5dubai shopping festivalGulf News | Thursday, January 15, 2015 | Advertising Supplement

dubai shopping festival4Advertising Supplement | Thursday, January 15, 2015 | Gulf News

Weaves of delightn The 20th edition of the Carpet and Art Oasis pays tribute to the ancient craft with an impressive display

of 220,000 pieces from countries such as Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan

You know an event has staying power at the Dubai Shopping Festival when it has

not only managed to remain a permanent fixture in the line-up of activities but also un-dergone an impressive trans-formation over the years. The Carpet and Art Oasis is one such event.

This year’s edition pays tribute to 20 Years of Spin-ning Art and is spread across an area of 6,200 square metres in a fully air-conditioned tent with a façade that features iconic attractions of Dubai.

So what is it that has cap-tured the consistent attention of visitors? Ahmad Mahboub Mosabah, Director-General, Dubai Customs, organisers of the event, says it is the fact that it displays exquisite and rare carpets, handcrafted in renowned rug-making re-gions, under one roof. “More than two and a half million carpets have been exhibited thus far. This edition features 58 stands with 42 companies displaying 220,000 carpets valued at Dh2 billion. A total of 300 fine and sumptuous carpets were weaved exclu-sively for the Carpet and Art Oasis 2015.”

The resounding success of the Carpet and Art Oasis be-comes evident on speaking to the exhibitors, a large num-ber of whom have been par-ticipants right from its incep-tion. All of them unanimously agree that the organisation, location and marketing of the event have only gotten better over the years.

Aside from a purely artistic or culturally driven passion, the sustained interest in car-

pets in the region can be at-tributed to an abundance of wealth. “At the end of the day, carpets are luxury products in the same class as diamonds,” says Amir Ghanbarinia, the Iranian owner of a third-gen-eration Dubai-based family carpet business.

It is no surprise then that Ghanbarinia also lays claim to being the owner of the most expensive piece at the Car-pet and Art Oasis, valued at Dh14.5 million, which is not for sale. It is a collector’s item that was commissioned by Nasseruddin Shah, the 18th century ruler of Iran. Shah was inspired to commission

the work after reading the sto-ry about Kelileh, the lion king, and Demneh, the vizier jackal. He called on designers and weavers from Persia, India and Armenia to create this carpet.

Place of originThe majority of carpets dis-

played across the exhibition are the Iranian ones while the Pakistani, Afghan and Kash-miri varieties account for about 5 per cent each.

However, you needn’t be in-timidated if you’re not a sea-soned carpet connoisseur who knows your Qom from Tabriz, as salesman Babar Malik of Red Castle Carpet is on hand to give the comprehensive breakdown of characteristics that distinguish rugs from the well-known regions of Iran. Malik says, “Tabriz and Qom

are high-quality carpets and are named after the Iranian cities where they are made.

“Qom carpets are always made of silk and the most popular designs in this cat-egory are influenced by hunt-ing scenes and floral patterns.

“Tabriz carpets come in a wool-and-silk mix with a cot-ton base, as well as a silk base. These are known for bringing to life everyday scenes of peo-ple and animals — the clarity is often better than photos!

“Carpets from Nain are wool and silk with a cotton base,” Malik adds.

Best buyAnd how does one zero in

on the perfect carpet? Malik has some useful tips for first-time buyers. “Firstly, figure out what size and area you’re looking to cover,” says Malik. “If you need it for the dining area, go for wool. If budget is not a constraint, opt for a Ta-briz or Qom. If you have chil-dren, don’t buy silk carpets as they get easily stained if beverages are spilled on them. Wool, on the other hand, can be washed at a carpet-clean-ing service.”

As for how the value of a carpet is ascertained, it all comes down to the knot count. Interestingly, the pro-duction period for a carpet of the same specifications differs from region to region. While a Qom could take up to a year to make, a Nain may only require one and a half to two months to complete.

Big namesThe stall of first-time ex-

hibitor Majid Ghanbari of Al Khaimah Carpet Trad-ing in Deira Towers is a trib-ute to some of the big names in carpet-making. An hour

with him teaches one about some of the greats such as the famous Hussain Kashiza-deh from Qom, for whom the Circle of Life theme was a re-curring source of inspiration. His pieces are all tributes to the beauty of nature and are brought to life with stunning flora and fauna.

From Ghanbari we also learn about the beauty of an Ahmad Shahabpur carpet. If one were to drop scalding

hot water on a Shahabpur, it would not, unlike most other carpets, change colour. This procedure is used as a litmus test for high-end carpets. Seirafian is another illustrious name in the industry mostly known for its floral style.

Just when you thought the Iranian carpets had a mo-nopoly of the exhibition you come across Mehreen Carpets, which displays some strik-ing pieces from Pakistan, Af-

ghanistan and Kashmir. From Mahmoud Ahmad, Sales Man-ager, we learn that Pakistani double-knot carpets are just as good as Iranian carpets, with the benefit of being more colourful. He also mentions there are three qualities of Pa-kistani carpets — Jaldar, Silk touch Persian design and dou-ble knot.

The most well-known Af-ghan carpets are the Kunduz and Andkhoy. And then, of course, there is the Khal Mo-hammadi, which comes from the Turkmen tribe, and it is these bright red rugs that put Afghanistan on the carpet in-dustry map.

