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Malls register 65 per cent rise in revenues during first two weeks

DUBAI —The first two weeks of Dubai Summer Suprises (DSS) have witnessed a 12 per cent increase in the number of visitors to Modhesh Fun City and 65 per cent growth in revenues at participating shopping malls compared with the DSS last year.

Saeed Al Nabouda, CEO of DSS, said that Modhesh Fun City welcomed 73,028 visitors of various age groups and nationalities between June 21 and July 3, registering an increase of 12 per cent compared to the same period of DSS 2006.

The figures revealed also indicated that sales revenues in shopping malls rose by a substantial 65 per cent in the first week only, touching Dh 48.8 million which is a clear indication of the success of DSS that is today the leading regional summer shopping and entertainment event.

Al Nabouda said, “The initial figures that we have gathered from various locations of the event indicate an unprecedented rise in several aspects. This in turn, denotes the success of the new strategy in attracting larger audiences.”

“We view this success as a direct result of the diversification of events in the tenth edition of DSS as we have noticed that visitors attending our events constitute various age groups. Everyone noticed that the first two weeks of DSS 2007 offered events that catered to different age groups in comparison with pervious editions where a majority of our activities were focused on children only. This success can also be contributed to the ‘Shop and Win Millions’ promotion campaign that is organized by Dubai Shopping Malls Group in collaboration with the DSS Office.”

The number of visitors for DSS 2007 are expected to reach 2.16 million with a 15 per cent increase over DSS 2006 and the corresponding expenditure is expected to touch AED 3.08 billion, registering a 20 per cent increase over the last edition.

Meanwhile, Eyad Ali Abdul Rahman, Executive Director Media Relations,the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM), said the DSS would help boost tourism, especially hotels and hotel apartments and shopping malls.

He said that the department had been promoting the DSS through its participation in various overseas exhibitions and Dubai Road Shows in various parts of the world. It has launched an intensive promotion campaign for the DSS in addition to the exclusive Dubai Summer Getaways promotion.

These efforts will result in a tangible increase in the number of tourists descending on Dubai, especially from the Arabian Gulf Cooperation Council (AGCC) states of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Sultanate of Oman. He said Dubai hotels and hotel apartment have been recording high occupancy levels since the start of the DSS and the Dubai Summer Getaways promotion.

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