Emirates Post says diversification can help regional postal services boost revenues

At an official press conference today for the World Mail Express & Air Cargo Expo taking place 1-2 March at the Dubai World Trade Centre, Emirates Post said it will be able to share its success with other exhibitors and delegates participating at the conference-led expo, a joint initiative organised by UK company Triangle Management Services and Dubai-based, Streamline Marketing.

Abdulla Ibrahim Al Daboos, Director General of Emirates Post, told the press conference that diversifying into non-postal services helped the company to achieve earnings of around Dhs300 million for 2004, and that policy is now expected to boost revenue by 10 per cent this year.

'In addition to traditional postal services, Emirates Post provides customers with retail, banking, airline ticket reservation and utility payment services,' said Al Daboos, who will offer a Middle East perspective on the postal industry on behalf of the event's host sponsor.

'We also offer a direct mail service providing access to up to four million addresses, while companies can use our integrated mailing service via the Electronic Document Centre, and later this year we will create a credit card personalisation service.'

Al Daboos said Emirates Post is ready to assist postal services in other Gulf countries with the launch of a number of products which it has already successfully introduced in the UAE. They include the Postcard Millionaire, which allows customers to buy postcards for friends and relatives featuring national landmarks and cultural shots. These special packs of postcards come with coupons which are entered into a draw allowing one winner periodically to redeem cash or Mercedes car prizes.

Other Emirates Post initiatives which the company believes can be adapted for use by its GCC counterparts include an in-house IT system linking all Emirates Post offices throughout the emirates, and the global positioning of the Dubai Airport Mail Transit Hub which helps to track and trace mail and improve cost efficiency.

Emirates Post has formed strategic partnerships with Deutsche Post, Swiss Post and British Royal Mail, all of whom use Dubai Airport Mail as a hub to route all mail deliveries throughout the region.

Taking place at the Dubai World Trade Centre, the World Mail Express & Air Cargo Expo, regarded by the transportation industries as the premier regional forum at a global level, is being held under the patronage of H.E. Sultan Saeed Al Mansoori, the UAE Minister of Communications and Chairman of Emirates Post who will be a key speaker at the event.

Nick Webb, managing director of Streamline Marketing said: 'We're looking forward to hosting a very successful conference and receiving a prestigious list of guests including the CEOs of the Tunisian, Kenyan, Sierra Leone, Qatari and Lebanese postal services.'

The event has already attracted a diverse and international selection of the transportation industry's top players including UPS, with ARAMEX and DHL attending as premium sponsors and FedEx, TCS, Qatar Post and Dubai Cargo Village all acting as support sponsors.