Dubai ranks second only to London on a list of the number of global retail brands present in the city, according to a study released on Monday by global real estate consultants CB Richard Ellis (CBRE).
The latest edition of ‘How Global is the Business of Retail?’ surveyed the global footprint of 294 of the world’s top retailers across 69 countries and it was found that 55 percent of the brands had a presence in Dubai.
Only London ranked higher than Dubai, with 56 percent of global retailers operating in the British capital. Completing the global top five were Paris (46 percent), New York (44 percent) and Hong Kong (43 percent).
Restricting the survey to just luxury retailers, Dubai’s percentage score was even higher. CBRE found that 85 percent of the luxury retailers surveyed in the study operate in the emirate. While London again edged ahead of Dubai and is home to 87 percent of the luxury brands, the number one performer was Hong Kong, with a massive 91 percent of high end brands setting up shop in the Asian city.
“Despite continued uncertainty for some retailers across the world, luxury brand retailers have remained active and were responsible for the most new store openings in the past year,” said Peter Gold, head of Europe, Middle East and Africa Cross-Border Retail at CBRE.
In the Midscale market, Middle Eastern cities dominated, with “Dubai is placed top with Kuwait City, Riyadh, Jeddah and Abu Dhabi all featuring in the top 10,” the report added.
The report comes ahead of the opening on Wednesday of the new Fashion Dome at Mall of the Emirates, the latest luxury retail outlet set to open in Dubai.
In July, the mall’s owner and developer Majid Al Futtaim Properties confirmed that the lineup of brands that had taken space in the Fashion Dome will include Christian Louboutin, Cartier, Canali, Boutique 1, Paul Smith, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Galliano, Versace, See by Chloe, Bottega Venetta, Mulberry, Missoni, Diane von Furstenberg, Sephora and the largest D&G boutique in the region.
Another retail study, released last week by the Mumbai-based Bharat Book Bureau research firm, found that the amount of leasable retail space in Dubai increased by 263 percent between 2006 and 2010.
The CBRE and Barat Book studies come hot on the heels of the Global Retail Development Index, which was released earlier this year by AT Kearney, and showed that despite the global financial crisis the UAE is still one of the top ten most attractive markets for global retailers.
Dan Starta, partner and managing director of AT Kearney Middle East said: “The UAE has been a hot spot for several years and is now entering the next level of maturity. Retailers are looking to build on their stronghold in the UAE to diversify their portfolio across the region.”
