Over 80% of the available floor space for this year’s Gulf Glass exhibition (3-5 September, Dubai), has now been reserved, and with offers under negotiation for what would be in excess of what remains, exhibition director Derek Burston has revealed that he has approached the Dubai World Trade Centre for more space.
“Since its inception, Gulf Glass has always targeted Dubai as a natural home” he says, “and after four outings in Sharjah and then Abu Dhabi, we have been delighted by the response to our persistence in getting MENA’s only all-encapsulating glass show into the region’s commercial hub” he adds.
“With economies flat lining, the prospects in most of the traditional glass markets remains relatively unspectactular at present”, Burston muses, “but MENA and the wider East African region are exhibiting huge potential once again. What is more, Dubai has the added advantage of being a global meeting place, whereas some of the more long standing glass events are now in locations that bear far less relevance to what is a rapidly evolving industry” he adds.
Certainly Dubai has the appeal of not just being in the heart of a dynamic region, but also provides an easily serviceable international hub for companies to meet in.
“This year’s Gulf Glass will be the largest yet, and with our permanent home now fixed in Dubai, the potential for the event to continue growing in the future, not just from a MENA perspective, but as an international meeting place in the off-year from the Glasstec event in Duesseldorf” he adds.
