The latest gadgets drive DSS sales

New and upgraded gadgets and appliances are being put on sale as retailers try to cram as many deals as possible into the shorter Dubai Summer Surprises (DSS) promotions. “There are many genuine offers at the moment as this happens to be a time when many line-ups changed and new product lines have been introduced,” said Niranjan Gidwani, Deputy CEO, Eros Group. Sony has introduced a new range of Bravia TVs and Samsung has come out with the Galaxy SIII, which represents the stiffest opposition to the iPhone. “The launch of the Samsung Galaxy S3 has become the must-have smartphone this DSS,” said Gidwani. “With Samsung, we also saw various price drops in the mobile category which were genuine adjustments in pricing,” said Ashish Panjabi, chief operating officer, Jacky’s Group. “If anything, DSS is a time when more product launches happen.” Jumbo -- and other retailers -- is bundling hardware, like portable hard disk drives, software and accessories and peripherals, as they try to promote the sale of their laptops and other products. “The timing of the DSS [holiday season, annual vacations] results in increased participation from residents and there is an natural buying pattern among tourists,” said Neelesh Bhatnagar, CEO of Emax. DSS helps boost sales during the summer months although the “promotion period is now restricted to just about a month with the fasting month of Ramadan arriving earlier this year. These are the impediments,” said Neelesh Jacky’s is witnessing demand from tourists from the GCC and Russia. Indian tourists seem to have dwindled due to the end of the vacation season there and possibly the value erosion of the Indian rupee. The currency drop has also meant “certain products are more competitively priced in India than the UAE currently,” Panjabi said. Portable electronics gadgets tend to sell better. TVs generally do better between January to May when Indian tourists are in town and take advantage of the duty exemptions. “For DSS, we are pushing our teams to achieve the same numbers as last year. This would mean a growth of nearly 50 per cent in a month-to-month period.” With the Olympics coming up, Jacky’s and Emax expect TV sales to show more growth during a summer full of sporting activities. “We expect this year to be better than the previous; although DSS has been shortened, the impetus to spend has been accelerated by the fact that many consumers are looking to spend before they go on holiday,” said Panjabi. “We are also finding tourists - whether inbound or outbound - wanting to get away before Ramadan and hence we’ve seen a lot more activity.” Some retailers hope to see sales rise by as much as 15 per cent. But the increased sales come at a price which cut into the retailers profits. “The idea is to make a profit throughout the year. The margins in the industry don’t give you the luxury of running loss leaders for an extended period of time,” said. Panjabi. Gidwani said: “Yes, we do make a profit, but the margins are tighter.” Eros is spending close to $1million through advertising and retail partnerships and prizes. DSS contributes around 20 per cent to Eros’ sales. Jacky’s sees between 10-12 per cent of its sales coming from the summer event and Emax around 12 per cent. Jumbo expects to double digit growth of sales compared to last year’s DSS. From gulfnews