middle East and North Africa and 135 million of them are online,” says Ahmed Alkhatib, CEO and founder, MarkaVIP. “Internet penetration is expected to grow very quickly over the next few years, so we see a significant opportunity to provide the market with a convenient and secure online shopping platform.” Alkhatib’s previous experience includes working in Silicon Valley during the dot com boom in 2000, working on eBay, Amazon and zazzle.com. “We have moved from 100 orders to 100,000 per day and have 2,000 to 4,000 members joining every day,” he says. “We had $2m in revenue in July and we expect to have one million members by the end of the year.” One of the advantages of shopping online, which is particularly pertinent to the region, is privacy. Women in Saudi can shop for lingerie from home, for example.

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S E C T OR A N A L Y S I S

Safety first: In a recent survey 75 per cent of respondents said they were confident buying online

...websites which fail to localise ... will struggle to compete in the greater GCC ecommerce space. One of the driving forces for the future growth of region’s e-commerce will be the youth segment which is more comfortable with the concept of surfing. “The new generation of 15 to 24 year olds in the Arab region are totally different, they are more adapted to internet, mobile and app use. You can consider them as loyal online shoppers in one or two years’ time,” says Islam Zween, business director, Logta.com. “Shopping behaviours are changing in the Arab region, as recent studies from Google Mena Insights show that 18 per cent of Saudi users are doing online research before making retail decisions and 15 per cent in the UAE.” Martin Waldenström, CEO of shopping site CashU, says the GCC is well ahead of other regions in online buying as 41 per cent of internet users shop and

pay online regularly, versus 28 per cent in Levant and 21 per cent in North Africa. Arabic language is also an important part to the e-commerce growth, with daily deal site Cobone, founded in July Community action

Herd instinct: Group-buying sites are becoming increasingly popular in the region and are helping drive the development of regional e-commerce

2010 and part of the Jabbar Internet Group, saying that many Arabs outside Dubai prefer viewing its site in Arabic. “More than 40 per cent of our site visitors choose to view the site in Arabic, this is strongly influenced by Saudi Arabia and Egypt,” says Warrick Godfrey, CMO of Cobone.com. “In the UAE many people with Arabic set as their primary language on their browser still choose to view the site in English. “Ultimately websites which fail to localise through language might get by in the UAE, however they will struggle to compete in the greater GCC ecommerce space.” Cobone’s e-commerce experience also highlights recent consumer trends with 80 per cent of its transactions in the first few months of business stemming from on its cash-on-delivery service compared to now with 85 per cent of transactions made online. The company also has more registrations a day from Egypt than any other country, with Saudi Arabia next which indicates that there is plenty to more to play for online. n

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ÂŠ Corbis

SE C TOR A N A L Y SIS

Nasr City Shopping Mall in Cairo

Retail revolution

Egyptâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s revolution is subverting the retail structure and changing consumer behaviour in the process. Post revolution Egypt and things have changed. The winners are the FMCG brands; supermarket and hypermarket operators have benefited from the constraints of living in a post-revolutionary society As Egypt struggles to redefine its identity and position in the Arab world following the events of January 2011, it has become increasingly obvious that the relative and newfound economic stability which was starting to transform the country has all but disappeared. The local press clamours for sense to prevail, while the activities of the opposition groupings play to the doomsayers of the revolution. So what has happened to the retail growth that was a fundamental part of the new economy pre-revolutionary times?

Interestingly there is a strong desire to maintain the lifestyle that the upper socio-economic groupings had started to enjoy and afford. Some development schemes are on hold, but much is made of the elections as the turning point for consumer confidence to return. Political impact notwithstanding, there is no doubt that the citizens who had enjoyed life pre-revolution are not giving up the new-found lifestyles, new homes away from the dense centre of Cairo and to a lesser extent the cities to the north and south of the capital. Car ownership, western brands, communication and the ability to meet with friends in malls and new town centre entertainment and F&B destinations had already heralded a dramatic shift in expectations and lifestyles.

In order to get some semblance of the degree of change which has occurred so swiftly we need to understand the defining characteristics of the Egyptian consumer pre-revolution. The new consumer was largely defined by the AB, middle and upper market citizens, well educated, global exposure and increasing disposable income. Their knowledge of international brands and desire to purchase only these had led to local retailers falling by the wayside, many malls were primarily international and their price entry points were not dissimilar to indigenous brands. This, combined with a staggering amount of new retail space coming to the market through the development expertise of multi-national groups and funds targeting international brands, led to many local

