The special 20th anniversary edition of the Dubai Shopping Festival has helped enhance Dubai’s growing reputation as a regional and international centre for the retail fashion business as visitors once again put clothes as their number one shopping priority during the retail event.

Independent researchers YouGov have shown that nearly 8 out of 10 visitors make buying fashionable clothes for themselves and their families as the most important reason for making purchases during the 32-day festival.  

From 2013 to 2015 research showed a jump of 10 per cent in the interest in fashion and retailers are already anticipating that number will grow again as shoppers flock to the city’s fashionable boutiques, global mainstream fashion outlets, and individual designer stores and in more traditional souks.

The strength of Dubai as the leading regional centre for fashion has been demonstrated by the fact that 88 per cent of visitors from the Mena region place this as their biggest priority when coming to the Festival, said the survey.

Dubai’s fashion business is also now increasingly important to the robust health of the wider retail industry.  

According to some of the most recent research by Bain & Co an estimated Dh28 billion was spent on fashion in the Middle East in 2012 – but of that one third or over Dh9.3 billion was spent in Dubai during the year with that figure now anticipated to be well in excess of Dh10 billion.

Laila Mohammed Suhail, the CEO of Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment (DFRE), the event organisers said: "Dubai is building a growing reputation as a major regional and international centre for the fashion world and the city is becoming an innovator in terms of how we retail and promote fashion and encourage local designers."

"The fact that an estimated one third of the total fashion spend in the Middle East is now focused on Dubai demonstrates the success and reputation the city has in offering the widest range of fashionable clothing. Our own research from YouGov also shows that buying clothes is becoming increasingly important for visitors to Dubai as well as local residents," she stated.  

"It means that every year DSF is now without question the most important sales month of the year for the whole spectrum of the fashion industry here – from exclusive designer brands to everyday ready to wear clothes and the amazing range and variety of brands for children," noted Suhail.

We are delighted that Dubai continues to be recognised as the undisputed fashion hub of the Middle East and is gaining a growing global reputation, she added.

Suhail said the research has also showed that many shoppers waited every year for DSF to make some of their major spending on a wide spectrum of retail items and that clearly includes buying clothes as a vital component of that purchasing pattern.

The YouGov research for the 2014 edition of DSF also showed that 8 out of 10 visitors described the quality, range and value of the fashion clothing in Dubai as good or excellent.

To help further promote fashion in Dubai and its leading position, DSF helped  ensure there were a number of innovative and exclusive fashion events during the festival ranging from fashion shows to a unique Celebrity Pop-Up Shop concept  at The Beach opposite JBR featuring celebrity fashion designers and style icons.

According to Suhail, the fashion was very much at the top of the agenda at the DSF's 20th anniversary too.

"This year for DSF we again staged Abbati, the region’s premier showcase for most sought-after abaya and kaftan designers with a contemporary twist on traditional wear, the Diamond Fashion show, the world’s most expensive show of its kind,  and the DXB Fashion Photography  exhibition. We also introduced a highly creative Celebrity Pop Up Shop concept where we were  able to provide a platform for the public to engage with international celebrity fashion icons for the first time using this temporary store concept," she added.

Fashion retail remains one of the biggest and most important elements of the Dubai shopping story and the diversity on offer from the world’s biggest names to local designers and styles means that visitors now have an unrivalled range on offer when they visit the Festival.-TradeArabia News Service