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The fourth CEO of DSF is also the first lady to hold the post. But Laila Suhail prefers to underplay that as she tells Letha Jose that the success story of the festival is all about teamwork and nothing about personalities

The first woman CEO of the biggest shopping festival in the region took over reins just two days before the event got off to a grand start on January 24, but Laila Suhail is a familiar face in the Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) circuit. "It's almost as if I spent my entire life with DSF," she smiles charmingly as she points out that this is the 23rd shopping festival she's working for in Dubai. The girl next-door look is as deceptive as it can get. In 2001 and 2005 she has been honoured for garnering high sponsorship revenues, something only a concerted and aggressive campaign can accrue.


Starting off as a coordinator in 1996, the year DSF was conceived, she has steadily risen up the ranks. Over the last 12 years, Suhail has initiated projects and events ideas for both DSF and DSS and achieved the set targets in turning them into major destinations. She also spearheaded Modhesh – the ever smiling Dubai Summer Surprise brand ambassador who embodies everything that the event stands for: fun, excitement, brightness and unlimited joy for children – as a standalone brand. Before being appointed the CEO, she has held several posts in DSF, the last of which was that of chief strategy officer (CSO).


You’ve been appointed the CEO just two days before the current DSF. What are your plans for the future events? Do we see any radical change in the way the event will be organised?
DSF has never been about personalities. It has always been about teamwork and brainstorming. Every year we come up with new ideas and events and that is what keeps the interest alive. Moreover, I’ve been involved with DSF from day one. I was part of it as a coordinator when the event started in 1996. This is my 23rd shopping festival if I count 13 DSFs and 10 DSSs.You talked about a 5-8 per cent increase in the number of visitors and 10-15 per cent increase in visitor spending compared to last DSF. Isn’t that a bit too ambitious considering last year DSF was for 45 days while it is only 32 days this year?
I want to clarify this. We are not comparing with last year. The projected figures are against those of 2005. Last year was a combined version of 2006-07 and lasted 45 days. The whole strategy was different. As we held DSF spanning December 2006-January 2007, it also coincided with Christmas, New Year and Eid.


What are the challenges involved in running an event of such scale?
Since inception DSF has always surpassed anticipations. Because of that every year people's expectations also go up. The biggest challenge is to live up to those. Every year, one of the main questions is ‘what’s new?’ We have to make sure that it is more attractive that the previous year so that the festival lives up to expectations. Another challenge is to ensure that there are events that attract people from diverse backgrounds. As we are catering to different nationalities in one festival – apart from visitors from outside the country, in Dubai we have 180 nationalities living together – we have to keep in mind the interests of different segments. We are the pioneers when it comes to a shopping festival of this scale in the region but we are not the only one now. Having been the pioneers who set the standards of excellence, to sustain that and remain the best in the face of competition is a big challenge.

What’s new this year?
This year we have consciously created a new season for DSF. There has always been an association in people’s minds with Eid as DSF had coincided with the festival for the past six years. This year we decided to have it after Eid. For us the experience is totally new. We are actually creating a new season for the retailers after the traditional festival season.


Even the strategy is different; it’s more focused and condensed. An example is fireworks, something that has always been a part of DSF. The practice was to have fireworks every evening and people used to throng both sides of Dubai Creek to see that. This year we decided to focus on weekends. So instead of five minutes of fireworks daily we have 15-20 minutes fireworks on weekends. We’ve also decided to hold most of the shows on the weekends.

DSF is a success story that many want to emulate. What do you attribute to this success?
The success is because of teamwork. Not just the 49 of us in the DSF office but also the thousands who work with us before, during and after the festival. It involves a great deal of teamwork and coordination between government officials, private sector, retailers, tour operators and even the residents of the city. All government departments work in tandem to ensure safety and security of visitors and residents. That Dubai is a safe city where one can move about even at midnight without worry is a major draw for tourists. We also ensure that there is something to interest everyone. Even in entertainment we don’t just focus on art and cultural events or fashion shows, we go for a combination of different activities. The sponsors of DSF have contributed immensely to the success of the festival by offering unwavering support through organising various entertainment events and promotional offers.


How has DSF evolved over the years?
Dubai Shopping Festival has become a global attraction today and a distinguished landmark in the global festivals industry, offering the best in shopping, winning and family entertainment. When DSF started it mainly focused on shopping. Some years ago His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum fixed the slogan for DSF as ‘One family, one world, one festival’. From then we started modelling DSF around that slogan. Shopping remains the mainstay but there are also other things.

Even from the target market perspective DSF has expanded over the years. We started with the GCC, Middle East and the Indian sub continent, but the borders are expanding. We have many more Europeans coming in the last few years. This year we have also started promoting DSF in the Far East, China and Japan.

That’s a very important target market we are working on. We have invited tour operators and journalists from Japan and China so that we can show them what DSF is all about. They will spread the word and we will have more visitors from these regions next year.

How do you manage to entice visitors year after year?
Dubai as a destination adds a lot of value to the festival. We have a lot of repeat visitors. Even if you had come for last year’s DSF, you would find a lot of changes this year.


What’s the brand being promoted: Dubai or DSF?
Our marketing strategies focus on Dubai as a destination. DSF was initiated with two key objectives in mind: to promote Dubai as the ultimate global shopping and tourist destination by creating world class events and retail promotions, and to set the benchmark for events and festivals around the world. Dubai is a shopping destination throughout the year. What we offer during DSF is added value. Dubai has changed tremendously after DSF started. As a city, it has taken a big leap in infrastructure and the number of shopping malls. The malls here have evolved into complete destinations with everything ranging from five-star hotels to shopping and entertainment options rolled into one. Our strategy is to be one with the expansion Dubai is witnessing in the retail space. Currently we have 15mn sqm retail space, it will be 20mn sqm by 2010.


What’s the marketing pitch?
As far as marketing goes, our campaigns are segmented to appeal to the target market. Each market is different in terms of what appeals to them. Keeping that in mind, those attributes are highlighted in the marketing campaigns there. If we are going to India we promote jewellery and shopping. In Europe the marketing pitch concentrates more on heritage events.

What prompted the DSF office to start the Dubai Summer Surprise (DSS)?
DSS started two years after DSF. Ten years ago Dubai used to turn into a ghost town in summer. We had many shopping malls and good hotels on the beach but everyone would proceed on leave in the summer months and there would be no sales persons or shoppers. The city was in dire need of something to make it come alive in summer. As part of a DSF initiative we had established the Dubai Shopping Mall Group. They got together and put up a promotion and we put the event together as Dubai Summer Surprise. Today DSS is as strong as DSF in content. Initially we concentrated only on the GCC countries. The logic was that the people there were used to the summer heat in the region unlike those from other parts of the world. But now it’s not just the GCC residents who come for DSS. We have a large number of German tourists coming every summer. We had never thought of targeting Germany as market, especially in summer.


How different is DSS from DSF?
The summer festival is more attuned to families with children while DSF has more for adults. DSS was conceived as a family entertainment event during the summer season for the whole of GCC. The event lays special emphasis on children, who are provided all the opportunities to hone their skills while enjoying a fun-packed ten weeks of activities. DSS concentrates more or indoor activities while DSF is largely an outdoor event with carnivals, shows and fireworks. But the important thing is that DSF and DSS have created two different seasons of high sales