Founded in 2008, Dubai-based Fragrance Foundation Arabia offers industry data, marketing support and educational programmes to its members, which include fragrance manufacturers, suppliers, distributors and retailers.
“This agreement is a milestone in the Foundation’s commitment to serve the fragrance business in the Middle East by providing the most useful information to industry players,” said chairman Shahzad Haider.
Special access for members
The partnership between the two companies will allow members of Fragrance Foundation Arabia to benefit from special access to Euromonitor reports at a reduced cost.
These new resources are expected to help its members grow sales by better informing them about the industry developments.
“The data and analysis provided by this acclaimed company will be an important tool for our members. It will help them shape strategy and adjust retail strategies,” President of Fragrance Foundation Arabia, Grit Pannier, said in a statement.
Additionally, the two companies are planning to hold an annual event presenting an analysis of the fragrance industry, with Euromonitor discussing the shape of the economy and its subsequent impact on consumer purchasing habits.
Middle East fragrance market remains buoyant
According to the Fragrance Foundation, the Arabian Gulf is the world’s largest consumer per capita of fragrances.
A recent Euromonitor report published last year revealed that fragrance sales in the Middle East rose by 10 per cent over 2007 and 2008. Fragrances account for 31 per cent of the cosmetics and toiletries market in Saudi Arabia and enjoy a 21 per cent share of the market in the United Arab Emirates.
The report’s author, Carrie Lennard said that despite the fragrance industry in almost all other geographical regions suffering as a result of reduced consumer spend during the recession; the Middle Eastern market remained buoyant.
One of the reasons she gave for this was the fact that Middle Eastern consumers do not have high levels of personal debt compared to many of their Western counterparts, and so were less likely to forgo luxury purchases.