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SE C TOR A N A L Y SIS

Walking tall: Local pride and the Egyptian psyche has been re-awakened

…there is a strong desire to maintain the lifestyle that the upper socio-economic groupings had started to enjoy… businesses failing through their inability to adapt quickly enough. A key trend at this stage was defined by the use of social media, the very same tool that led to the overthrowing of the political regime. Reeboks’ fan page for Egypt was the largest in their global rankings and many other brands used this medium to introduce products to an eager consumer. WOM was an exemplary method to launch new categories and was much more effective than traditional advertising. The other principal trend was the shift for social gatherings. Traditionally this was a weekend activity held in private social and sports clubs throughout the country. Suddenly, malls at weekends were all-day destinations, coffee shops – the magic ingredient for conversa-

tion starters – became the new meeting places; different brands were appealing to different markets, be it students, businesses and social gatherings. This is one of the few sectors where indigenous operators scored over their international competitors, Cilantro being one of the favourites. Interestingly one of the key drivers of additional footfall in the new malls are the spectacular “end of season sales” offering discounts of up to 80 per cent. These attract a new demographic segment, canny enough to know when to spot the bargain and prepared to wait. Zara’s debut Egyptian store opening grossed EGP1m ($0.16m) in its first week, a record in the Mena region. The development pre-revolution was demand driven and the savvy brands

have been quick to exploit this. Even Marks and Spencer entered the market last December to much acclaim. Post revolution and things have changed. The winners are the FMCG brands, supermarket and hypermarket operators have benefited from the constraints of living in a post revolutionary society. Carrefour, the biggest international operator, is still a key footfall driver in the regional malls in which they’re located, but it’s achieved this at the expense of other sectors. Naturally consumers have been stockpiling, or over-consuming, as both the curfew and need to be online or in front of a TV at home has created a new mindset. Politics and the interminable debating, a symbol of Egyptian culture is to the fore. New consumers have adopted a prudent approach to expenditure as the future is still uncertain – eating out and luxury spending has significantly reduced, there have been layoffs in the QSR and other food sectors, even the famous winter sales were significantly down, but as the seasons change there is a noticeable increase in the fashion sector; the Egyptian spirit is still there. The more proactive of the indigenous brands are seizing the opportunity to align themselves alongside the international players, you sense that they want to compete on equal terms. Local pride and the Egyptian psyche has been reawakened. There is a noticeable increase in strategic NPD, re-branding, re-designing and awareness that localism will be the key to success. Al’Image pharmacies is but one of many local brands. It’s new proposition “passion for life” has been re-launched in a pharmaceutical sector whose customers have for too long been treated as distress purchasers only. The home furnishings sector has become increasingly design-led, but not in homage to the west or east but a contemporary Egyptian expressionism. The food sector, rather than consolidating behind the hypermarkets, is be-

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From the same people who brought you

SE C TOR A N A L Y SIS

Shelf impact: Improving infrastructure will enable rapid development such as at Arabian Mall (above)

New prescription

Egyptian chain Al’Image Pharmacy has unveiled a new brand and retail strategy. As the smallest of the top four pharmacies with 16 outlets, Al’Image’s point-of-differentiation is its pharmaceutical positioning, it says. The new design features a flexible, scaleable set of components to create an integrated and holistic environment where “guest” brands do not dominate. Multi-channel opportunities, including home delivery, online promotion, online consultation and call centre protocols have all been integrated into the new brand. Al’Image first opened in 1979. Today its annual average revenue is $15m.

…super and hypermarket operators have benefited from the constraints of living in a post revolutionary society coming increasingly specialist, butcher shops and poultry specialists are radically expanding, evidence that food quality and provenance are key factors in Egyptians’ purchasing decisions. The recent opening of new destination-orientated meeting, eating and socialising spaces, where entertainment is provided in outdoor environments, similar to other Mediterranean-facing countries, is testament to a changing culture, keen to enjoy life and their newfound freedoms. Interestingly the opportunity to champion multi-channel retail for some brands is being considered. Social media usage is becoming pan demographic and brands are only too aware of the possibilities. Logistics and distribution may, on the surface, appear chaotic, but the rapidly improving infrastructure around the cities will enable this to develop rapidly in the near future.

So the elections heralded a new start. The first female presidential candidate, opposition parties with voices, a desire to make the change happen, and for the first time in generations a real interest in the potential that exists within the continent in which it sits. Egypt’s African neighbours are being courted, plans to develop the Nile valley further south are being actively investigated. n

Ahmed Allam MENA strategy & client director, Portland, UK

David Lett development director MENA/Europe, Portland, UK

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Recouping losses

Bahrain struggles to return to business-as-usual following the worst social unrest in decades. Bahrain’s retail industry took a severe beating during the first half of the year. The island kingdom, home to more than one million people, witnessed months of unrest which have left its retail sector reeling. In March, during the worst of the troubles, shops were shut for days and the F1 grand prix was cancelled. Losses are estimated at anything between $1bn to $2bn, according to Esam Fakhro, chairman of the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI). Retailers reported losses of 80 per cent of trade from February to March, the height of the turmoil. Bahrain’s gold industry was reportedly losing $1m (BHD378,000) a day in the week businesses remained closed. While the banking sector makes up 25 per cent of the country’s economy, Bahrain has worked hard to establish

itself as a major tourism hub, particularly for Gulf nationals. Hotels were the most heavily hit as Saudi, Qatari, and Kuwaiti visitors stayed away. Hotel bookings slumped by 30.3 per cent year on year, while restaurants lost 4.6 per cent from a year ago, all of which had a profound knock-on effect on retail spend. Mohammed Abdulla Isa, CFO at Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait, told media in April that the full effects had yet to be felt. Normal service

