Dubai Festival City brings in Paco Underhill

The two hour seminar, held at the Park Hyatt Hotel was a great success with over 400 attendees representing various retail and food and beverage outlets to be included in the soon to be opened Festival Centre. Underhill expanded on the theories and methodologies of the crucial influencing factors present in effective retail environments, and how to apply these in a local context.

A brief opening address was given by Phil McArthur, Managing Director of Shopping Centers and Commercial Real Estate, Al Futtaim Group. McArthur gave an overview of the progress of developments at Festival Centre, with the proposed completion dates of each part of the project. He also stressed the importance of a collaborative effort in the quest for a superior 'mixed use' destination in Dubai. "It is our mutual responsibility to make this a huge success" he said.

In an analysis of the psychology of shopping, Underhill preached on the four main issues to be considered in every retail plan, these being: visual language, gender consideration, convenience, and recognizing how to approach different kinds of customers.

According to Underhill, "visual language is evolving faster than the written or spoken word and therefore is one of the most powerful mediums for communicating with the customer." This relates to the concept of 'information architecture' whereby retailers need to decide exactly what they want to portray to the customer at each point of the shopping experience and seek to construct ways in which to achieve this through store design, merchandising and overall environment.

"Recognizing the power of the female shopper and designing facilities accordingly is vital for long term success," said Underhill. Women are most often the leaders when it comes to shopping, harking back to the days when they were gatherers for the family. As such, retailers need to accommodate their needs by supplying larger mirrors, child friendly environments and the most powerful marketing tool of all, the chair, for the bored partner.

"We live in a shrinking world" claimed Underhill, and therefore providing a streamlined and hassle free experience is paramount in securing customer purchases. Retailers need to understand the value of efficient transaction time and accessibility to sales facilities, he says.

Underhill recognized that one area in which Dubai excels, is in accommodating the many diverse cultures and inherent shopping styles that exist here. Salespeople in the region have become expert at tailoring their approach to suit different customers. "There is no place on earth at the cutting edge of a global society like Dubai", He added.

On a local level, Underhill emphasized the importance of offering a multitude of facilities other than shopping within the complex. This is especially pertinent with Dubai's extreme weather, forcing people to seek indoor entertainment that suits the entire family. In this way, people visiting to partake in other activities may be converted into customers. Essential in this region also, is to provide a reassuring sense of security to visitors. "The key to Dubai is making everyone feel welcome and safe"

Paco Underhill is Founder, CEO and President of Environsell, a New York based research and consulting firm with offices around the world. Considered one of the foremost experts on consumer behavior and effective retailing, he has written best selling books and numerous articles for leading industry publications as well as conducting countless seminars on the topic.