The floor is now open for DSF 2006 support sponsors

Sponsors are indeed valuable partners in the success of the Dubai Shopping Festival over the years. Now, soon after the signing up of its Key Sponsors and Patrons for its 11th edition of the ever popular annual event, the DSF Organising Committee has thrown open the floor for support sponsors to join in and reap in the profits from increased visitor numbers, higher sales, and the more active shopping habits of the UAE residents during the course of the shopping extravaganza running from January 4 to February 4, 2006.

With the forthcoming DSF 2006 heralding the season for shopping once again, the Dubai Shopping Festival office is now inviting applications from its support sponsors including shopping malls, retailers, brand/distributors, group of companies to participate in this mega event that promises customer loyalty in the post festival period as well.

Says Laila Suhail, DSF CMO,

"The increase in the number of support sponsors of each DSF is a direct indicator of the confidence that the Festival enjoys in the business community that is pulled in from a wide variety of backgrounds including corporate houses, shopping malls and retail outlets. The benefits of participation to the official partners are manifold as they can conduct raffle-based promotions and can claim a waiver on participation/permission fees for all their outlets while also enjoying a 25 per cent discount on participation fees for their outlets in shopping malls hence a good opportunity for doing larger volumes of business."

"Last time, we had 105 support sponsors and this time round, two new categories of support sponsors are being introduced to facilitate larger participation and these include Participating Brand, targeting people who are interested in running a non raffle-based promotion, and the second category of Official Brand for DSF Events meant only for brands/products looking for exclusive selling rights and additional business opportunities," she says adding, "This new category will immensely help the distributors of branded products. These partners have a very real opportunity to benefit from the innovative shopping promotions and fantastic incentives offered to shoppers every year while gaining wider exposure for their many promotions and offers that they are invited to run throughout the event."

"Thanks to our tourism drive with targeted campaign messages in key markets including the GCC, Iran, the Sub-continent, South-East Asia, Africa, Europe/UK we are expecting 3.4 million attendees with a five per cent increase from the 2005 figures which will be of immense importance to the sponsors who will also get advertisement and public relations benefits from our media center as well as a half page free ad in the DSF official guide and substantial exposure in the DSF events calendar."

Registrations for the two main categories of support sponsors including shopping malls; retailers, brands/distributors, company groups are now open and will continue until December 15. Those interested can collect application forms for support sponsors from the first floor of the Department of Economic Development office in Dubai. Application forms, filled with the relevant details, should be submitted along with corresponding fee at the DSF office before the said date.