Optimistic: Robert Addison, general manager, Seef Mall

“The impact will be [felt] in the third or fourth quarter as companies still need to go through a transition period,” he said. The relative calm of recent months and a concerted campaign of summer activities are helping the retail sector to get back on its feet, according to BCCI Retail and Traditional Markets Committee head Jawad Al Hawaj, who estimated that up to 70 per cent of business has returned. “Although the rebound has been quick, there are still considerable problems being faced by traders who have suffered a lot in the past few months,” he told the media. “We have been busy picking up the pieces and have done well, thanks to government efforts, but as traders we also need to hammer out solutions by taking tough decisions.” Following the worst of the unrest re-

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Making a comeback: Initiatives such as the Bahrain Festival in July has helped revive the retail sector, says organisers

There was an issue with rents, but most landlords have agreed to either postpone collections or waive rents ... tailers in Bahrain’s largest mall, Bahrain City Centre, were hit with rent increases of 30 to 40 per cent. Following negotiations between the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and mall owners, some retailers were promised a reprieve from the rent increases on a case-by-case basis. “There was an issue with rents, but most landlords have agreed to either postpone collections or waive rents for a few months,” said Al Hawaj. “This has been a great help, but it would help more if landlords across the board offered the same concessions. Some tenants [of Bahrain City Centre] are still not happy and we will take up their cases with the centre management.” However, more needs to be done to extend credit facilities to traders he says. “We have discussed with banks loans and installments, and to ease procedures to help the industry recover.” On the upside, the month-long, third annual Bahrain Festival in July helped

to woo back some tourists. According to the organizers – the Ministry of Culture – the festival called A Victory of Joy aimed to “bring joy and happiness to all Bahraini families, residents and tourists.” Some 83,000 people took part and sponsors included Gulf Air, Moda Mall and Batelco. And undeterred from earlier events Seef Mall went ahead with its Seef Summer Surprises (April to July) with attractions such as Raffle of the Month, special Seef shopping vouchers and a grand draw offering a new Mercedes ML 350. More recently it hosted Ramadniyat Al Seef with partner Gulf Air. The event offered weekly draws to win one of 14 tickets for two to Dubai, Doha, Abu Dhabi and Kuwait, with a final draw of eight Falcon Gold tickets to Milan, Nairobi, Geneva, and Copenhagen. Each draw saw 10 mall vouchers worth BHD100 being given away, and

for every dinar spent in the mall or a night spent at Fraser Suites, Seef participants received a raffle ticket. Both promotions also featured a wide range of in-mall, family activities such as a puppet theatre, henna painting, video gaming areas and arts and crafts. Seef also reports a number of new tenants for 2011, including Girli Girli, Mac-Design, Dr. Nutrition Centre and the Paris Hilton store. The Noodle House, Pinkberry and The Yellow Chili and Bath & Body Works are expected to open soon. Seef has also added a private car wash service, an exclusive facility that offers a range of onsite auto care services, Seef’s GM, Robert Addison, tells GMR, although he refused to be drawn on actual figures regarding average and spend footfall, “After a brief slowdown, traffic to Seef Mall from Bahrain and Saudi Arabia is back to normal. We have witnessed a steady climb, both in terms of the number of shoppers and spend over the summer months, particularly Ramadan,” Addison says. “With the mall refurbishment project nearly complete, we are optimistic in our outlook as we move into the last quarter of 2011 and beyond.” n

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Kerching!

Saudi Arabia’s retail sector is buoyed by government spending and urbanisation reports Alex Malouf from Riyadh.

Escalating business: Saudi’s retail sector remains a regional bright spot

Saudi Arabia’s retail sector has enjoyed one of its best six months on record, according to industry analysts. Data released by Riyadh-based Samba Bank put the three-month moving of points of sale transactions (which are a proxy for retail sales) from May up 44 per cent year-on-year, on average, in value terms. Retailers have received a boost from a government announcement in March that employees would receive two months’ bonus salaries. The move, which was repeated by most of the private sector, led to a spike in retail sales. Long-term expectations are that retail sales in the kingdom will increase by $10bn in four years from just under $27bn this year to more than $37bn in

2015, on the back of strong economic growth, according to Business Monitor International. Retail growth was also helped by the increase of retail space in the country’s major urban areas. Mall owners are working closely with retailers to ensure mall locations and designs meet expectations. According to a recently released report by property consultant Colliers International, regional retailers were “more concerned about ensuring that each brand is perfectly matched to their mall location and are questioning issues such as market positioning, shopper profile, store location, footfall and centre management.” Saudi’s retailers have also benefitted from the increasing urbanisation of society, with some 90 per cent of the popula-

