Muscat City Centre holds their Annual General Meeting 2008

Celebrating the theme for the New Year "Growing in Style", the AGM was attended by 147 retailers, tenants and representatives.

The AGM reviewed the 2007 results and performance in thorough details with meticulous attention given to the mall's accomplishments in terms of sales, footfall and achievements.

Ibrahim Al Qasmi, GM, Muscat City Centre reviewed 2007 mall performance & results and presented the plans and objectives for 2008.

He said, "With Muscat City Centre positioning itself as Oman's first regional mall, we are looking at increasing our footfalls to 10 million this year. We are also expecting a further increase in our tourist shoppers and hence we have already implemented a few novel services such as shuttle service from select top notch hotels in Muscat".

Ahmed Hamdy, Marketing Manager for Muscat City Centre reviewed the marketing performance of 2007.

He remarked that after the grand opening of the two new phases and the sultanate's first private flyover and multi level parking lot, Muscat City Centre registered an unprecedented growth in terms of footfalls and sales; 8 million footfalls were registered in 2007, an increase of 5% as compared to 2006.

As part of their renovation plans for this year, Muscat City Centre plans to renovate 40 stores at the average rate of 4-5 stores per month.

They are also going to upgrade the food court washrooms and increase the number of seats in the food court area.

The Management is currently working on adding additional of 6-7 new restaurants serving a multitude of cuisines, that will be added to the existing one and more number of internal signage's will be placed to increase customer comfort.

Another feather in Muscat City Centre's cap is being awarded the 'Best Retailer of the Year 2007' Award for the fourth consecutive year in a survey conducted by Business Today magazine in Oman.

The new advertising template for the year was unveiled by Sabco Art. The theme this year, "Lifestyled by Muscat City Centre" will bring in a refreshingly new international edge to the brand, in line with the repositioning and regional status of the mall.

The local flavour will be depicted through the scenic beauty and landscapes of Oman.

The AGM ended on a high note with special awards for the retailers. The awards were divided into broad categories.

'Carrefour' took home the award for the Best Anchor Store in the sales category, while the Best Flagship Award went to 'Sun n Sands'.

The Best Fashion Store was awarded to 'Promod' and 'Damas' was the proud winner in the Best Jewellery, Accessories, Optical and Watches category.

The Best Food and Beverage outlet was 'Chilis' and the Best Entertainment, Electronics and Leisure award was bagged by 'Nokia'.

In the Customer Service Category, 'Travellers World' won the award for the Best Health, Well being and Service Store and 'Milano' in the Best Footwear and Sports category.

'Areej Muscat' won the Most Improved Retailer of the year award for the second time in a row and the Retailer of the Year award went to 'Home Centre'.

Muscat City Centre, operated by MAF Shopping Malls, a company under the Majid Al Futtaim Group, maintains its position as a major player in Oman's retail sector.

With the opening of the Phase 2 extension to public, Muscat City Centre reinstated its position as Oman's ultimate shopping destination.

Muscat City Centre now houses over 140 top brands as well as destination stores such as Carrefour hypermarket, Magic Planet, family entertainment centre and 22 food outlets, restaurants and cafes. Muscat City Centre also acts as a town centre and the social hub of the society by participating in community activities and public events.