Emaar excites tourists with tech-driven retail destination in Dubai

In what seems like a deliberate move to excite tourists, Dubai Holding and Emaar Properties have announced the launch of Dubai Square, a new retail metropolis that pushes the boundaries of modern retail and leisure in Dubai Creek Harbour by drawing on next-generation technology.

Blurring the boundaries of online and in-mall shopping, integrating indoor and outdoor, and delivering a social experience like none other, the all-new Dubai Square is designed for the new era of customers, digital, connected and tech-savvy, and setting a benchmark for retail experiences in the 21st century.

“Dubai Square disrupts the traditional mall and retail experience. Focused on the aspirations of the new generation of customers, it reflects the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, to position Dubai as a global hub and a smart city. Dubai Square will play a pivotal role in further establishing Dubai as the next champion of global retail,” Mohamed Alabbar, Chairman, Emaar Properties said.

Set in the heart of Dubai Creek Harbour, the 6 square kilometre mega-development is only 10 minutes from the Dubai International Airport and the iconic Burj Khalifa by Emaar, as well as set by the historic Dubai Creek. Adjacent to Dubai Creek Tower, the astonishing new icon, Dubai Square – in its totality – represents a 2.6-million square metre (about 30 million square feet) retail, hospitality and residential district for the future.

With City being the fourth most visited destination in the world, Dubai Square will also be the closest mega-retail district to millions of visitors passing through Dubai International Airport, which is just 10 minutes away. In addition to serving the over 3 million population of Dubai, and over 13 million unique transit passengers to Dubai, it will also serve over 2.5 billion people who are only 4 hours flying time from Dubai. It will play a central role in driving retail sales in Dubai, expected to be over US$43.8 billion (AED 160 billion) by 2021, and serving the estimated 20 million tourists to the city by 2020.

Following in the footsteps of Dubai’s postmodern evolution, the facility will also feature an eclectic mixture of styles and references. The inspiration comes from leading cities across the world, with the fashion selection at the retail outlets drawn from London’s Oxford Street, Los Angeles’s Beverly Hills, Paris’s Champs-Élysées, Tokyo’s Ginza, Piazza della Republica in Florence and Madrid’s Plaza Mayor, to name a few.

The square will be linked directly to the Dubai Creek Tower through a cutting-edge underground extension. Here, they can revel at a plaza at the base of the Tower. The Plaza is a clock-shaped haven of landscaping, palm trees and water features sprawling across half a kilometre of land – the length of ten Olympic sized swimming pools.

Equivalent to the size of more than 100 football pitches – with over 750,000 square metres (8.07 million sq ft) of gross floor retail space – Dubai Square pushes the boundaries of design and mall layout and has nearly more than twice the gross leasable area of The Dubai Mall.

Spread across three levels, with each presenting a unique set of experiences to the customer, Skylights, glazed roofs and shopfront windows will be part of the sensory visitor experience. Parks, patches of green and lush landscaping will provide a natural balance to state-of-the-art facilities. Special LED technology is set to drive impactful and interactive backdrops and delight customers throughout their journey.

Technological innovation permeates every aspect of Dubai Square’s function. Championing ‘omnichannel retailing’, it will offer customers a seamless blend of shopping via desktop, mobile or at a retail store. The physical and the digital at Dubai Square co-exist in harmony, with stores acting as showrooms for their online presences.

Digital conveniences will include custom-designed mobile apps, quick checkout solutions, search and barcode scanning applications, radio-frequency identification technology, mobile payments and click-and-collect services. Dubai Square will also be a playground for tech brands around the world. It will also be home to innovators in the automotive, computing, sustainable technologies, 3D printing, drones, artificial intelligence and other emerging industries.

In addition, Dubai Square’s ground floor features a groundbreaking events arena and a broad spectrum of event spaces on streets and alleys. The first floor has a magnificent four-lane boulevard lined with luxury retail, dining and leisure outlets.

Across the boulevard is a grand luxury avenue, with high-profile brands and a dazzling piazza, and scores of casual dining restaurants. The second floor is a family-friendly haven featuring an impressive array of activities at ‘Ice Adventure’, as well as a cutting-edge Cineplex, a waterpark, sports arena, supermarket and a metro link.