tion now living in cities, meaning that large-scale sales outlets, such as malls, typically have a sizeable customer pool within their catchment area. Moreover shopping malls and their associated food courts and recreational facilities play a larger role in the kingdom than that of simply commercial outlets – they are also focal points for social activity. The report stated that Saudi Arabia’s retailers had taken these concerns into account, with Colliers predicting a strong performance from local retailers, as the country’s shopping malls become more competitive and better serve the internal market. It also cited a shift towards community or neighbourhood developments, which would help boost different retail formats. Research by ICD estimates that retail in Saudi Arabia is dominated by the food and grocery segment, which represents 47.2 per cent of total sales. Clothing, accessories and luxury goods are the second, third and fourth retail segments. The Saudi retail sector is dominated by specialist retailers, which accounted for a 62.6 per cent share of sales, with general retailers representing 28.1 per cent. Similarly, Saudi’s retail has been helped by record numbers of religious tourists expected for Haj and Umrah. The Saudi Haj ministry has said the number of Umrah pilgrims has increased by 45 per cent in 2011 after issuing more than 5.18 million visas for the minor pilgrimage. At the end of 2010 consumer confidence in Saudi Arabia was at a three-year high, with the MasterCard Worldwide Index of Consumer Confidence in the Middle East and Africa putting it at 95.1 points, by far the highest in the region. n

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s e c t o r a n a ly s i s

Bazaar behaviour

It’s not the retail so much as the fish tanks and fountains that shoppers search for in Dubai’s mega malls. With more than 60 major shopping malls in Dubai alone, including what is purportedly the world’s largest mall, the retail sector in the emirate has never been so competitive. Retailers, therefore, are now moving online in a bid to spread their brand message further afield to help increase footfall and become the favoured Dubai shopping experience. In the UAE top searches tend to centre around generic terms, with few mall names or specific retailers mentioned. The only malls making the top-20 popular search terms are ‘Dubai Mall’ and ‘Mall of the Emirates’. Interestingly, online shopping is beginning to emerge as a popular search term as web users opt for an in-home shopping experience. Dubai Mall is by far the most talked about brand in the social media

82 Gulf Marketing Review October 2011

sphere. It also boasts the highest sentiment scoring. Most mentions of the brand are positive, with enthusiastic comments about its impressive features such as the water fountains and the aquarium. Additional buzz has also been created around celebrities set to visit the mall. Kim Kardashian’s pending appearance is much anticipated, as is the opening of the Christian Louboutin store. Again, with the other malls mentioned often on social media platforms, the majority of buzz is created around the additional features which often don’t include shopping activities. Ski Dubai, for example, is commonly referred to when mentioning Mall of the Emirates, as is the spa when discussing Wafi mall. Surprisingly, for one of the larger and perhaps busier malls, Deira City

Centre fails to make an impact among the social media-savvy demographic. Mentions that can be picked up are neutral in tone and refer to general visits or cinema trips. Few mentions of individual retail outlets are made. Perhaps this demonstrates the growing popularity of non-shopping-focused activities available at shopping centres today, indicating the evolution of malls from being a purely shopping-based experience to a form of entertainment for the n whole family.

Lee Mancini Head of Sekari SEO Dubai

Search and Social drinkS market analySiS ttop 20 keywords retail

t p malls by volume of social media sentiment to

keyword (Uae)

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

the mall mall dubai mall mall of dubai malls in dubai dubai malls malls dubai shop in dubai dubai shop shop dubai emirates mall shops in dubai dubai shops mall emirates shopping stores dubai shopping shopping in dubai shopping dubai dubai restaurants shopping online

local monthly searches 450,000 450,000 135,000 135,000 90,500 90,500 90,500 74,000 74,000 74,000 60,500 60,500 60,500 60,500 40,500 33,100 33,100 33,100 33,100 33,100

Brand dubai mall Wafi mall of the emirates ibn Battuta Burjuman lamcy Plaza dubai Festival city marina mall mercato deira city centre oasis centre

Global monthly searches 45,500,000 45,500,000 301,000 301,000 201,000 201,000 201,000 165,000 165,000 165,000 110,000 135,000 135,000 110,000 30,400,000 165,000 165,000 165,000 60,500 13,600,000

Search engine results Pages (SerPS) research conducted on Google.ae. ttop 20 keywords with the most amount of searches last month based on local results from Google.ae

Sentiment 1839 394 349 240 154 28 101 4 22 5 0

Volume 4581 2607 1104 930 484 94 62 62 38 32 6

Source: Sekari SEO 2011

Social media â&#x20AC;&#x201C; VolUme VS Sentiment GraPh: Uae 1200

Dubai mall all (4581 mentions with 1839 sentiment) Wafi mall of the emirates (2607 mentions with (1104 mentions with 394 sentiment) 349 sentiment)

1100 hi hiG Gh VVol olU ol Ume 1000

neGatiVee Sentiment entiment

ibn Battuta

900

hiGh h VolUme PoSiti itiVVe SSentiment entiment

number of mentions

800 700 600 500 400

Burjuman

loW VolUme

neG Gati atiVVe SSentiment entiment 300 ne deira eira city 200 marinacentre oasis centre mall lamcy amcy Plaza 100 mercato ercato 0

