Dragon Mart rolls out e-commerce site to support retailers

More than 35,000 products will be available on the digital channel

Dragon Mart will house an onsite fulfilment centre backed by DP World that will help streamline the logistics and delivery of online orders. Victor Besa / The National

Dragon Mart, the world’s biggest Chinese trading hub outside of mainland China, has entered the e-commerce sector after rolling out an online platform.

The shopping mall in International City will house an onsite fulfilment centre, Nakheel Malls, the retail arm of developer Nakheel and global ports operator DP World, said on Sunday.

More than 35,000 products across 11 categories including home furnishings, games and toys, electronics, fashion and other segments, can now be purchased from dragonmart.ae.

"The new platform, Dragonmart.ae, represents another major initiative to accelerate digital transformation and support government-led e-commerce initiatives," said Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, group chairman and chief executive of DP World. "We regard this development as a pre-requisite to meet the demands of 21st century e-commerce societies."

Retailers in the Gulf will need to reimagine their current strategies if they are to remain relevant in an increasingly competitive market, with customers switching spending online and mall owners facing greater competition, according to a July report by CBRE and Roland Berger.

Emaar Malls collaborated with noon.com to roll out a virtual Dubai Mall, while Majid Al Futtaim launched an online marketplace through carrefouruae.com for its shopping mall tenants.

The Dragon Mart operator will provide contactless home delivery to customers within 48 hours of making a purchase. The onsite fulfilment centre, backed by DP World at Dragon Mart, will help streamline the logistics and delivery of orders.

"Dragon Mart's expansion to online firmly positions Nakheel Malls as an e-commerce disruptor and aligns with Dubai's innovation agenda, at a time when digital transformation has accelerated at record speeds," said Mohammed Ibrahim Al-Shaibani, chairman of Nakheel.

The statement added that the UAE’s SME industry will benefit from dragonmart.ae because more than 30 per cent of items at Dragon Mart are purchased by small to medium enterprises.