The GCC grows as a consumer hub

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) alone comprises 200 different nationalities living harmoniously.

The UAE as a business hub of the East and West mainly depends on imports of most goods including fruit and vegetables. Major amounts of these are imported from India as well as from the USA, Australia and other countries.

A Dubai university study analysed the various stimuli influencing purchasers based on a model created by the authors, comprised 487 samples from various nationalities who gave their unbiased opinion and the data was collected from April 2011 to December 2012. 50% of the UAE population is from Asian countries of which the majority are Indians. The results indicated purchase patterns and retailer evaluation differed between open shelf and packaged and was labelled depending on culture, age, family status and demographic profile.

The survey was taken from the standpoint that there are no local citizens only global citizens and that Indian retail of fruits and vegetables has changed in the last couple of years, following the global pattern, with companies such as Reliance working alongside traditional markets. The results indicate consumer preference and expectations from retailers which will be highly significant to managers.

The increasing number of tourists and employees from multinational companies are a different segment for retail consideration. The traditional retailers will also have to compete at new levels to capture the market of the young, savvy, variety seeking and knowledgeable consumer with a time constraint. These recommendations will pave the way for importers and retailers to gain a competitive edge.

Read more news from the Mediterranean & Middle East here on pages 34-41 of edition 136 of Eurofresh Distribution magazine. 

Image: “Persian Gulf Arab States english” Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons