MoE shoppers spending 20% less than '08 - CEO

Shoppers at Mall of the Emirates are spending in the region of 20 percent less than they did in 2008, the CEO of the Majid Al Futtaim Group, which owns the Mall, has told Arabian Business.

Visitor numbers to the Dubai mall are also down two percent compared to 2007, Iyad Malas said in an interview.

“I think we have seen some drop in traffic, but we are not sure how much of it is due to Dubai Mall opening, and how much is due to tourists not coming to the UAE. Traffic is down about two percent from where it was this time last year,” he added.

Malas said he was not overly concerned about the threat of competition for visitor numbers posed by the opening this year of Dubai Mall [click here] – the biggest shopping mall in the world.

“Dubai Mall is obviously a big and attractive mall. People want to visit it. The point is, if you come to Dubai for five days, you are bound to visit Dubai Mall, and Mall of the Emirates. Both have attractions – everyone wants to come and see the ski slope at Mall of the Emirates. The key for both malls is whether people buy or don’t buy. And in terms of buying, we are seeing a drop in the twenty percent range. The people who suffer the most are the luxury retailers,” he said.

The Majid Al Futtaim Group also owns the City Centre Mall in Deira, as well hotels in Dubai, including the Kempinski at Mall of the Emirates, and the Sofitel at the City Centre Mall. Malas said occupancy rates were down at the hotels, but that occupancy levels over recent years had been “abnormal.”

“The situation before was abnormal. Having occupancy rates of 75 percent on an annual basis is what every hotel would dream of. 90-95 percent in some months was a very high rate. It was becoming unsustainable,” he said.

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