Completing the 7 emirates of the UAE on the Arabian Peninsula, Dubai is the pride of this Middle Eastern country. Fondly known as the entertainment hub of the world, Dubai has grown tremendously from being a small Bedouin village to one of the most visited cities of the world.
While Dubai is very famous for its man-made wonders, amazing skyline, and oil supply, Dubai shopping Festival is one name that pops up as soon as the mention of Dubai or shopping happens. Why? Well, the obvious reason is the fact that Dubai shopping festival is held on a massive global scale and attracts tourists from all parts of the world to be a part of it. There are many other facts about Dubai Shopping Festival that makes it a must visit. Read on.
Interesting facts about the Dubai Shopping Festival
1] In its 20th year of running, the Dubai Shopping Festival or DSF has still fabulously managed to have increased footfalls, amazing deals, discounts and promotions, and an array of world renowned brands under its umbrella.
2] Attracting over 3 million people from around the globe just for the event, the Dubai Shopping Festival is more than just shopping. The tourism industry of Dubai makes DFS more of an experience.
3] The Dubai Shopping Festival was started with an aim to portray Dubai as a family tourist and shopping destination along with kindling the global festive spirit in the city. Highlighting the cosmopolitan nature of the city was another aim of the festival.
4] Known as a major step in pioneering the global marketing of Dubai as a tourist hub, the first ever Dubai Shopping Festival in the year 1996 attracted over 1.6 million visitors from across the globe with a total expenditure of around AED 2.15 billion.
5] The Dubai Shopping Festival was initially started to capture the global interest and attention of the world towards its foray and drive to the hospitality and tourism sector. The aim was to take the load off from oil supply being the key of the country’s economic balance.
6] The Dubai Shopping Festival since its inception was a carefully planned and strategically executed event right from the day 1 of its announcement in the year 1995. It was intelligently aligned with the holiday season and carefully executed with no room for errors.
7] The massive and unprecedented success of the very first Dubai Shopping Festival laid path to the overall growth of the colossal tourism industry of Dubai and encouraged the private sector to play a pivotal role in the overall development of Dubai as a tourism destination.
8] The success of the 1st DSF highlighted the unique business model of public- private sector partnerships that made a strong base for the overall development of tourism in the city.
9] In the recent years, the Dubai Shopping Festival has become the world’s must visit family attraction with something to offer for everyone across all age groups.
10] Initially started with an aim to give a feel of a King to every visitor coming to Dubai for the Dubai Shopping Festival, the tourists were given a ‘Maharaja’ welcome at the airport. This uncommon gesture laid a great foundation in the minds of the visitors and a kick start to the festival.
11] The Dubai Shopping Festival goes much more than just a shopping carnival. Back in 1996 when Dubai tourism was in its nascent stage and there were hardly 3 malls in the city, the success of DSF proved Dubai’s capability of organizing events on such a massive scale and making it a grand success.
12] In many ways, the Dubai Shopping Festival has created a benchmark for the world on how to organize a shopping festival on a global scale. From massive discounts to great deals and introduction of latest global brands, DSF has become a global phenomenon in the past 20 years.
13] The DSF slogan of- “One World, One Family, One Festival” summed up the essence of the festival and has been the ever popular slogan of the Dubai Shopping Festival.
14] From the initial figures of 1.6 million visitors who came to the AED 2.15 billion Dubai Shopping Festival in its 1st year in 1996, it rose to approx. 3.35 million visitors in 1999 with a budget of AED 9.8 billion in a span of just 3 years.
15] The colossal scale of the DSF can be estimated with over AED 60 million being distributed in cash along with over 33 Rolls Royce, 643 kgs of gold and cars like 1740+Nissan and Lexus being distributed as rewards till the year 2010.
16] The first edition of DSF saw 1 kg of gold raffle every day for its 19 day festival. Today, the Dubai Shopping Festival offers raffles not only on gold but also on cars, solitaire rings, best of international brands and so much more.
17] The Dubai Shopping Festival today is more than a shopping festival; it is a mega event to be experienced with unlimited fun and enjoyment. A host of international artists and celebrities perform at the festival giving it a ‘One World’ feel.
18] The upcoming DSF is slated to offer everyone a chance to win something. From sensational deals to never before amazing offers, this lifestyle event propagates larger than life offerings to the visitors at unbelievably discounted pricing.
19] The DSF 2015 will witness introduction of many new world renowned brands offering extensive discounts that are never heard of. Going by the preparations and the reports, this year’s Dubai Shopping Festival is slated to be bigger and better than ever.
The start of Dubai shopping festival marked for the start of the growth and development of the tourism and hospitality industry of Dubai and the recognition of the country in the eyes of the world. It cemented the world’s belief that Dubai can not only handle large scale events but also excel at that. The latest Dubai Shopping Festival awaits its loyal and new visitors with great promises.
Enjoyed reading the interesting facts about the Dubai Shopping Festival. I know these mega events draw millions of tourists to the UAE. The offers, deals, and discounts that are provided at DSF are irresistible.