Dubai records most number of retail developments in the UAE at 57
Danube Building Materials, the leader in construction, building materials and shop fitting industries, has announced its nationwide expansion plans for its ‘Danube BUILDMART’ concept across malls in Dubai within the year. The move is expected to increase accessibility to Danube’s products by leveraging the excellent location and convenience of popular retail establishments in the emirate, which include shopping centres, regional centres, commercial centres, outlet centres, power centres and single shops. At present, Dubai ranks first among the rest of the emirates in terms of number of retail developments, recording a total of 57 malls, and an additional 42, which are currently under construction, according to latest industry studies.
Prior to the announcement, Danube has rolled out its AED 20 million expansion plan for ‘Danube BUILDMART', which involved the unveiling of the two flagship branches of the retail complex chain. Set to offer a wide range of reasonably-priced but high quality interior fixtures, the new stores are expected to open in two leading shopping malls in Dubai - Ibn Battuta Mall and Dubai Festival City, where they are set to be inaugurated by September and December 2009, respectively.
“The pervasive ‘mall culture’ in Dubai and the rest of the UAE has inspired us to launch this unique concept, which aims to leverage the market’s affinity to retail developments as a preferred retail destination,” said Rizwan Sajan, Chairman, Danube Building Materials. “By making our products available in leading shopping centres, we hope to bridge the gap between potential customers who are looking for top quality home fixtures within the same location where they do the majority of their shopping.”
In addition to shopping malls in Dubai, Danube also revealed that it is looking at similar establishments in other emirates. At present, the company is in the process of selecting the most strategic locations for additional ‘Danube BUILDMART’ stores among the completed 18 retail developments located in Abu Dhabi, and about 14 under construction. Furthermore, Danube is also open to expanding in malls in Ras Al Khaimah, which houses two retail developments, and Fujairah, where there is currently one.
“Our continuous expansion efforts are guided by insights, which we acquire by carefully studying the needs and requirements of our customers, thereby leading to success. With these new stores, we are expecting to bolster our presence in the UAE, while communicating our commitment to the market. We have high hopes of establishing additional ‘Danube BUILDMART’ branches in the other emirates, as we are convinced that this concept presents an attractive shopping option to customers,” concluded Sajan.
‘Danube BUILDMART’ offers a personalised retail store experience with excellent service, design assistance, and inspiration to help people redecorate their homes. All the products in the retail complex are installed in an actual home set-up, thereby allowing customers a more convenient way to shop for building materials, fixtures and other household items. At present, there are five retail outlets under the ‘BUILDMART’ banner, including two ‘BUILDMART Boutique’ branches (Dubai and Abu Dhabi, UAE), and three ‘DANUBE BUILDMART’ complexes (Ras Al Khaimah, UAE; Bahrain, and KSA).
