Spectacular year for GITEX Shopper Spring 2014 as sales hit AED101 million

DUBAI- The stellar success of the second edition of GITEX Shopper Spring which drew to close on Saturday (26^th April) has once again confirmed its position as an essential show to meet the growing demand across the Middle East for the latest technology, gadgets and consumer electronics.

Power retailers and the world’s leading brands reported strong sales across the board, with smart phones, laptops and tablets, LED and UHD TVs, and DSLR cameras among the best performing categories. A total of AED 101 million in sales was generated during the four-day show and visitor numbers also swelled to 126,425 this year.

“Now in its second edition, the hotly anticipated GITEX Shopper Spring has cemented its position as the region’s biggest consumer IT and electronics retail show. Strong consumer anticipation combined with excellent product offers has generated fantastic sales for exhibitors. A number of the power retailers increased their space at this year’s show and several leading brands joined for the first time. Our new Experience Zones also enabled visitors to test the latest products, compare performance and options before purchasing,” said Trixie LohMirmand, Senior Vice President, Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), organiser of GITEX Shopper Spring.

GITEX Shopper Spring proved once again that it is a not to be missed event for consumers and retailers alike, with strong market demand for the latest consumer technology.

Top retailers at the event were also positive about GITEX Shopper Spring 2014, with Ashish Panjabi, COO of Jacky’s Electronics said: “Our participation this year has exceeded our expectations; we recorded an increase of 10 per cent in sales up from last year. We observed that the majority of customers opted for products that offer more value, with a preference shift towards purchasing bigger and more expensive products such as mid-to-high end smartphones, laptops, televisions and tablets.

“GITEX Shopper is the major event that Jacky’s participates in twice a year. We look forward to the next edition in the autumn and have started planning for it already,” he added.

Neelesh Bhatnagar, CEO of Emax commented: “GITEX Shopper Spring has once again demonstrated its worth as a key platform for the industry and a strong consumer trend indicator. Emax sales grew by 22%, with smartphones amounting for nearly 70% of the growth. Top sellers in the smartphone category were Samsung S5, iPhone 5S, HTC ONE M8 & Samsung Note 3. TVs also had strong performance with sales jumping by almost 50%. We are looking forward to the future editions of the show.”

World renowned brands took advantage of the show’s unrivalled influence to showcase their latest products. Mohammed Hilili, Lenovo Gulf General Manager, said:“Lenovo’s success at GITEX Shopper Spring 2014 surpassed our expectations. We have witnessed increased numbers of visitors since day one and our stand was a buzz throughout the four days. Our exceptional multimode innovations and offers attracted a huge number of customers until the last minute of the show, helping us exceed our targets.”

Christophe Corsi, UAE Country Director at BlackBerry, said: “It’s been another hugely successful GITEX Shopper for everyone involved with BlackBerry. We’ve received positive feedback from all our retail partners, with some even reporting sales growth of over 100% during the four days. The entire range of BlackBerry 10 smartphones, which maximize users’ communication, collaboration and productivity, were exceptionally well received.”

First time exhibitor Western Leaf Electronics commented on their success at GITEX Shopper Spring: “This is our first year participating at GITEX Shopper and we are delighted with our achievement. Our sales exceeded our targets by 200% with more than a quarter million dirhams in sales during the four days,” said Mark Ataya, International Market Development at Western Leaf Electronics.

“The show is clearly the most direct route into the Middle East market, and as a Canadian based company entering the region for the first time, this has been exceptional,” he added.

“As expected, GITEX Shopper Spring was a huge success and we were thrilled to be a part of it,” said Tony B. Graham, Executive Vice President of Retail Banking at United Arab Bank. “At our stand, we were able to interact with the crowd and showcase our products, particularly our unbeatable loyalty programme, UAB Rewards. UAB cardholders received double rewards for purchases made at GITEX Shopper Spring participants and the response was overwhelmingly positive.  Dubai World Trade Centre did an outstanding job, we are grateful for all their efforts and look forward to the October edition,” said Graham.

Recognising the importance of the key regional platform, power retailers and the world’s leading brands have already confirmed their participation at GITEX Shopper 2014 which takes place from 27 September to 4 October at the Dubai World Trade Centre.