The Middle East has long been viewed as a potential goldmine by international companies. But those that really want to make it have to make a genuine commitment to the market, say industry experts.While the Middle East has long been heralded for its untapped potential, there are still too few suppliers making a genuine commitment to the region, Philipp Selva, president and CEO of Selva, has suggested.
“You find a lot of excellent interior designers and decorators here but in terms of stores or factories really putting their energy into the GCC, I don’t really see them on the market. It’s not like Germany or other countries, where around every corner you find a number of high-end retailers,” Selva said.
The benefits of making a true commitment to this market – with a representative office or dedicated showroom, for example – are manifold, noted Michael Khouri, regional sales manager, Middle East, Fritz Hansen.
The high-end furniture specialist established a representative office in Dubai over a year ago, attracted by the region’s growth potential and spurred by a strong performance in 2007. “Personally, I think it is definitely beneficial for suppliers to have clear representation here, rather than just having distributors,” Khouri maintained.
“Firstly, it means that you’ve got an immediate line of communication between the supplier and the distributor, so you can actually support them in selling the product the right way.
“As a company, we believe in partnerships,” Khouri continued. To reiterate this point, distributors are not called distributors; instead, they are always referred to as partners.
Fritz Hansen’s Dubai office was created to cover the Middle East region in its entirety. The company initially established distribution lines and then, in order to offer its partners additional support once it was required, went on to launch a dedicated office.
The office does not sell directly. Instead, it focuses on support, business development and education. Essentially, it is about making sure that there is clear market understanding of the brand. “A lot of the time, especially for a product like Fritz Hansen, where it is quite a specialised, luxury, high-end product, you need to know how to approach the market and how to support the market,” Khouri pointed out.
“Unfortunately, some distributors in our market try and overload a portfolio full of brands so that they can get involved in as many opportunities as possible, without actually specialising. I guess we offer a specialisation in our product which some other companies don’t,” he maintained.
Having an ear to the ground enables the company to adapt quickly – and encourages its distributors to be equally agile. “Obviously, we are a changing and dynamic company, and we work in a dynamic market, so we need to make sure that we are responding to market needs,” said Khouri. “At the end of the day, sometimes the market changes and the distributors don’t, so you need to adapt to that.”
Italian lighting specialist, iGuzzini also established a representative office in Dubai a little over a year ago. Again, the emphasis was very much on providing support, with the office involved in anything from training to marketing and media activities.
“We established a presence here so that we would be able to better support our clients. A direct presence here acts as a guarantee for them,” commented Sergio Padula, light planning manager, iGuzzini Middle East.
As with Fritz Hansen, the aim was to facilitate the work of distributors and partners, rather than interfere or detract from their efforts. “We are so happy with our partners. We want to be a resource for them,” said Padula.
Prior to this, iGuzzini found that it was being specified for a high number of projects but not necessarily appearing in the finished product, a trend that Dutch furniture company, Montis, also identified. In response, Montis recently unveiled a show villa in Dubai’s Al Barsha area. “People wanted to work directly with the company,” explained Melvin Herbschleb, the company’s export manager.
“Our experience of the local market over the last year has shown that you have to have someone on the ground. People want to touch, feel and understand what they are buying. They don’t just want a catalogue and a price tag.”
The company is showcasing a number of its products within the luxury show villa and is inviting potential customers to come and experience these pieces ‘in situ’. Essentially, the showroom is an attempt to minimise the distance between Dubai and The Netherlands.
“We are displaying some new and exciting pieces to show architects and interior designers what we have cooking in Holland,” said Herbschleb.
“We are not selling here; this is not a shop. This is a space where we can inform people. Where they can have a coffee and get a feel for what we do. They get the opportunity to see the product and understand the quality. It is a forum for architects and designers.
“It is all about making life easy. And the easier you make it the more people will want to do business with you,” Herbschleb continued.
Also recognising the value of having a prominent, highly-visible presence on the market, German manufacturer of high-end kitchens, SieMatic recently partnered with home appliance retailer, Better Life, to open a new kitchen concept store in Dubai.
The 360m² facility showcases six different SieMatic kitchens, to give visitors a better idea of the breadth of product that the company is able to offer, explained Stefan Albrink, managing director, SieMatic. “The idea is to present the whole SieMatic range, so we have contemporary, country style and also very modern kitchens. We are presenting everything that SieMatic can offer to the Dubai market.”The Middle East is a key growth region for SieMatic, Albrink noted. This is why the company has continued to invest, opening the showroom in the midst of the downturn.
“Dubai is still the hub of the Middle East and is very important. We’ve been in this market for four years and we decided to partner with Better Life to take the brand to the next level.
“The Middle East is a growing region for SieMatic. We came into Dubai in 2005 and established a branch here. We only have seven branches worldwide and the Middle East branch is the youngest – we decided to put our investment here. You can see from that how important this market is.
“We are one of a few companies with a dedicated branch in the Middle East,” he continued. “This gives our partners a very strong service and makes sure that we are very close to the market.”
Buying from the ‘the source’ invariably instils customers with a sense of confidence, Selva maintained. The company currently operates a showroom on Sheikh Zayed Road and plans to introduce a dedicated store for its recently-launched Philipp Selva Home brand, in the Mall of the Emirates.
“People should feel like they are shopping at a corporate store – not from a dealer who goes from place to place to do his purchasing. We try and give them the feeling that they are really buying at the source. We also have a very transparent price policy.
“What we have seen in Dubai is that once people are confident with a brand, they come again. They see how extensive the line is and all the different possibilities. And knowing that it is essentially a factory outlet – having that price guarantee also, to a certain extent, works in our favour,” he continued.
Furthermore, a presence in Dubai offers exposure to potential buyers from all over the world, who – if you can secure their loyalty – will move on to other countries and take that loyalty with them. This provides great opportunity for a brand to present itself to a varied and geographically diverse audience, Selva explained.
“Dubai is a great window to the world. With the showroom here, everybody sees you. You are touching a number of nations who come here from all around the globe. For us it was a huge opportunity to present ourselves.”
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