ARAMEX wins Gulf Brand of the Decade Award

ARAMEX, whose marketing strategies over the years have successfully positioned the company as a "Total Transportation Solutions" provider, was proclaimed the winner in the Trading, Distribution and Logistics category. Gulf Marketing Review Magazine, the organiser of the competition, analysed more than 1,000 leading business brands in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries in eleven business areas. The awards were open to GCC and Arab world brands that have achieved prominence during the past ten years.

"We thank Gulf Marketing Review for this wonderful recognition of the ARAMEX brand, and we thank our customers for their loyalty," said ARAMEX CEO and founder, Fadi Ghandour.

"This award is a celebration of our unique corporate culture, which embraces customers as partners and places flexibility and creativity at the heart of our highly customised solutions. It is also a validation of our broad mix of transportation services that transcend every standard definition of a "courier" company," added Ghandour.

Today, ARAMEX boasts the most comprehensive transportation solutions in the Middle East. Its range of services includes document and parcel express, freight forwarding, logistics, domestic distribution, Shop & Ship Mail Box, catalogue shopping, publication distribution, as well as special and value added services. Combined, these solutions make ARAMEX one of the most innovative and customer-driven transportation corporations in the region, and the only major regional competitor to the industry's giants.

GMR, a Dubai-based marketing magazine, selected global research agency Ipsos Stat to test brand awareness and customer perceptions among short listed nominees. The full spectrum of businesses in the region, from banking and IT to tourism and government, were represented.

"Major international brands have a head start: they can tailor their offering, which has been developed around the globe, to the relevant marketplace. Locally developed brands come in at something of a disadvantage to multinational corporations. They have no global experience, so have no track record, consumer feedback, less financial backing, and tend to be smaller and leaner organisations," said Barry Gray, publisher of Gulf Marketing Review.

"As a result, it's an enormous achievement to take on - and sometimes beat - these global companies and brands. To gain this level of success is an amazing achievement for ARAMEX. To do so in a matter of years is worthy of recognition, continued Gray.

ARAMEX also won a GMR certificate and voucher for US$10,000 worth of advertising in Gateway Publishing publications, which produces GMR.

GMR introduced the Gulf Brands of the Decade Awards to mark its tenth anniversary, which took place earlier this year. Entries were judged on brand promise and strategy. In each of the eleven business categories, a winner and a highly commended entry were selected.

The winners in the other categories were: Saudi American Bank (banking, finance and insurance); Afia (FMCG - foods); Cooline (consumer durables); Deira City Centre (retail, shopping malls and duty free); Tejari.com (e-commerce and IT); Saudi Aramco (petrochemicals, industrial and manufacturing); Saudi Net (services and telecommunications); Emirates (travel, tourism, hotels, sports and leisure); Al Jazeera Channel (media and advertising); and Dubai Media City (government, semi-government and NGOs.

H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum won the Gulf Marketer of the Decade Award for his contribution to positioning Dubai as a winning global brand.