Source: Sekari SEO 2011

loW W VolUme V PoSiti itiVVe SSentiment entiment

dubai Festival city 60

100

120

140

160

180

200

220

240

260

range of sentiment

October 2011 Gulf Marketing Review 83

S E C T O R A N AL Y S I S

Spend, spend, spend…

Ad spend across the region’s retail sector is rising dramatically… except in Egypt and Oman. The retail sector has bucked the regional downward spending of many other categories by posting double growth of 10 per cent. The Arab Spring has had a significantly negative impact on Egypt – which was the biggest spending market of 2010 – leading to a huge, 33 per cent plunge in ad spend during H1. The UAE maintained its top spending position in the region and posted a steady growth of 12 per cent during the same period. The Emirates shares 23 per cent of total regional spend in the sector. Consistently rapid growth in Saudi Arabia is evident through a 27 per cent gain and the kingdom is now ranked second among top-spending markets in the sector in the region. Kuwait witnessed a 19 per cent surge on spend, while Pan Arab Media saw a sharp increase of 35 per cent. Lebanon, however, was sluggish and saw its spend drop by nine per cent.

Other markets’ spend variation in the sector during the same period are Qatar (+4 per cent), Jordan (+24 per cent), Oman (-23 per cent) and Bahrain (+12 per cent). Department stores/supermarkets with a 16 per cent category share increased its spend by nine per cent. Apparel and footwear spend rose by 26 per cent and accounts for a 15 per cent category share. The furniture category witnessed a seven per cent decline, while jewellery outlet spending remained flat. Electronics stores dropped by 17 per cent. The rest of the categories in the sector, accounting for 42 per cent share, made healthy gains of 22 per cent. Newspapers share nearly 49 per cent of the total, measured media spend in the sector and posted flat growth of three per cent. TV spend showed robust growth of 23 per cent as the sector outlay for the

carrier is now 24 per cent. Magazine’s share is 17 per cent and they gained 16 per cent, while the rest is shared among other media. The top three spenders in the category in order of their spend are Jarir Bookstore, Carrefour and Secret. The top five spenders in the UAE market are Carrefour, Pure Gold, Damas, Lulu and Home Center.

The ad spend is calculated on the media rate cards and does not account for incentives and discounts that advertisers may avail from media owners. The views expressed are those of the author and not necessarily of Parc. n

Shaharyar Umar Marketing director Pan Arab Research Centre, Dubai

84 Gulf Marketing Review October 2011

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S E C T O R A N A LY S I S

pushing sales

Although concerns over product quality and security persist online, internet shopping is slowly growing in the UAE. Shopping is a favourite pastime for many. Latest figures by PARC TGI UAE Survey reveal 94 per cent of UAE residents visit malls, with a whopping 83 per cent visiting at least once a month. Arabs and youngsters are no exception either, with 15 to 24 year olds frequently shopping in malls. Abu Dhabi and Sharjah residents tend to be more frequent mall visitors, compared to Dubai. Unsurprisingly, residents from lower socio-economic classes visit malls less than those from higher classes. Supermarkets and discount centres are visited by 87 per cent of residents

at least once a month, 92 per cent shop for grocery, with 74 per cent shopping for groceries at least once a week. Since 2005 the average grocery spend in the UAE has increased by 31 per cent, with locals spending more than non-Arabs (just over double). Arab expats’ grocery budget has risen sharply – by 42 per cent – while non-Arab expats’ is up by only 19 per cent. The amount of people using a credit card is also increasing. Today, one in 10 residents in the UAE uses a credit card to make purchases at a supermarket.

Seventy four per cent of people living in the UAE regularly uses the internet, and this has impacted shoppers’ purchasing decisions. Even though the amount of online purchases is low, the internet is increasingly being used by shoppers; fourty five per cent source information about products and services before they buy. Games, airline tickets, music videos and computer software rank high for online purchase. E-bill payments, holiday packages, cinema tickets etc are also registering increasing online purchases.

86 Gulf Marketing Review October 2011

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W % NO 20 E OK VE IQU 20 BO SA UN D_D D G E AN IN M US DE: CO

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S E C T O R A N A LY S I S

Advertising significantly influences the purchasing decision

Shopping Curve 9

Housewife full time Working woman

Male

7 6 5 4 3 2 1

0 % Morning 07:00-07:29

Afternoon 15:00-15:29

Midnight 24:00-06:59

shopping Frequency 40 30

Trust is still an issue for online purchasing, as 82 per cent of users say they have to be careful about the quality of items bought online, with 72 per cent preferring to buy wellknown brands. Some 5.2 per cent of users always look for prices of furniture and household items, while 61 per cent would not buy online unless they see the product beforehand. The introduction of safer credit cards will boost online shopping, as 37 per cent would shop on the internet if there was a safer way to pay. Product quality, locality and price are the top three most important factors when deciding which shops to visit for major shopping. Advertising significantly influences the purchasing decision, as 60 per cent feel safer with brands they have seen advertised. Sixty three per cent tend to buy well-known brands in the household cleaning sector. Shopping is fun in the UAE, as more than half the population (53 per cent) say they enjoy any kind of shopping. Dubai Mall, Mall of the Emirates and Deira City Center are the three mostvisited malls in the UAE.Carrefour, Lulu and the Abu Dhabi Co-op are the top three supermarkets in the country. n

