Dubai continues to lead in the gold and jewellery market, recording sales worth almost Dh500 million during this year's 65-day Dubai Summer Surprises (DSS), which concluded on Friday.
According to the Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group (DGJG), which ran the "Glittering Surprises" campaign offering DSS shoppers chance to win gold and jewellery vouchers, the sales were driven by a strong expatriate demand, holiday shopping bonanzas and relatively lower prices of gold.
Tawhid Abdullah, Managing Director of DGJG, said: "Dubai is still the best place to buy high quality and variety of jewellery at the world's best prices.
"DSS, with its multiple chances to win gold and jewellery, offers an incentive to shop during summer, which is also the time most expatriates purchase gifts to take home for their holidays.
"Because of its intrinsic value and traditional affiliations gold is one of the most sought-after gifts, especially among Asians and Arabs."
"This year's campaign was well received and total sales recorded stood close to Dh500m at the end of the campaign. With gold prices becoming more attractive, we look forward to another successful quarter," he said.
Sixty-five lucky winners received Dh10, 000 worth of gold and jewellery vouchers, while nine received weekly bumper prizes of Dh50,000 each. The youngest winner of the campaign was one-year-old Sairish Sajeer, while the Singams family collected two consecutive wins. One-and-half-year-old Kirtish Singam won Dh50,000 voucher in the seventh week of the promotions and the following week his father Jitendra won Dh10,000 voucher, making it the most exciting summer for the family. "UAE residents, including expats and nationals, dominated 'Glittering Surprises', winning 88 per cent of the prizes. The rest of the winners were tourists.
"All of them were excited at winning, with most looking forward to next year," said Swapna Nair, General Manager of the group.
"We were also very pleased with the fact that many nationalities won during the campaign – there were winners from more than 13 countries, including the UAE, the UK, US, Russia, Greece, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Philippines, Egypt, Iran and Iraq," added Swapna.
This year is Dubai Gold and Jewellery Group's sixth year of association with the Dubai Summer Surprises.
Gold and Jewellery Group is a trade association with more than 700 members representing all sectors of the trade, including bullion, manufacturing, wholesale and retail. The group has evolved into a trade body committed to developing and sustaining Dubai's status as the 'City of Gold'.