DUBAI // New home-grown grocery stores are looking to cash in on the growing market by catering to smaller communities and marketing their outlets as close and convenient.
SouqExtra!, a line of small shopping and community centres featuring a grocery store and services such as dry-cleaning and fast-food outlets, has 10 projects being developed, with the first opening in Dubai's Ewan Residences as early as May. Near Buy, a chain of small convenience grocery stores, has opened 25 outlets since it launched in June last year.
"These big hypermarkets are not the big thing any more," said Saleh Lootah, the managing director of SouqExtra! "People don't want to search for parking, drive on the highways. They don't want to wait in a line for a short [shopping] list. This is our aim, to be closer to the consumer."
Supermarket sales in the Emirates are forecast to increase more than 80 per cent by 2013, according to Business Monitor International (BMI), a research firm based in the UK. This forecast is driven partly by people cutting back on restaurant dining during the economic downturn, but it is mainly due to a switch to higher-value foods. BMI also expects per capita food consumption to increase 18.8 per cent by 2013.
"People still have to drink water, drink milk," said Rajeshwar Prasad, the chief executive of RAK Holding, the company behind Near Buy. "Grocery stores won't be affected by the economic meltdown."
Near Buy had planned to open 500 outlets by the first quarter of this year, but Mr Prasad said vendors did not yet have the infrastructure to deliver to numerous small outlets. Near Buy has started building a warehouse, which should be ready in a month, to streamline the supply chain. The company was likely to spend between Dh100 million (US$27.2m) and Dh150m to reach 500 outlets in the next two years, Mr Prasad said.
"We want to be as close to the customer as possible, to deliver to their doorstep. It's a niche that is difficult for the hypermarket to achieve."
Mr Lootah, who is also the chief executive of Al Islami, a halal food producer, said SouqExtra! was targeting small residential communities that have emerged during the past three years. Centres already under way include locations in Al Quoz in Dubai and Al Batheen in Al Ain.
"The demand for it is there," said Naeem Ghafoor, the chief executive of Skyline Retail Services consultancy in Dubai. "And as more and more of these [residential] areas open up that don't house huge malls, this kind of thing is required."
However, Mr Ghafoor said the success of these ventures depended on how the products were tailored to the needs of the community and how dense the population was. If the community was congested, he said, then a centrally located grocer would blossom.
Mr Lootah said that before a SouqExtra! centre was planned, the community was surveyed and the mix of retail and services was based on residents' wish lists. As well, the company hopes to lure shoppers by providing families with gathering spaces, which are in short supply.
SouqExtra! would spend about Dh300m on the first 10 stores, Mr Lootah said. The company later plans to expand throughout the region.
"We are looking to four areas which we see a lot of potential and we've been in dialogue with different investors: Saudi, Qatar, Jordan and Oman," he said.
aligaya@thenational.ae
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Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
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At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
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Creator: Mike White
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Rating: 4.5/5
Dr Amal Khalid Alias revealed a recent case of a woman with daughters, who specifically wanted a boy.
A semen analysis of the father showed abnormal sperm so the couple required IVF.
Out of 21 eggs collected, six were unused leaving 15 suitable for IVF.
A specific procedure was used, called intracytoplasmic sperm injection where a single sperm cell is inserted into the egg.
On day three of the process, 14 embryos were biopsied for gender selection.
The next day, a pre-implantation genetic report revealed four normal male embryos, three female and seven abnormal samples.
Day five of the treatment saw two male embryos transferred to the patient.
The woman recorded a positive pregnancy test two weeks later.
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What are the GCSE grade equivalents?
- Grade 9 = above an A*
- Grade 8 = between grades A* and A
- Grade 7 = grade A
- Grade 6 = just above a grade B
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- Grade 4 = grade C
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- Grade 1 = between grades F and G
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How much sugar is in chocolate Easter eggs?
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- The 190g Maltesers Teasers egg contains 58g of sugar per 100g for the egg and 19.6g of sugar in each of the two Teasers bars that come with it
- The 188g Smarties egg has 113g of sugar per egg and 22.8g in the tube of Smarties it contains
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Key facilities
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- Premier League-standard football pitch
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%3Cp%3EMercedes-Benz's%20MBUX%20digital%20voice%20assistant%2C%20Hey%20Mercedes%2C%20allows%20users%20to%20set%20up%20commands%20for%3A%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Navigation%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Calls%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20In-car%20climate%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Ambient%20lighting%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Media%20controls%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Driver%20assistance%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20General%20inquiries%20such%20as%20motor%20data%2C%20fuel%20consumption%20and%20next%20service%20schedule%2C%20and%20even%20funny%20questions%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EThere's%20also%20a%20hidden%20feature%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20pressing%20and%20holding%20the%20voice%20command%20button%20on%20the%20steering%20wheel%20activates%20the%20voice%20assistant%20on%20a%20connected%20smartphone%20%E2%80%93%20Siri%20on%20Apple's%20iOS%20or%20Google%20Assistant%20on%20Android%20%E2%80%93%20enabling%20a%20user%20to%20command%20the%20car%20even%20without%20Apple%20CarPlay%20or%20Android%20Auto%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.