20 10 0 %

Not stated

4 times or more a week

2-3 times Once a week 2-3 times a week a month

Source: TGI UAE - 2010, ÂŠ PARC International

Once a month

About 1-2 times every 3 months

Less often

Shaharyar Umar Marketing director, Pan Arab Research Centre, Dubai

88 Gulf Marketing Review October 2011

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9/26/11 12:44 PM

Book early to save

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9/20/11 12:28 PM

SECTOR ANALYSIS

Buying media

Dubai’s super malls form an orderly queue for press coverage. The retail sector across major MENA markets has undergone significant development, supported by steady economic growth, young and growing populations and the region’s popularity as a tourist destination. According to Gulf News’ Quarterly Financial Review in August, the construction of several large-scale projects across the Mena region, such as Dubai Mall, City Stars Cairo and Muscat City Center, has played a major role in the reshaping of retail behaviour. Although a fast-paced, supply-led retail model has proven successful during high growth periods, the retail sector has been impacted by the economic slowdown. The UAE is the Mena region’s most advanced retail segment with Dubai leading the way in attracting prominent international brands.

The emirate has experienced a significant boost in new retail supply, with more than one million square metres completed during the past five years, of which the majority is located in super regional malls. Although the Abu Dhabi retail sector is catching up, it is still considered an emerging market. Facets of coverage We looked at five major malls in Dubai and Pan Arab markets in August 2011; Burjuman, Deira City Center, Dubai Mall, Ibn Battuta Mall and Mall of the Emriates (MoE). Dubai Mall achieved the highest volume of print coverage, followed closely by MoE. Ibn Battuta Mall was third, followed by Deira City Center and Burjuman. The same pattern applied to OTS (Opportunities To See) figures achieved in

August 2011 by the five super Dubai malls. The gap between Dubai Mall and MoE is much larger in terms of NCS (Newspaper Coverage Size), measured in column centimetres. While Dubai Mall achieved 14.600, MoE achieved 8.3,000 in August. Interestingly, in terms of MCS (Magazines Coverage Size), measured in pages, it was Burjuman that led over Deira City Center, while the latter achieved almost twice as much NCS as Burjuman, indicating that Deira City Center focused far more on newspapers, while Burjuman focused on magazines. Penetration English was the popular language for the five super malls, perhaps catering to Dubai’s large expat population. The ratio of English to Arabic coverage varied from mall to mall. While Deira City

90 Gulf Marketing Review October 2011

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udien ce Our A

Silver Surfe

r e h t o M n r e od

Gamer

Homemaker Lux

ly f r e t t u B l a i c o S

ife

Fashionista

Beauty h t l a e H

s u o i c s Con

Entertainment Buff

UV 5,125,385 - PV 26,215,633 Combining original content with stylish, dynamic design, dotmena female is a vertical network of premium lifestyle sites, taking brands closer to women in the Middle East.

Find the perfect match.

dotmena.com Dotmena GMR.indd 1

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SECTOR ANALYSIS

Centre had 2.6:1 English to Arabic ratio, Ibn Battuta Mall had a ratio of 10.8:1. Perhaps Ibn Battuta is catering to the expat customer base in the near-by Gardens and Discovery Gardens? Media types were almost equally distributed between newspapers and magazines for Deira City Center, Dubai Mall and Ibn Battuta Mall, while there was about twice as many magazine clippings as newspaper clippings for both Burjuman and MoE.

Language Penetration – August 2011 Outlets Burjuman Deira City Center Dubai Mall Ibn Battuta Mall Mall of the Emirates

Arabic 8 15 64 5 39

English 44 39 258 54 275

Media Type Penetration – August 2011 Outlets Burjuman Deira City Center Dubai Mall Ibn Battuta Mall Mall of the Emirates

Newspaper 17 28 158 23 102

Magazine 38 28 167 40 218

Top Media Outlets (Editorial Value) – August 2011 BURJUMAN GN Quarterly Financial Review Discover Dubai Gulf News Diera City Centre GN Quarterly Financial Review Discover Dubai 7 Days Dubai Mall GN Quarterly Financial Review Emarat Al Youm The National Ibn Battuta Mall Financial Times - Dubai Arabian Business (English) Hotelier Middle East MALL OF THE EMIRATES GN Quarterly Financial Review The National Hotelier Middle East

9,856 2,343.50 2,165.80 44,990.80 64,791.90 47,605.40 65,241.20 59,040 14,507.20 9,856 5,714.30 14,507.20

Classifications MoE had the highest ‘Entertainment Events’ coverage. Surf Adventure UAE Expedition, Ski Dubai, art galleries, The Light Gallery, martial arts classes, Middlesex University Dubai conference and an Indian dance class provide an idea of the variety of events for August alone. MoE also had coverage on a new spa opening and fashion house Celine’s award for sales performance. The mall, however, had a single negative clipping in the form of customer complaints of bad fast-food services. Dubai Mall achieved the highest volume of ‘Ramadan Specials’, ‘Eid Events’, ‘Restaurant and Shop’ product placements, compared to the other four super malls.

