Saudi retail sales top USD43.5 billion

The increase in retail spending until 2008 is forecast to be 15%, with growth expected to accelerate as more young Saudi nationals gain buying power by entering the workforce and more shopping malls are developed.

According to the latest Retail International ® report, Jeddah is poised to offer over 750,000 sq. mts. and Riyadh over 600,000 sq. mts of shopping space by 2009. There are projects under development in other cities including Dahran and Al Khobar Shopping centre industry professionals seeking innovative ways of attracting young people to the many malls that dot the Kingdom will be looking to the 10th Annual Conference & Exhibition of the Middle East Council of Shopping Centres (MECSC) for solutions.

The event, to be held at the Jumeirah Beach Hotel's Convention Centre in Dubai, will bring together retail industry professionals with their suppliers.

The MECSC conference will feature a number of regional and international speakers who will address the challenges facing the regional industry as well as update delegates on the latest international trends in retailing.

The speaker line-up includes Saudi Arabia's Kingdom Centre General Manager, Walter Kleinschmit, who will chair an open forum that will discuss issues including nationalisation of the work force, sales reporting, need for government zoning regulations and purpose written retail leases.

Kleinschmit will also conduct a half-day workshop on October 7, titled 'The ABC of Leasing'.

"Walter, having been in the retail industry for nearly four decades, with over 20 years in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE and Oman, is an authority on the subject," said Kim Redman, Regional Director, MECSC. "Both the sessions will be highly informative for all shopping centre industry professionals."

Some of the latest international POP display tools, retailing concepts and tools will be featured at the exhibition which has participation from around the world including Hong Kong, Australia, Italy, South Africa, the UK and the USA.

Other regional industry speakers will be Peter Walichnowski, CEO of Majid Al Futtaim Investments, Mohammad Al Shaya, CEO of Kuwait's Al Shaya Group and Naaman Atallah from Solidere, Lebanon.

The international line-up of speakers includes James Maurin, Chairman and Michael P Kercheval, President of the US-based International Council of Shopping Centres (ICSC).

Included in the international line-up of speakers are US-based marketing guru Bob, Pritchard; Gary Whittemore from Footfall, Edward Whitefield from Management Horizons Europe, Enda McShane from Spirit Communications, Robin Sieger from Sieger International and Ibrahim Ibrahim from Portland Design, all from the UK and Duncan Waddell from Australia's FM Intelligence.