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UAE e-commerce surge reshapes Eid gifting as social, local commerce gain ground
Eid Al Adha spending in the UAE and GCC is shifting toward local brands, social discovery and quick commerce, as consumers prioritise meaningful gifts and seamless digital journeys
- PUBLISHED: Mon 25 May 2026, 3:38 PM
E-commerce across the UAE and wider Gulf is entering a new phase of rapid evolution, with Eid Al Adha emerging as a key test bed for changing consumer behaviour — particularly in gifting, where local brands, digital discovery and convenience are shaping spending patterns.
Regional e-commerce spending is forecast to grow by around 10 per cent during Eid Al Adha 2026, driven by strong digital infrastructure and a growing preference for homegrown businesses, according to data from Udora (formerly Flowwow), a UAE-based gifting marketplace, in collaboration with Admitad, an international performance marketing company. The trend reflects a broader shift toward “close-to-home” celebrations, with spending focused on household items, gifting and domestic experiences.
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This aligns with wider structural changes highlighted in NielsenIQ’s latest global study, The Commerce Revolution: Where East Meets West, which shows that emerging channels such as social commerce, live commerce and quick commerce are now driving most incremental digital growth worldwide. These channels are increasingly interconnected, creating “a broad infrastructure where discovery, transaction, and product delivery converge,” requiring brands to adopt a more holistic approach to commerce.
Mobile first consumers
The Middle East is emerging as a fast adopter of these trends. With mobile-first consumers and strong fintech and logistics ecosystems, the region is becoming “a blueprint for the convergence of digital commerce innovation,” said Andrey Dvoychenkov, General Manager Arabian Peninsula and Pakistan at NielsenIQ.
Eid gifting trends in the UAE highlight how these global shifts are playing out locally. Consumers are moving away from impulsive purchases toward more intentional spending, focusing on items with lasting value or cultural significance. Categories such as jewellery, toys, travel and car-related products saw strong growth during the 2025 festive period, reflecting a more considered purchasing approach.
At the same time, the gifting segment is seeing a marked rise in demand for locally produced and culturally relevant items. UAE-based gifting platform Udora recorded a 102 per cent surge in demand for gifts from small entrepreneurs during the 2025 Eid window, alongside an 84 per cent rise in transactions.
“Shoppers are becoming more intentional, value authenticity, and increasingly support homegrown brands during culturally significant moments like Eid Al Adha,” said Slava Bogdan, CEO and founder of Udora. “We believe this trend still has strong long-term growth potential for local businesses.”
Flowers and confectionery remain core to festive gifting, underlining the importance of tradition alongside convenience. Floral purchases alone accounted for the majority of gifting orders, with strong growth in both volumes and average transaction values, reflecting their cultural relevance during Eid.
Digital commerce infrastructure
These behavioural shifts are also closely tied to advances in digital commerce infrastructure. According to NielsenIQ, quick commerce is resetting expectations around fulfilment speed, while AI-driven discovery is changing how consumers find and purchase products. Increasingly, shoppers are moving away from keyword search toward content-led and algorithm-driven recommendations, a shift that forces retailers to rethink how they engage customers.
In the Gulf, this convergence of commerce channels is accelerating rapidly. In the UAE and Saudi Arabia, live, social and quick commerce are gaining traction, while e-commerce is delivering strong incremental growth—supported by rising consumer trust in digital platforms and seamless payment systems.
For Eid shoppers, this translates into more integrated and personalised experiences: browsing products on social platforms, completing transactions within apps, and receiving orders quickly—often within hours. The ability to combine discovery, purchase and delivery in a single digital ecosystem is becoming a key differentiator for retailers.
At the same time, macro factors are reinforcing the shift toward domestic spending. Higher travel costs and global uncertainty are encouraging residents to celebrate closer to home, benefiting local businesses and SMEs. This is further supported by government initiatives across the Gulf that position small businesses as a central pillar of economic diversification.
The result is a virtuous cycle for local e-commerce players. As consumers increasingly prioritise authenticity, cultural relevance and convenience, smaller brands are gaining visibility through digital platforms and social commerce channels—often competing effectively with larger international retailers.
NielsenIQ notes that this transformation is part of a broader “commerce revolution,” where brands must increasingly operate like technology and media companies, integrating data, content and performance measurement across channels to stay competitive.
As Eid Al Adha 2026 approaches, the convergence of these trends suggests that festive shopping in the UAE will be shaped as much by technology and logistics as by tradition. For consumers, it means more personalised and meaningful gifting experiences. For retailers, it underscores the growing importance of local relevance, seamless digital journeys and the ability to engage shoppers across an increasingly connected commerce ecosystem.
Associate Editor Somshankar Bandyopadhyay brings more than three decades of experience to the KT newsroom. Currently, he manages the news production of the business section, ensuring that the top economic and business news of the day reaches its readers.