Source: Mediastow, August 2011

9,856 2,552.70 910

Top media outlets Financial Times – Dubai accumulated a total editorial value of $65.2K for Ibn Battuta Mall, more than any other publication for any of the five super malls in August. Emarat Al Youm was Dubai Mall’s top media outlet in terms of editorial value with $64.8K in August 2011. Hotelier Middle East was the top media outlet for MoE with $14.5K. GN Quarterly Financial Review was the top media outlet for both Burjuman and Deira City Center. Overall, Financial Times – Dubai, Emarat Al Youm, Arabian Business (English), The National and Gulf News – all English publications with the exception of Emarat Al Youm – were the highest editorial value -generating publications for the five super malls.

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w SECTOR ANALYSIS

Content Classification – August 2011 Outlets Burjuman Deira City Center Dubai Mall Ibn Battuta Mall Mall of the Emirates

Entertainment event 6 4 27 3 38

Draw (Prize) 2 0 0 5 0

Ramadan Specials 9 11 31 18 27

Eid Specials 8 6 34 23 22

Mall Review 2 2 8 5 11

Restaurants 6 7 41 7 29

Shops

Cinema

7 5 65 16 33

0 0 0 4 12

Charity Drive 4 6 11 0 20

Metro Route 1 0 0 0 1

Other 1 2 7 2 4

Facets of Coverage – August 2011 Outlets

Volume of Coverage

OTS (Opportunities to see)

55 56 325 63 320

2,894,575 3,382,239 19,607,487 3,726,278 17,673,151

Burjuman Deira City Center Dubai Mall Ibn Battuta Mall Mall of the Emirates

NCS (Newspaper coverage size) - In cc 1,524 2,546 14,618 1,990 8,287

MCS (Magazine coverage size) - In pages 9.43 5.82 45.44 15.15 48.53

Source: Mediastow, August 2011

The ratio of English to Arabic coverage varied from mall to mall… Dubai Mall also had coverage on its gift card promotion, as well as a latent (indirect) mention of it as reference from Emaar. The mall also launched an iPhoneplatform customer service, received a good review from a letter to the editor, and also featured a clipping on the arrest of beggars at the mall. Ibn Battuta Mall achieved the highest volume of clippings on prize promotions, and the second highest in its penetration of ‘Eid Events’ and ‘Cinema’ product placements. The mall also had clippings on its planned expansion of Dragon Mart and on the Swiss National Day celebration ,held at the mall, in August 2011. Burjuman and Deira City Centre did not achieve as high a volume of coverage as the other three super malls, but worth noting that neither had ‘Cinema’ product placements.

Deira City Centre, in particular, did not feature any clippings on promotional prizes. Conclusion Each of the five super malls displayed a high variety of messages to the public from all sorts of promotions and product placements for its restaurants, shops, spas and cinemas, to mall reviews, entertainment events and charity drives. Other news remained minimal relative to the entirety of the coverage. Mall owners may need to consider repositioning and remixing options to stay competitive by providing new concepts to their customer base. In addition to repositioning outdated malls, developing ‘community-led retail’ is another opportunity. This involves emphasis on serving the local community through the introduction of more non-retail and community uses such as

health services, special needs clinics and government offices. While Ibn Battuta Mall may be trying to reposition itself to be the expat mall with its significantly higher English penetration to events. Dubai Mall is repositioning itself as the mall of the never-ending various events. Burjuman, on the other hand, focuses mainly on its high-end shops. Repositioning is crucial, but it can only be perceived by the public by a competitive boost in overall volume of coverage and in particular through the avenues that would reach the target audience. There is room for a variety of positioning, but questions remain whether each mall will find its own and whether they’ll be able to penetrate this position to the audience amid the noise of the other malls. n

Hisham Elzubeir, Research director, Mediastow

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S E C T O R A N A LY S I S

CATEGORY: MALL & RETAIL STORES – ADVERTISING MARKETS 2011 Millions US$384

Markets Ranking & Media Split (000 US$) Television Rank Market Name & Abbreviation 2009 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

United Arab Emirates Kindom Of Saudi Arabia Pan Arab Media Kuwait Lebanon Egypt Qatar Jordan Oman Bahrain Other Markets** Total All Markets

UAE KSA PAN KWT LEB EGY QTR JOR OMN BAH OTH

2010

%Var’n 2011 YTD

79,193 78,445 87,486 41,973 52,214 66,564 40,437 44,748 60,466 44,346 50,139 59,548 29,584 43,988 40,088 31,970 30,892 20,686 21,739 19,373 20,052 6,894 7,521 9,328 6,164 8,514 6,536 5,519 5,717 6,381 6,642 6,648 6,852 314,461 348,199 383,987

