DED evaluates retailers’ consumer friendliness

The Department of Economic Development (DED) in Dubai has released the latest quarterly analysis (April-June 2013) of how retailers are competing in consumer satisfaction and pricing.

The DED ‘Consumer-Friendly Rating Outcome’ covering the automobile dealership, hypermarkets, electronics, coffee shops, home furnishing and commercial sectors show that the leading players in these sectors are now competing among themselves to win over customers and offer significant value addition in terms of prices as well as service quality.

The rating was done on the basis of consumer feedback of their experience with retailers in Dubai and after considering consumer complaints received by DED as well as the retailer’s commitment to fair pricing. Consumer feedback accounts for 60%, complaints resolution for 20% and price analysis for the remaining 20% in an aggregate score of 100 in the rating.

The top aggregate scores in the abovementioned sectors are as follows: automobiles, 70.77; hypermarkets, 70.62 commercial category (which included apparels, shoes and perfumes), 73.63; home furnishing, 72.01; electronics, 73.15; and coffee shops, 72.61.

The score combines the results from both DED monitoring techniques and data collected from an online consumer survey. The April-June 2013 results are based on the responses of 1,139 people from all nationalities living in Dubai. The survey is done through e-mailed questionnaires to allow consumers to express their opinions freely.

The quarterly ratings will eventually be collated into the annual consumer-friendliness index, the second of which will be announced in December 2013.

“Recent initiatives from the Department of Economic Development have brought about a palpable change in terms service quality, transparency and accountability in Dubai’s retail sector. Initiatives like the consumer-friendliness Index provides a reliable benchmark for consumers to ensure that their rights are protected and for businesses to work towards raising the bar on their competitiveness and customer loyalty,” says Omar Bushahab, CEO, Commercial Compliance and Consumer Protection Division (CCCP), DED.

DED started classifying major retail outlets on the basis of consumer-friendliness last year to promote service excellence, competitiveness and cordial relations between consumers and retailers while also building awareness on consumer rights and protecting them in line with DED’s strategic objective to encourage best practices in the retail sector.