Tag Archives: dubai
FDB – An Exceptional Success At The Aquilaria Expo, Beijing
Bespoke fragrances are just one of the end products derived from rare Aquilaria trees so Fragrance Du Bois were delighted to be invited by Asia Plantation Capital (APC) to join them on their stand at the prestigious agarwood trade exhibition China International Aquilaria Culture Expo held in Beijing on the 8th to 11th August. As a successful plantation company APC showcased a range of Agarwood end products and sustainable plantation management services, but the undisputed star of the show was Fragrance Du Bois (FDB) and their exciting range of personalised fragrances which attracted franchise and trade enquiries from all across China. Over the three day expo FDB completely sold out of its demonstration fragrance range, totally 3000 bottles, and secured a list of follow up orders! Nicola Parker, spokesperson for FDB at the Beijing exhibition, stated “I was absolutely overwhelmed with the demand and interest from the Chinese market for our products”. Demand for agarwood products, including Oud oil based fragrances, has grown exponentially in China in recent years. FDB recently opened a fragrance lounge in the heart of Wan Chai, Hong Kong, adding to their sites across Asia. Du Bois is also in discussion with APC to widen market exposure across China using the new APC offices planned in Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou. Specialist lounges have already been announced by Fragrance Du Bois for Dubai, Moscow and London. The range of handmade Oud based fragrances FDB have developed with leading international perfumers are central to the product line up for Middle Eastern markets. Du Bois has already taken Asian markets by storm using a unique profiling and hand blending service for clients to sample the myriad delights of Oud based fragrances. Du Bois has secured the coveted title of being the official perfume of Amber Lounge, the iconic Formula 1 celebrity drivers party and charity fashion shows, for the forthcoming Singapore, Abu Dhabi and Monaco F1 Grand Prix. In Singapore Oud Noir Intense will be launched to commemorate and capture the scintillating excitement of the night race. Oud Noir Intense is a fragrance imbued with the mastery of Oud. The first of Du Bois’ privé collection will be launched at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in November; Sahraa Oud, a name taken from Arabic for the desert, an essence that captures the mysterious romance of the desert at dusk and sets the scene for a spectacular celebrity launch planned at the Al Yas Circuit. As part of these thrilling events FDB will join APC and financial advisory services provider Sustainable Asset Management, Singapore on a series of road shows to leading retailers and private equity groups across the Gulf region during September and October. The road shows will focus on the education of local Arabic markets on the importance of sustainability in the agarwood plantation sector and its supply chain. Nicola Parker continued “it is extremely important that our niche sector and the distribution chains are well informed not only to ensure that traders comply with the law but equally to ensure their supplies are both sustainable and safeguarded for the future. Aquilaria has fast become an endangered tree species in the wild purely as a result of commercial and consumer demand being exploited by unscrupulous supply lines. The road shows being run by APC are important to help us communicate the importance of both CITES and IFRA in the production of sustainable Oud oil fragrances and agarwood with all the strategically important elements of this industry”. Continue reading
Mass relocations up housing demand
Mass relocations up housing demand Haseeb Haider / 31 August 2013 The new rule which has forced tens of thousands of Abu Dhabi government employees to move to the capital, has given the property sector a boost with demand for housing shooting up. The government gave a one-year timeframe to employees and their families to find new homes and schools and move to the emirate. Many believe the move will create more economic opportunities in the capital, and macro-economic stability. There are different estimates on how many people have been affected by the new rule — one estimate suggests about 30,000 were previously commuting daily between Abu Dhabi and other emirates, while David Dudley, the Abu Dhabi-based regional head for property consultancy firm Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), thinks the figure is more likely between 10,000 and 15,000 people. A separate study by the Department of Transport stated that 19,000 people commute in the morning from Dubai to Abu Dhabi. The CEO at Abu Dhabi economic consultancy Global Minds, Riad Mattar, said the government policy suggested the number must be really big, otherwise the decision would not had been taken. His own estimate was between 15,000 and 20,000 people — mostly executives — would move to the capital. The relocation has already had its impact on rents as in the first quarter of the year when rents shot up by eight per cent, as families started moving back, Mattar said. Abu Dhabi opened up its property sector to foreign investment in 2007, allowing expatriates the right to own properties in the designated investment zone like Al Reem Island, Saadiyat Island and Al Raha Beach and adjoining areas like Al Reef. But, after the financial crisis of 2008, Abu Dhabi residents found rents much lower in Dubai, as thousands of residential units were delivered to their owners much earlier than in Abu Dhabi, where rents plunged significantly. However, due