The Dubai International Boat Show has firmly placed the UAE as a world leading marine hub, said industry leaders, following the strong number of sales transactions and over 26,000 quality regional buyers, despite global challenging economic trading conditions. To cater to the forecasted growth in the numbers of exhibitors for next year's event, Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) in partnership with Dubai International Marine Club has announced plans to expand the Dubai International Boat Show's berthing spaces for super and megayachts, land and marina exhibits. The Dubai Boat Show 2009 also saw millions of dollars worth of watercrafts sold and thousands of new and returning visitors throughout the five-day event. One company in particular that received increased sales at the Dubai Boat Show was Sunseeker Middle East, who sold two luxury yachts and received numerous boat orders. Other successful companies included Al Hareb Marine, ART Marine, IMG Boats & Macky Marine. Ali Al Jafla, general manager, Sunseeker Middle East, said: “We've generated close to AED20 million worth of business at the Dubai Boat Show and currently closing more deals. Our participation at the Dubai Boat Show is very crucial for our business and it is one of the most important events worth exhibiting at since it allows us to reach our key customers from the region and beyond.” The unrelenting interest and sales of varied boats and yachts generated at the show despite challenging global trading conditions is evidence of the Dubai Boat Show's international credibility and appeal as the most powerful sourcing event for the region. “Gulf Craft was pleasantly surprised with the number and the quality of the visitors at the Dubai Boat Show, not only counting residents of the GCC, but a sizeable overseas crowd. The strong interest and sales confirmations for our new launches during the event reconfirms that this event continues to be the ideal launching platform for our official product releases to the world. We were especially pleased to see many serious enquiries for our superyachts, and look forward to the DWTC efforts in enhancing the presentation possibilities for large superyachts in the future editions of this event.” said Erwin Bamps, executive manager, Gulf Craft Inc. As such, demands for increased participation from companies around the world especially after this year's exceptional success has prompted the organizers to review its facilities to accommodate the upsurge in exhibition requests. “The Dubai International Boat Show has firmly placed Dubai and the UAE on the world map of the leisure marine industry. It is a world-class trusted brand with a proven history of delivering long term partnerships and value between the international sellers and the exclusive regional buyers,'' said Helal Saeed Almarri, CEO of Dubai World Trade Centre, organizer of the Dubai International Boat Show. ‘'Dubai International Boat Show's attraction lies in its complete positioning as a lifestyle event offering just what the affluent as well as marine enthusiasts across the society want. It is their first choice event to experience all forms of their marine interests, from diving, fishing and speedboats, leisure craft to superyachts. The expansion next year will certainly allow us to serve their varied yet specialized areas of interests better.” Almarri said. The Dubai International Boat Show, the largest and most established marine show in the region and one of the top five leisure marine events in the world, witnessed the largest gathering of superyachts ever seen in the history of the show. Nineteen superyachts were on display, a 45 percent increase on last year. __
