Shoppers go ‘hyper’ to avail of Ramadan offers

Hypermarkets, malls benefit from shopping spree of residents

People make a bee-line to hypermarkets to avail themselves of numerous offers and promotions on a wide range of daily needs and consumables. - KT photo by Leslie Pableo

Dubai - With the start of the holy month of Ramadan, the FMCG food and beverage sector in Dubai has witnessed a marked increase in economic activity, as people make a bee-line to hypermarkets to avail themselves of numerous offers and promotions on a wide range of daily needs and consumables.

In addition to the offers at hypermarkets, residents and visitors can also pick up attractive bargains and deals including discounts of up to 75 per cent that are being offered at malls and retail outlets in Dubai as part of the ongoing ‘Ramadan in Dubai’ campaign aimed at highlighting the community and cultural aspects of the month of reflection and self restraint.

For all hypermarkets, Ramadan shopping benefits their business due to a spike in the purchase of consumables, which is linked to the social habits during the month of Ramadan, where spend on food increases manifold.  Shoppers rush to purchase groceries as families consume an intake of extensive menu options for their Iftaar and Suhoor.

Keeping this in mind, the high demand has also ensured that the key players in the market offer fantastic deals and promotions on a range of grocery products and food items.

Colette Shannon, Communications Manager, Spinneys Dubai LLC said: “This Ramadan we give our customers offers of great value with the highest quality of products. We have developed a unique range of ready to roast meats including Moroccan-style stuffed lamb with each lamb leg to serve approximately 8 people, which can make a good purchase for Iftar. For smaller gatherings we have a new ready to roast chicken breast dish, that is filled with a za’atar and pesto cream cheese inspired by traditional Arabic spices”.

“We also recently launched a ready-to-eat range including bite-sized meatballs and mini burgers, crudités and dips freshly made in our state of the art facility in Dubai. These delicious and convenient products are perfect for family and friends”, she added.

“We have lots of offers throughout the store during Ramadan. We have locked the prices of over 200 products across almost all categories and have a large number of very special offers in fruit and vegetables, meat, grocery and home.”

At the same time, Carrefour, the UAE’s leading hypermarket chain has announced that 300 products in Carrefour stores across the UAE were set to have their prices rolled back during Ramadan, which will mean hundreds of grocery items being sold below cost. In addition, daily ‘crazy deals’ will offer significant savings on commodities, especially family items and basket offers worth Dh100 and 200.

Ashraf Ali MA, Executive Director of LuLu Group said: “Ramadan has always been a very important season to us and this year also we have extensive promotions. Last week we had launched our special Ramadan Kit, which comprises around 25 essential grocery products that are priced almost 20 per cent less than the usual prices. Apart from this we are running special promotions on a range of products such as luggage, garments, fruits and vegetables, for which we are offering massive discounts of up to 30 to 40 per cent.”

He added: “We have also frozen prices of around 200 products to ease the shopping pressure during Ramadan.”

Shoppers will also have the opportunity to participate in the various promotions that will be run right across the summer at participating malls in collaboration with the Dubai Shopping Malls Group.

The summer promotions began on May 24 with the second leg of the campaign set to begin on July 1 and run until the last day of the “Eid in Dubai - Eid Al Fitr” celebrations.

Ramadan in Dubai is a social and cultural initiative organised by the Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment, an agency of the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, and features a line-up of events and activities inspired by Islamic values, heritage and tradition. — reporters@khaleejtimes.com

• UAE