VoucherSkout is a voucher-based value delivery platform, offering 50 per cent off deals on a pay-as-you-go basis. It gives users discounted access to F&B and five other categories when they buy credits, while driving custom to merchants. Chief executive David Tobias, 47, moved to Dubai in 1994 and launched an advertising agency, half of which he sold to fund VoucherSkout's launch in September 2016. The married father of two reveals he has his sights set on taking the app global.
What prompted you to launch VoucherSkout?
The idea was hatched in 2011. I woke up at four in the morning; bolt upright, like a light bulb had gone on in my head. It took me four years to really act on it. I brought my family up here. We’ve been pretty avid Entertainer users. The premise behind VoucherSkout is not to save people money; we’re actually trying to get people to go out more often. Our brand essence is “enjoy more”. Rather than go out once a week at 100 per cent, go out twice at 50 per cent. You can still do it on the same money.
So what’s in it for the merchants?
I wanted a way of raising expenditure in merchant outlets. I knew percentage-based discounts give a bigger spend on average than a single item concession. Value-seekers know intuitively that if they’re getting 50 per cent off the total food bill they order more food. As a result dwell time within the outlet increases. It takes longer to eat three courses than one, so the consumption of drinks increases. We’ve tried to re-engineer the business of footfall driving. No restaurateur wants to discount their own menu because they have to give it to everyone. To solve that they turn to companies that can deliver an invisible discounted footfall; the only people that see our discount are people carrying our app. The rationale behind VoucherSkout is to help them fill seats they’ve not been able to through their own marketing efforts. Restaurants are very much like aeroplanes; fixed costs are extremely high, it’s better to take off with seats filled, even at 50 per cent off, than for that plane to fly empty. The chef doesn’t get paid extra for making another 100 starters. Even at 50 per cent off they’re still making profit.
Is your system available to tourists as well as residents?
I felt there was massive opportunity within the tourist market coming into the UAE. I wanted a system that would be very accessible, free to download, first usage free and thereafter you top up your wallet. All of our vouchers are priced in credits. Those credits are sold in bundles and don’t expire. You don’t have to worry about subscription. From a consumer proposition it’s a no-brainer; if you use (the app) great, if you don’t, it’s cost you nothing. If you’ve got tourists coming in from different markets and they’re not sure about dirhams they can turn credit bundle pricing into a series of other currencies.
So have the public and outlets taken to VoucherSkout?
With fairly limited marketing we’ve gone from zero to 36,000 registered users – most achieved through either word of mouth or limited click to install ads on social media – and 300 outlets across six categories in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Sharjah, RAK and Al Ain. We’re focusing at the moment on Dubai but taking on merchants who call from other emirates. We’re in the process of acquiring additional funding so I can ramp up the sales team. F&B is the most important one (category) for us, because people eat every day and might get their hair cut once a month. The biggest amount anybody has saved with our app in a single voucher was Dh6,375, which was for half the term fees at Kidville Nursery, when we first started. They paid Dh15 for the voucher; three credits. Our customer base is really varied. We have the chairman of a major private bank, CEOs of aviation companies. I wanted to get to a point where a user was defined as somebody who does something once a month.
What are your plans for VoucherSkout?
We built the app to be entirely scalable. We went with a credit system so in the future if we want to sell off city territories – if we prove the business model successful here – and somebody wants to take VoucherSkout to Singapore, all they have to do is buy the franchise rights and build the network. Anybody who bought credit bundles in Dubai and subsequently flew to Singapore would be able to use the same credits in the wallet. That’s where the exciting part starts to come in. We take something and really grow it. Eventually we might have an extensive network where this credit system becomes a universal currency.
business@thenational.ae
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You Were Never Really Here
Director: Lynne Ramsay
Starring: Joaquim Phoenix, Ekaterina Samsonov
Four stars
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
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TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
How tumultuous protests grew
- A fuel tax protest by French drivers appealed to wider anti-government sentiment
- Unlike previous French demonstrations there was no trade union or organised movement involved
- Demonstrators responded to online petitions and flooded squares to block traffic
- At its height there were almost 300,000 on the streets in support
- Named after the high visibility jackets that drivers must keep in cars
- Clashes soon turned violent as thousands fought with police at cordons
- An estimated two dozen people lost eyes and many others were admitted to hospital
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
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What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh12 million
Engine 8.0-litre quad-turbo, W16
Gearbox seven-speed dual clutch auto
Power 1479 @ 6,700rpm
Torque 1600Nm @ 2,000rpm 0-100kph: 2.6 seconds 0-200kph: 6.1 seconds
Top speed 420 kph (governed)
Fuel economy, combined 35.2L / 100km (est)
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
The specs: 2018 Jeep Compass
Price, base: Dh100,000 (estimate)
Engine: 2.4L four-cylinder
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Power: 184bhp at 6,400rpm
Torque: 237Nm at 3,900rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 9.4L / 100km
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”