Dheeraj & East Coast's retail space inventory crosses AED 500 million

Reflecting strong investor confidence and robust demand for freehold retail space in Dubai, the joint venture between India's Dheeraj Group and the UAE's East Coast Group, Dheeraj & East Coast L.L.C (DEC), announced that 90 per cent of its AED 500 million retail freehold retail space spread across 17 developments, has been sold in record time from commencement of sale.

Prominent among the company's 17 projects are its flagship venture - DEC Towers, which is at an investment of over AED 300 million -- and Marina Wharf I and II, which are located in the prestigious Dubai Marina. DEC Towers is a semi-mixed-use real estate project in Dubai Marina, while the Marina Wharf features residential living including themed restaurants, boutiques and even a bowling alley.

Spanning its presence across New Dubai, the new business and residential hub of Dubai, Dheeraj East Coast has six upcoming projects in Jumeirah South Village. Whilst in Business Bay, the company's pipeline of projects includes three freehold commercial projects, which will provide office space with cutting-edge amenities.

Terming the investor response as phenomenal, Mr. Dheeraj Wadhawan, Managing Director of Dheeraj & East Coast L.L.C said, "We are delighted with the response we have received for our retail offerings across all projects. We adopted a focused marketing and pricing strategy which contributed towards the strong investor response. The sell out of 90% of the total retail space in record time from commencement of sale clearly indicates the ever-increasing demand for freehold retail space in the region."

"The total retail space at all our projects spans across 161,441 sq. ft in prime areas of Dubai, of which 139,742 sq ft was snapped up by interested buyers. Dubai is witnessing a surging demand for retail space and continues to lead the region's retail boom by hosting 1.3 million square metres of the regions total retail space. Encouraged by this boom, we expect the remaining area -- barely 21,699 sq. ft -- to be sold very soon." he further added.

Buoyed by the booming retail real estate market, the company will be highlighting the uniqueness of all their retail projects at the Retail City 2007 - The International Retail Real Estate Event at the Dubai International Convention Centre from 3 - 5 June 2007.

With the exhibition aiming to bring together international retail property professionals to develop new joint ventures, exchange views, identify new investment opportunities and encourage retailers and franchises to set up shop in the Middle East, Mr. Wadhawan said the company's decision to be the platinum sponsor for the exhibition was unanimous. Participating for the first time, Dheeraj & East Coast LLC will be setting up its own stand for handling queries and providing information to all visitors, prospective buyers and investors.

"We will be showcasing a vast spectrum of our unique retail, commercial and residential projects that feature global culture, mixed-use living, combinations of modern and old world charm, and business," he added.