Areej participates in environmental project -"Clean Up the World 2006"

On Thursday, November 23rd 2006, the entire team at Areej head office took time from their hectic work schedules to participate in a clean up of the Open Beach, Jumeirah, where together with customers and other volunteers they removed litter and debris from the beach.

Areej, the leading dedicated perfume and cosmetics retailer with stores across the UAE and Oman, is deeply committed to social and environmental issues. "As a socially responsible company, Areej recognizes the importance of taking an active role in initiatives towards the benefit of the community. "Clean Up the World" is a project that Areej is proud to be a part of," commented TJ Van Rooyen, General Manager- Areej.

"Clean Up the World" is an international environmental project that unites various communities around the world in clean ups of their respective local environments. "Clean Up the World" initiative in the UAE is organized by the Environment Department of Dubai Municipality in an effort to preserve neighborhoods, improve environmental awareness and emphasize the importance of waste generation.

The concept of "Clean Up the World" originated in Australia in 1989 and was the brainchild of Ian Kiernan. Ian was prompted to organize the first "clean up" campaign whilst sailing the world's oceans in a solo around-the-world race when he was disturbed by the increasing amounts of marine pollution and litter. His first initiative was to organize a local clean up campaign for Sydney harbor in 1989. The campaign proved to be a huge success with around 40,000 volunteer participants.

Encouraged by his success, Ian then decided to globalize his idea and launch the campaign across the world in conjunction with the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) in 1992. The campaign was then re-named "Clean up the world" in 1993 and under the guidance of UNEP (United Nations Environment Program) the first "Clean up the World" campaign attracted a staggering 30 million participants from 80 countries. Today the "Clean up the World" campaign is the world's largest campaign of this kind and attracts over 40 million volunteers from 120 countries yearly.

TJ Van Rooyen adds, "In addition to the team at Areej, we have encouraged the participation of our customers and other community members to help make this campaign as successful as possible. "Clean Up the World" is a key initiative that is part of Areej's on going quest to serve its customers and its society."

Areej is the leading dedicated perfumes and cosmetics retailer in the United Arab Emirates and Oman. Areej provides its customers with the highest levels of customer care and a wide collection of international brands including Guerlain, Estée Lauder, Christian Dior, Clinique, Lancôme, La Prairie, Chanel, Givenchy, Hugo Boss, Clarins, Escada, YSL, Gucci, Bvlgari among several others.