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28 March 2024

Sheikh Ahmed named Dubai Lynx Advertising Person of the Year

Published
By Staff
The Dubai International Advertising Festival has named Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and CEO of Emirates Airline & Group, who has been instrumental in establishing the company as a global brand, as the 2011 Dubai Lynx Advertising Person of the Year Award.
The Advertising Person of the Year Award honours someone who by their efforts, energy and dedication, has lifted the presence and profile of the region within the international advertising, marketing and communications community.
Through effective and creative marketing as well as a commitment to sporting sponsorship, Sheikh Ahmed has kept Emirates at the forefront of the airline industry.
Sheikh Ahmed embarked upon his career in the aviation industry in 1985 when he was appointed President of Dubai Department of Civil Aviation (DCA), the same year that Emirates Airline was launched and he was appointed its Chairman. In September of that year, Emirates introduced its launch advertising campaign.
Under his leadership Emirates has grown from being a regional airline with just two leased aircraft and three destinations, becoming the third largest airline in the world with a fleet of 152 aircraft, flying to 111 destinations across six continents.
Emirates are today the world’s fastest growing intercontinental carrier. In recent years, its ad campaigns have won three Dubai Lynx awards and three Cannes Lions, amongst many other awards. Sheikh Ahmed’s efforts towards the development and brand marketing of Emirates Airline have also greatly contributed to Dubai being the region’s top leisure destination.
“Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum is a great believer in the power of building relationships and connecting Emirates Airline with people through creative and successful marketing communications as well as through regional and international sports sponsorship,” says Philip Thomas, Chief Executive Officer of Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity and the Dubai International Advertising Festival, who with Motivate Publishing are joint organisers of the festival. “Under his leadership and guidance, not only has he made Emirates into a dominant global brand, but also helped put Dubai on the map.”
“At Emirates we have always recognised the fundamental role that classic communication techniques, like advertising, play in our marketing mix. Advertising enables us to strategically target our audience based on the type of media that they consume, allowing us to isolate specific target groups for any given campaign,” comments Sheikh Ahmed.
“In addition to advertising we employ a robust mix of classic and contemporary marketing disciplines to engage our customers around the globe. Utilising these practices such as sponsorship, events, public relations and advertising we have been able to move the Emirates brand from a locally known enterprise, to an international powerhouse.
Finding the right balance of marketing techniques requires a strong and dedicated team and this award recognises the dedication of our highly skilled Corporate Communications division at Emirates.”
Sheikh Ahmed will be honoured during the Dubai Lynx Awards Ceremony and Dinner to be held on March 30 at the Madinat Jumeirah Arena in Dubai.
Joseph Ghossoub, President and CEO of Menacom (formally The Holding Group); Tanvir Kanji, Head of Inca Tanvir and Ramzi Raad, Chairman & CEO of TBWA\RAAD Middle East, have been previous recipients of this honour.