Regional brands urged to take control of their home and overseas markets
UAE beauty brands are proving they can win global attention online, but many are losing sales on the marketplace product pages where repeat purchasing happens, according to David Quaife, Managing Director, Middle East and North Africa at e-commerce accelerator, Pattern.
Speaking as Beautyworld Dubai marks its 30th edition at Dubai World Trade Centre, Quaife pointed to data shared on the show’s opening day by Farah K. Ahmed, President and CEO, Fragrance Creators Association, that three of the ten best-selling fragrance brands on US TikTok Shop this year are UAE houses: Lattafa, Armaf and Afnan.
Discipline
“The opportunity now is for every UAE beauty brand to bring that same discipline to the marketplaces where their customers buy every day, in the UAE, in Saudi Arabia and internationally,” stated Quaife.
Quaife also echoed the opening-day message from BeautyMatter’s Kelly Kovack that Saudi Arabia and the UAE need to be approached as distinct markets. Saudi Arabia accounts for roughly 40% of GCC beauty spending, while the UAE serves as the region’s hub for brand launches, capital and cross-border commerce.
“Each market has its own marketplace mix, search behaviour, price points and peak calendar, from White Friday to Ramadan and Eid. A single regional listing managed by one distributor will be more likely to underperform in both. Brands need visibility of who sells their products, at what price and with what content,” concluded Quaife.
