ARAB BRANDS FORUM, October 30&31, 2006, Dubai, Shangri La hotel

A brand can simply be the name used to distinguish and communicate the goods and services of a particular company or manufacturer from its competitors. They are central wealth creators to businesses and economies. The Middle East market is young, promising and growing and it is the right time to build brand equity. However, Arab brands are lagging behind foreign brands and there is a preconceived idea that foreign brands are better only because it is foreign. So how can M E companies turn around this intrinsic thinking?
ME consumers are by no means homogeneous. The average consumer in UAE or Kuwait has greater spending power than their counterparts in Iran, Iraq or Yemen. Nevertheless incomes are not necessarily distributed evenly in these high income countries. Moreover in an environment with low consumer education, low electronic and media penetration organizations should come up with innovative ways for reaching and retaining desired markets, challenged with regulations and shift in consumer opinions and purchasing. Sensitivity to Islamic beliefs is essential while branding in many ME countries. An effective cultural branding strategy creates a product that has distinctive branded features through which customers experience identity myths.
With comparatively young demographics in the Arab world becoming part of the net population and spend more money on the internet; traditional retailers, manufacturers and entrepreneurs are competing to explore and shape this business opportunity. With so many issues there are opportunities galore for the Arab branding and marketing industry, but not without challenges either.
The Arab Brands Forum is an unmatched, can't-miss opportunity to unlock your brand potential. Seeking to enhance brand building and brand identity? Need to safeguard your brand against competition? Learn more about Arab brands going global? How is internet revolutionizing brand strategies in ME? How to leverage your brand using cultural identity tags? These are just a few of the topics marketing and branding professionals will be able to explore with industry leaders during ARAB BRANDS FORUM, running from October 30 – October 31, 2006 at Shangri La hotel Dubai and produced by Fleming Gulf conferences, Dubai, part of Jacob Fleming group.
Conference highlights include
Significance of multimedia communication in the Middle East by Omar Hijazi, CEO, Tejari
Al Jazeera-A source of Arab identity and change by Moosah Nusebeh, Head of Advertising, Al Jazeera
Marketing to youth in Middle East by Tolga Sezer, Marketing Director, Aujan Industries
Branding and Islamic banking by Salah Mohammad, VP Marketing, Dubai Islamic Bank
Building a brand in ME by Martin Thomas, Director of M&A, Al Habtoor Group
The responsibility of being a brand leader by Iqbal Al Haddad, Head of Advertising, National Bank of Kuwait
Qatar Airways-Thinking globally and acting locally by Salam Al Shawa, Qatar Airways, Senior Marketing Manager
Sponsors of Arab Brands Forum include CNBC, Forbes, RetailME, Strategiy, and Brandchannel.com
George Thomas
Conference Producer
Fleming Gulf FZ LLC
PO Box 500604
Dubai UAE

Tel 971 4 3902761
Fax 971 4 3661048
george.thomas@fleminggulf.ae