Retailers are increasingly setting their sights on frontier markets such as Iraqi Kurdistan, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan but analysts say their success may be hampered by a lack of consumer information and infrastructure in these new shopping territories.
The large populations and nascent retail centres in these countries, combined with increasing political stability, make them attractive targets for major names such as Land Rover and the Saudi Arabian retail conglomerate Fawaz Alhokair.
Simon Marshall, the chief executive of Fawaz Abdulaziz Alhokair Fashion Retail, said its first Zara shop in Kazakhstan, which opened in February, took ?290,000 (Dh1.3 million) on its opening day.
"It actually opened with the largest turnover for an opening day for a Zara store anywhere in the world to date," Mr Marshall said.
Michael Atwell, the head of Middle East operations at Cushman and Wakefield consultancy in Dubai, said many investors were eyeing these markets, but with few experienced retailers in those regions it was murky territory.
"A lot of people see this as the next developing markets. But I think you need to proceed with a lot of caution," Mr Atwell said. "There are a lot of unknowns there. What's the affordable spending power? What's the ability for retailers to go in and trade?"
That has not stopped Land Rover. Sardar Trading Agencies, its regional franchisee, said earlier this year it would start selling the 4x4 vehicles in Erbil, Iraq. The French retailer Carrefour recently announced it, too, would open a hypermarket in the same region of northern Iraq, as part of the upcoming Family Fun Mall, The Kurdish Globe newspaper reported. And Fawaz Alhokair has just signed leases for 68 more stores in Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, said Mr Marshall.
The company is also looking at northern Iraq.
"Everybody is," he said. "But at this moment in time it is not in our immediate plans. We're getting approached by a lot of our brand partners who are interested in the region."
Developers are getting into the game as well. Mane Mall, which will house 150 brands, will open its doors at the end of next year in Erbil.
Jamie Majid, an investment director with BTWShiells, which is building and managing the mall, said there had been a big demand for retail space.
"There has been an increase in disposable income, there is obviously not much competing retail as it is an emerging market," he said. "It's quite easy to set up over there with tax breaks and no duty to bring goods into the country. And the Kurds are like any other people around the Middle East - they like to shop and go into leisure places and restaurants."
Mr Atwell said he expected retail in these markets to follow the model used in eastern Europe, where the supermarket chains such as Tesco and Carrefour entered first and helped to build demand for additional shops around their stores.
"It's often the food retailers, the hypermarkets ? everybody needs to eat," he said.
But Majid Al Futtaim Properties, which is planning a US$4 billion (Dh14.69bn) regional expansion to build shopping centres in countries such as Syria and Egypt, is holding off on these new markets until the rewards outweigh the risks and it has the local knowledge and structures in place.
"It takes a lot of elements to do things successfully," said Shahram Shamsaee, the senior vice president of retail at Majid Al Futtaim shopping malls. "And you need to be set up for it. If you try to do everything, you end up doing nothing very well."
aligaya@thenational.ae
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
PROFILE BOX
Company name: Overwrite.ai
Founder: Ayman Alashkar
Started: Established in 2020
Based: Dubai International Financial Centre, Dubai
Sector: PropTech
Initial investment: Self-funded by founder
Funding stage: Seed funding, in talks with angel investors
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
The 10 Questions
- Is there a God?
- How did it all begin?
- What is inside a black hole?
- Can we predict the future?
- Is time travel possible?
- Will we survive on Earth?
- Is there other intelligent life in the universe?
- Should we colonise space?
- Will artificial intelligence outsmart us?
- How do we shape the future?
SQUADS
Pakistan: Sarfraz Ahmed (capt), Azhar Ali, Shan Masood, Sami Aslam, Babar Azam, Asad Shafiq, Haris Sohail, Usman Salahuddin, Yasir Shah, Mohammad Asghar, Bilal Asif, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Amir, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Abbas, Wahab Riaz
Sri Lanka: Dinesh Chandimal (capt), Lahiru Thirimanne (vice-capt), Dimuth Karunaratne, Kaushal Silva, Kusal Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Roshen Silva, Niroshan Dickwella, Rangana Herath, Lakshan Sandakan, Dilruwan Perera, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep, Vishwa Fernando, Lahiru Gamage
Umpires: Ian Gould (ENG) and Nigel Llong (ENG)
TV umpire: Richard Kettleborough (ENG)
ICC match referee: Andy Pycroft (ZIM)
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
Company%20Profile
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Kill%20Bill%20Volume%201
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Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
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Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
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In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
SPECS%3A%20Polestar%203
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The Prison Letters of Nelson Mandela
Edited by Sahm Venter
Published by Liveright