to late arrival of housing units, the rents were not affected in Abu Dhabi. The properties built after the financial crisis, when finally delivered to their owners, created an over–supply situation. Mattar described the government move as a well thought out one. He said first it would improve the occupancy levels in the capital and, secondly, the executive class – the primary people who would be moving back – would spend more money in Abu Dhabi on shopping, groceries and dining out, which will have a multiplier effect on the overall economy. The economist said that many Emiratis would also be affected by the new rule, as an estimated 10,000 or even more had to commute between Abu Dhabi and Al Ain, Dubai and other emirates. According to JLL, 2,000 residential units were delivered in the first quarter of the year in the up-scale localities of Al Bateen Park, Al Reef Community, Saadiyat Beach Residences and Nation Towers on the corniche, bringing the total residential stock to 2,08,000 units. An additional 14,000 units are scheduled to be delivered to the market throughout the rest of the year in the posh area of Eastern Mangroves Promenade by Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC), additional units on Saadiyat Island, Al Bustan Complex on 29th Street and several towers on Al Reem Island. The property consultancy says more developments are coming up within planned areas such as Al Reem Island, Saadiyat Island, Danet, Saraya and Rawdhat. Dudley said the rise in the rental values this year was due to the relocations. Ram, an Abu Dhabi property agent, said the recent surge in the demand for housing primarily related to one and two-bedroom housing units, which triggered hikes in their rental prices significantly. The bigger properties and villas with five and six-bedrooms were not in as great demand, as their rental values had dropped, since one family can stay in a villa. With the estimated 14,000 units delivered to their owners, the housing shortage will most probably be addressed over the year, with another 14,000 housing due to come on to the market next year, according to Jones Lang LaSalle. It also estimates that in 2015, about 17,000 residential units are expected to arrive in the capital, which means Abu Dhabi has to maintain its seven per cent per annum economic growth, so that enough jobs opportunities are created and the existing investments into hydrocarbons bear fruit. haseeb@khaleejtimes.com Continue reading
Dubai’s liveability score rises
Dubai’s liveability score rises Ahmed Shaaban / 30 August 2013 While cities around the globe compete in providing the best living conditions, Dubai came third among the top ten in terms of improved liveability scores over the last five years. Ranking 77 out of 140 cities worldwide, the overall rating of the emirate touched 74.2 on a scale of 100, according to the latest findings of The Economist Intelligence Unit’s Global Liveability Ranking. Assessing liveability has a broad range of uses, from benchmarking perceptions of development levels to assigning a hardship allowance as part of expatriate relocation packages. Expecting a brighter future for Dubai, Roua Ramadan, a pharmacist from Egypt, said this was normal for the every developing emirate. “Since I have arrived here in Dubai in 2005, I can closely see exceptional and fast developments in every nook and corner.” Echoing the same, Wafaa Mohammed, a teacher, also from Egypt, said it had always been a dream for her to live and work in Dubai to enjoy a more stable, safe, and secure society with better and varied services. “Believe me, most of the services I and my family members enjoy here are not available in my home country.” Sharief Al Wakeel, a Syrian accountant, said protests made the world less liveable, and people felt more unsafe. “Wish the whole world would be an oasis for safety, security, welfare and prosperity as is the case in Dubai.” “The prudent leadership of the UAE in general, and Dubai in particular, has created a leader in each and every Emirati national who has become more loyal and loving to his/her country, and take the responsibility in protecting and keeping up such progress,” said Wael Safwat, a businessman from Morocco. The rating, part of the Worldwide Cost of Living Survey, quantifies the possible challenges to an individual’s lifestyle in 140 cities worldwide. Each is assigned a score for over 30 qualitative and quantitative factors across five broad categories: Stability, Healthcare, Culture and Environment, Education, and Infrastructure. Each factor in each city is rated as acceptable, tolerable, uncomfortable, undesirable or intolerable. For qualitative indicators, a rating is based on the judgment of in-house analysts and in-city contributors. The relative performance of a number of external data points is associated with quantitative indicators. Melbourne is ranked the most liveable city for the third year running in the year-on-year survey, followed by Vienna and Vancouver. Jon Copestake, editor of the survey, said the past five years had seen global liveability slip by 0.6 per cent, led by a 1.3 per cent fall in the score for stability and safety. “The Arab Spring has been most influential in pushing down global liveability, but unrest in Europe and China have also contributed whereas the ongoing civil war in Syria has made Damascus the least liveable city in the ranking.” While the threat of terror had a defining influence on liveability in the last decade, we could clearly see that civil unrest already had a significant impact on liveability in this decade, he added. ahmedshaaban@khaleejtimes.com Continue reading
