Oman has launched a campaign designed to encourage consumers, businesses and institutional buyers to think local first.

Oman may be a country filled with international brands and sprawling shopping malls. But according to Origin Oman, the newly campaign, it is also a place where shoppers are surprisingly loyal to local businesses, products and services.

“The campaign aims to capitalise on the loyalty that already exists and to get more people in Oman to think local first,” said director of Marketing at the Public Establishment for Industrial Estates (PEIE) and the woman spearheading Origin Oman’s marketing Ibtisam Al Faruji.

The five-day Origin Oman Exhibition opened today (May 25) in the grounds of LuLu Hypermatket in Ghubra.

“Our goal is modest,” says Al Faruji: “We’re highlighting the quality of locally made products and services and urging consumers to shop locally because it benefits our community.”

The campaign is also about promoting such concepts as fostering a sustainable local economy, job creation, reducing our carbon footprint and preserving Oman’s unique character.

Over 50 companies are participating in the Origin Oman exhibition which will showcase local artisans and manufacturers of everything from candles, furniture, shoes, tea and ceramic tiles to water.

“The idea is to get people to think more about where their Rials are being spent and what it means to the local community,” said PEIE and Origin Oman Exhibition co-ordinator ’s Zuhair Al Zadjali.

“There are a lot of people who want to maintain the unique character of their neighbourhoods and towns. Having a flourishing local business sector is key to that.”

The campaign believes that nurturing local business can bring substantial economic rewards, create all important job opportunities, spread more money around the sultanate and help reduce CO2 emissions.

Indeed, a recent US study found that for every $100 local busineses brought in through sales, they returned US$68 to the local economy through wages and benefits, purchase of goods and services like office supplies, IT, accounting and advertising, profits to local owners and charitable giving.

“Statistics like these clearly illustrate the power that consumers have in influencing the growth of local business,” said Al Zadjali. – TradeArabia News Service