12 27 35 19 -9 -33 4 24 -23 12 3 10

2011

%Var’n YTD

650 49 416 440 43,791 40 13,345 71 31,601 -4 0 -100 12 14 -81 2 -82 0 4,070 12 93,901 23

Newspapers 2011

%Var’n YTD

48,858 44,688 188 39,901 2,483 16,308 16,019 8,457 6,042 4,437 1,585 188,966

Magazines 2011

1 27,863 14 4,287 -14 16,487 12 5,581 -20 4,569 -19 2,200 -3 1,897 26 857 -24 492 35 1,858 -2 1,040 3 67,131

Radio

%Var’n YTD

2011

27 3 25 -8 24 -35 79 20 -17 6 -13 16

Outdoor

%Var’n YTD

2,573 304 0 721 116 1,041 78 0 0 86 157 5,076

2011

584 7,346 14 16,869 0 0 0 -51 1,319 -48 1,137 -39 2,046 0 0 -86 0 -26 0 12 28,717

+10% Cinema

%Var’n YTD

2011

8 101 -100 -68 -79 26

-100 9

196 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 196

%Var’n YTD -58

-100 -61

**Other markets: Combined – Syria, Yemen & Arasian

Ranking of markets and media split (000US$) 100%

Category split by market 2% 2% 2% 2% 5% 17%

75% 50%

16% 5% 10%

16%

23%

25% 0%

Total GCC LEV UAE KSA PAN KWT LEB EGY QTR JOR OMN BAH OTH 383987 312900 71087 87486 66564 60466 59548 40088 20686 20052 9328 6536 6381 6852

Television

Newspapers

Magazines

Radio

Outdoor

Cinema

UAE KSA PAN KWT LEB EGY QTR JOR OMN BAH OTH

SPLIT BY PRODUCTS – 2011 All Markets 7% 16%

42%

8% 12% 15%

Others Dept stores/Supermarket Apparels/Footware Furniture & Acc. Jewellery store Electronic store

Pan Arab Media 20% 17% 7% 11% 10%

35%

Others Teleshopping Apparels/Footware Clothes shops Furniture & Acc. Misc. retail stores

GCC Markets 7% 7% 42%

12% 16% 16%

Others Dept stores/Supermarket Apparels/Footware Furniture & Acc. Electronic stores Jewellery stores

39%

Levant Markets 10% 15% 10%

12% 14%

Others Furniture & Acc. Dept stores/S.market Jewellery stores Apparels/Footware Misc retail stores

TOP BRANDS – ALL MEDIA (000 US$) – 2011 Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Brand Jarir Bookstore Carrefour Secret Sedar Lulu Khoury Home Ikea Centre Point Zoughaib Moukarzel Damas Home Center Space Toonat Spinneys Extra Pure Gold Jewel. Home Tech Al Zumoroda Co. Taw9eel.com Beirut Duty Free

Pan Arab Media Value 13,204 7,761 6,266 5,943 5,144 4,696 4,151 4,136 4,110 3,705 3,669 3,439 3,414 3,093 3,054 2,799 2,780 2,756 2,712 2,566

Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Brand Secret Space Toonat Centre Point Home Tech Sedar Zein Etelvaz Bahgat Stores Ghassan Faces M.h Group Extra Vavavoom Toys _r_ Us Beirut Duty Free Centrepoint Al Nour E2r Al Saudia Home Shop

GCC Value 6,266 3,414 3,280 2,780 2,204 1,479 1,387 1,258 1,233 1,175 1,171 1,144 1,087 1,025 977 857 813 621 583 553

Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Levant Brand Jarir Bookstore Carrefour Secret Lulu Ikea Centre Point Damas Space Toonat Home Center Extra Pure Gold Jewel. Home Tech Al Zumoroda Co. Taw9eel.com 109 Centrepoint Othaim Sedar Hyper Panda Fifty 2 Degrees

Value 13,204 6,911 6,266 5,144 4,148 4,106 3,652 3,414 3,359 3,053 2,799 2,780 2,756 2,712 2,554 2,394 2,338 2,204 2,194 2,173

Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Brand Khoury Home Sedar Zoughaib Moukarzel Spinneys Zein Al Atat Samih Mall Home City Beirut Duty Free All Prints Arcom Le Charcutier Al Salab Carrefour Aishti Capital Mall Hokayem Freres Makro Comp.shope_rs_ms Compu Me

Value 4,696 3,739 3,688 3,595 2,318 2,242 1,797 1,642 1,589 1,459 1,384 1,210 893 850 795 778 705 696 640 616

Source: PARC

All market

96 Gulf Marketing Review October 2011

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20 11

gemas

mena

Celebrating the most effective marketing communication campaigns of the year, the GEMAS Effie Mena Awards is a must-attend event for those in the business. The GEMAS Effie Mena Awards Gala Dinner 2011 will take place on Thursday, November 24, to the Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai.

BE pArT of ThE CElEBrATioN. Book your SEAT ToDAy EMAil: GEMAS@MEDiAquESTCorp.CoM / wEBSiTE: www.GEMASEffiE.CoM Sponsors Main

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