The sixth instalment in our occasional mall-ology series drops into Al Ain Mall and finds a place that knows its core audience, but could use a freshening-up.
The sixth instalment in our occasional mall-ology series drops into Al Ain Mall and finds a place that knows its core audience, but could use a freshening-up.
A shopkeeper speaks
“This mall is not so busy on weekdays but it gets very busy at the weekends with Emiratis, they spend far more than other customers. I would say four times more than others.”
What are the selling points?
Al Ain Mall is a premium-to-luxury mall bang in the centre of the city – for a retail centre it would be hard to get a better location.
It tries to have exclusivity over its outlets, therefore if you need a Rolex there is only one place in Al Ain that hosts the branded store, as well as Carolina Herrera, Cavalli, Michael Kors etc.
The MPM Properties-owned mall was the biggest in Abu Dhabi emirate until Yas Mall opened and it remains the oldest. It opened in 2001, so it is now in need of refreshing.
It has just over 400 outlets including kiosks after an extension was added in 2009, making the mall bigger by a third. That extension was built with Al Ain’s 2030 vision at its heart, which leans heavily on heritage, therefore the newer parts of the mall actually look older than the original build.
Al Ain is known as the Garden City because of its seven oases in and around the area, and the drive to the mall is lovely.
The mall halted its expansion plan in 2009 but has restarted it, having just opened its new lower-ground parking, and is expecting to open a Carrefour hypermarket next year. The lack of an anchor tenant that offers the daily needs of local residents bucked the trend of most malls in the UAE; but this will be righted soon.
Tracking footfall
I was in the mall on a Monday afternoon, around lunchtime, and the retail thoroughfares were almost empty, just like in most malls. But the area known as Restaurant Walk, which hosts a series of casual dining restaurants such as Applebee’s, Nando’s and more, was painfully empty for that time of day. However, it says it attracts 27,000 people per weekday and 35,000 to 40,000 per day across the weekend.
The mall draws on the local traffic – it does not target tourists – in a densely populated area and understands that its Emirati customers are loyal. It achieves 35 per cent of its footfall from its Emirati clientele and, with a higher-than-average disposable income, one can see why the mall caters to them.
Expect to see many forts, cannons, coffee pots, camels … and the odd golden falcon.
The outlook
The mall plays to its strengths. With its new car park and plans for a hypermarket, it can only get busier. It already has the only ice rink and bowling alley in Al Ain, but its cinema does leave something to be desired with only four screens. Often it is the entertainment in a mall that can show its age and Al Ain Mall is no exception. In recent years, a couple of newer malls have opened in Al Ain, which offer value chains, up-to-the-minute thrills and brand-new cinemas. The newer concepts are whittling away at Al Ain Mall’s pre-eminent position.
“The new malls show there is an expansion in the retail market,” says Matthew Green, the head of research and consultancy at CBRE. “Al Ain’s population increases significantly at the weekends as wealthy UAE locals visit holiday homes and extended families. Al Ain Mall’s position, in the heart of the city, means if it is to extend it will have to be vertically – but it will have to do something. As Dubai’s older malls have shown, location isn’t always everything with retail, it’s whether it’s worth going.”
Any hidden gems?
The beauty of older malls is that they still have concepts such as corners and stairs in them and Al Ain Mall is no exception. You can take some stairs to authentic-looking Indian or Iranian restaurants that sit imperiously at the top of a faux fort within. My favourite cafe was hidden behind a corner on the second floor. Making the most of its clandestine aspect, its walls are in deep greens and dark browns and its dark wood seating matches the decor – it’s called Cocoa Boutique Cafe and far from the homogenised settings of Starbucks and Costa, it has the feel of an independent coffee house to it.
In conclusion
Al Ain Mall has a strong affinity with its clientele and its business should remain strong. Its ice rink, which is your first view of the mall as you walk in its main entrance, now looks tired and its bowling alley, while very popular, needs a facelift. Although the F&B offerings have been revamped, with 65 outlets and more than 35 coffee shops, it could use more investment in its infrastructure beyond parking. Especially since its younger competition has newer amenities and facilities.
ascott@thenational.ae
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