How UAE’s retail sector can overcome COVID-19 disruptions – ZAWYA

How UAE’s retail sector can overcome COVID-19 disruptions – ZAWYA

Colliers International, in its latest white paper released on Wednesday, examined the widespread impact of the disruptions caused by the pandemic on the retail and development sector, and recommended a series of measures that businesses should implement, to mitigate the current hardships.. The advisory company said mall owners should beef up their online presence, highlight virus prevention and screening measures and offer rent breaks to tenants.. Mall owners in many markets have shut down retail stores, cafes and restaurants, leaving hundreds of thousands of workers either out of jobs or at risk of unemployment.. Among the hardest hit, Colliers said, are entertainment and leisure categories, with cinemas in shopping malls being closed down due to their social nature.. Bergsma noted that while non-essential retail is going through tough times, operators of groceries and supermarkets are seeing unprecedented demand, with businesses like Carrefour in the UAE seeing a 300 percent increase in online orders and 59 percent increase in new customers onto its e-commerce site.. Dr. Suhail Al Bastaki, director of happiness and marketing department at Union Coop, told Zawya that they have also seen a "significant increase" in demand for grocery deliveries and app downloads for its web store, as