Mohammed bin Rashid Establishment for Young Business Leaders presents Middle East's exclusive international franchising exhibition

Presented by Mohammed Bin Rashid Establishment for Young Business Leaders, the event is the biggest networking and business opportunity for international franchisors to access entrepreneurs and investors from the region. The event supported by International Franchise Association (IFA).

FME 2006 will feature a large number of Franchise concepts, Brands, Products and Services from the international as well as Pan Arab market and is likely to be the perfect avenue for interested buyers and investors to evaluate, choose and acquire franchise and business opportunities in the Middle East.

Abdul Baset Al Janahi, CEO of Mohammed bin Rashid Establishment said, 'The regional and national economy is entering a new stage with the small and medium enterprises (SME), with the franchise sector playing a crucial role in the economy.'

He added, 'The aim of organising the 'Franchising Middle East Exhibition' is to create global awareness about the possibilities of franchising in the UAE and the Middle East as a whole. Our plan is to make UAE the franchise hub of the Middle East. We believe there is tremendous opportunity here for franchisers interested in expanding to the UAE and other Gulf countries and the Establishment is here to aid them in their expansion efforts.'

AbdulRahman Falaknaz, President, International Expo-Consults (IEC), technical organiser of the event, said, 'This year's show will feature national pavilions from countries such as France, South Africa and Singapore along with Malaysia and Thailand, who aim to repeat their tremendous success in past shows. The event is also expected to showcase new products and concepts including major categories in Food, Beauty, Education and Services by leading franchise brands.'

FME 2005 has witnessed a large number of franchise brands from GCC as Home grown Franchise, considering that GCC is one of the fastest growing market for the Franchise industry.

The Exhibitions has shown continuous growth since it's inception in year 2004 , when the event witnessed 18 categories and since then has received tremendous response from investors and buyers. Since its inception, the show has increased to almost 45% in size, in terms of size and categories displayed at the show.

Seminars and workshops with speakers drawn from international fraternity of Franchise Specialists will also be held.

FME 2006, show is expected to receive visitor delegations and institutional buyers apart from franchise seekers and holding companies from over 45 countries from all over Pan Arab, Europe and Asian Sub-continent.

Marwah Al Hamar, Development Agent (UAE), Subway lauded the show, 'Our participation at FME 2005 reaped more than satisfactory results with a large number of enquiries that transformed into actual business deals. We expect increased success at this year's show.'

Other major repeat exhibitors include Neck and Neck, Spain and Thailand Department of Export Promotion. Anotah, which is a first-time exhibitor at the show, has booked one of the largest individual space stands aiming to unveil their massive expansion plans during the expo. The show is expected to attract major media attention in the Pan Arab markets, being the largest international Franchising exhibition of its kind.