Afzal Hussain, a sales ex-ecutive at Qum Persian Car-pets and Novs, sums up the significance and relevance of the exhibition’s 20 Years of Spinning Art theme, when he says, “Weaving arts reflect the culture of both the country the carpets originate from, as well as the legacy of the family who created them, and peo-ple need to learn to appreciate that more.” n

By Jehan NizarSpecial to GN Focus

The Carpet and Art Oasis is being held at Dubai Festival City on Al Rebat Street, its home since 1996. Since its inception, the number of visitors flocking to the Carpet Oasis has reached more than one million, with total sales of more than Dh1.7 billion.

The Carpet and Art Oasis will be open for visitors Saturdays to Thursdays from 10am to 10pm and Fridays from 4pm to 11pm until February 1.

— J.n.

Facts

At a glance

n Take your pick from Iranian rugs such as Tabriz or go for the Afghan Khal Mohammadi or the Pakistani double-knots

n If you have children it is best to buy wool carpets as they can be washed at a cleaning service

Dh1.7bvalue of total sales since 1996

Business

Pictures: Atiq-ur-Rehman/Gulf News

One for keeps n About 300 carpets have been made exclusively for this year’s Carpet and Art Oasis, which features 58 stands with 42 companies exhibiting products valued at Dh2 billion

Courtesy of Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment

Over the past 20 years, the Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) has brought new tourists

to the emirate in what used to be a traditionally slow month, and revitalised the retail indus-try. Its impact on the food and beverage sector, though, is only just beginning to be felt.

Management of restaurants in the city say the annual event may generate additional rev-enue of up to 25 per cent this year, on the back of increased tourist traffic and DSF-exclu-sive food promotions.

“DSF helps keep the mo-mentum of November and December going,” says Saleh Al Saleh, Brand Director, Operation:Falafel at The Beach, opposite Jumeirah Beach Resi-dence. He anticipates a revenue increase of 15-25 per cent over the last quarter of 2014.

Shailesh Dash, Founder and CEO, Al Masah Capital, which owns the Dubai venue of the London-based La Porte des In-des restaurant at The Address Dubai Mall, expects 20 per cent greater revenue than December 2014. “Over the years, DSF has been successful in attracting a growing number of visitors and managed to increase the average spending per customer, which has positively impacted the majority of the retail outlets and food service companies,” he says.

“La Porte des Indes is strate-gically located to benefit from DSF as we are located in The Address Dubai Mall, which

enjoys pedestrian access from shoppers in the mall and tour-ists travelling to Dubai for the event and residing at the hotel.”

More than 4.5 million peo-ple visited malls or took part in DSF-linked events in 2013, the last year for which figures are available. Laila Suhail, CEO,

Dubai Festivals and Retail Es-tablishment, which organises the shopping festival, says that number rises by about 5-8 per cent each year.

DSF 2015 has a special focus on food, she says. For the first time, the Ripe Food and Craft Market, where organic food is sold in a market-style setting, is on the official DSF calendar.

Restaurants are responding by putting out special offers. Frankie’s Italian Bar and Grill is serving a special olive oil-based menu from January 18-24, where a four-course meal is priced at Dh365.

The family-style Sapori di Bice, which has outlets at City Walk and The Beach, has a range of value-for-money pro-motions running every day of the week in January, says

Gianluca Penna, Restaurant Manager of the brand’s outlet at The Beach. These include a deal on wood-baked pizzas, priced at Dh65 every Sunday, and a 20 per cent discount on vege-tarian fare on Wednesdays. “We are already witnessing a steady flow of clients in January, with the beautiful weather and our al fresco dining, and also be-cause of the DSF,” Penna says.

Beyond that, she says the event, with its strong focus on the other Gulf countries as a tourism source market, has impacted business in another way. “With the stream of tour-ists from the GCC, we tend to also receive many franchise requests for opening across the Gulf,” says Penna.

Now there’s a story for the dinner table. n

By Keith J. Fernandez Editor — GN Focus

For a look at what tomor-row’s malls will have in-store, head to Downtown

Dubai where more than 55 re-tailers are taking a creative ap-proach to retail and dining at an open-air shopping theme park of sorts, called Market OTB. It has been described as a sustainable platform to discov-er new retail concepts.

The event, in its second edi-tion, begins today with a per-formance by the GCC-based multimedia artist Zahed Sul-tan, and runs until January 24 at South Ridge Park. There will be shipping containers repur-posed to house retail concepts in the fashion, interiors and art

sectors, while a cubic structure of recycled bottles will host panel discussions and talks on sustainability. Performances, an outdoor cinema, a custom skating ramp and host of dining options complete the offering.

“The success of our first event last year inspired Market OTB to extend the platform to ten days, showcasing brands not found in conventional re-tail venues, but accessible to the public within a programme of events and experiences for residents and visitors,” says Su-haila Ghubash, Director, Festi-val and Events, Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment, the organisers of DSF.

Market OTB will run from 4pm-10pm on weekdays and 10am-10pm on weekends. En-try to the event and all its pro-grammes is free.

— GN Focus Report

What the future has in store for shoppersHead to Market OTB to learn about new, sustainable retail ideas

DSF boost for city restaurantsn Dining establishments are beginning to feel the festival’s impact on their business, as increased tourist traffic presents new opportunities

❝DsF helps keep the momentum of November and December going.”saleh al saleh | brand director, operation:falafel

Gulf News Archives/Zarina Fernandes

Eating out is big business n Restaurants across Dubai are optimistic that they will see revenue increases of up to 25 per

cent over the last quarter. Some eateries have also received enquiries about GCC franchises

www.panda.com.sa/dubai At Dubai Festival City Mall, Telephone: 04 232 5997 | Offers valid till January 17th 2015 or till stocks last./HyperPanda.Dubai 242166 242168

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