DANUBE BUILDMART
Danube BUILDMART, a new 200,000 sq. ft. retail complex for building materials, opened in Jeddah on Wednesday night. Mubarak Ahmed Al-Siraj of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry together with Indian Consul General Sayeed Ahmed Baba and Rizwan Sajan, chairman of Danube Building Materials, opened the new facility, an SR56 million retail complex, at Makkah Ring road in Sulaimaniya district. “The customer-friendly retail complex is a first-of-its-kind facility that caters to interior designers, contractors and homeowners, which also marks Danube’s largest expansion initiative into the Kingdom,” Danube Building Materials Chairman Rizwan Sajan said. The facility, which also includes a 30,000 sq. ft. warehouse, is part of the BUILDMART chain of retail complexes, which was initially launched in the UAE and Bahrain.
MoneyGram
MoneyGram International, claimed to be the second largest and fastest growing global remittance service, has launched its service across Saudi Arabia. It combines the national network of NCB’s Quickpay centers with MoneyGram’s worldwide outlets. The MoneyGram-Quickpay money transfer can be done entirely without standing in a queue, after the one-time registration, and empowers the sender with its convenience and easy operation, by using any one of 1,400 NCB ATMs across Saudi Arabia, or by telephone and also online. Anthony Ryan, president and CEO of MoneyGram International, headed the senior management delegation, which came to Jeddah, from New York, London, Paris and Dubai. He highlighted the importance of the MoneyGram-NCB agreement. “MoneyGram has made a substantial investment in the Kingdom and is committed to a long-term association with both our customers and our esteemed Saudi associates.”
STC
Saudi Telecom (STC) has launched its recharge service for SAWA, LANA, and Al-Jawal prepaid cards for customers using the balance control service at the same time. The company says this step comes in line with the diversification of channels for Al-Jawal customers in order to recharge their mobiles with the required balance indicating that Al-Rajhi customers can use their current bank accounts to recharge by using the various channels such as the bank’s website and ATMs dispersed strategically across the Kingdom. Meanwhile, STC announced the continuation of the IP-VPN promotion that provides IP-VPN customers with Double IP-VPN bandwidth for “Free.”
SIBS
The first Saudi International Boat Show (SIBS) will be held at the Al-Furusya Marine & Yacht Club located at the new Park Hyatt on the Jeddah Corniche. The Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities and the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and industry have endorsed the inaugural event, which will become an annual feature, Jehad Kamal, a senior executive of Dubai World Trade Center, which is organizing the event, told a press conference at the Jeddah Westin on Tuesday. The show, slated from Oct. 14-17, will showcase boats, marine, diving equipment and the first dedicated diving village, and host diving lessons and seminars, fishing and jet-ski competitions, and a boating conference and a weekend of festivities. “Jeddah’s location on the Red Sea is perfect for all types of marine sports activities and we expect the show to be a major contributor to the development of this vibrant city’s potential as a prime destination for domestic and international tourists,” Prince Abdullah bin Saud bin Mohammed Al-Saud, chairman of Al Ahlam Marina Tourist Groups, the management company of the club, said.
Splash
Splash has launched a special promotion to thank its loyal customers with its ‘Design Souq’ summer offer. “Chic crystal studded coaters, napkin rings, pearl embedded photo frames, embellished gift boxes, etc., are up for grabs on a minimum purchase of just SR200,” said Splash CEO Raza Beig in Riyadh over the weekend. “The intricately designed gifts are packed in chic crystal studded black boxes, which can be used as jewelry boxes, gift boxes or even as a keepsake accessories. Every year, we extend this gesture of gratitude to our customers with a give-back promotion that will bring a smile to their faces,” he added. Splash is part of the Dubai-based Landmark Group. Headquartered in Dubai, Splash started with just one store in Sharjah in 1993. Landmark now has 85 Splash stores and 62 branded boutiques across nine countries. Saudi Arabia alone has 35 splash stores and 53 branded boutiques.
Qatar Airways
Qatar Airways has announced the global rollout of its corporate travel rewards program for small and medium-sized businesses following successful trials in the airline’s home market of Qatar. Named Qbiz, the rewards program makes it easier for companies with limited travel budgets to maximize their savings when traveling with Qatar Airways. The program allows companies and employees to accumulate Qmiles through the airline’s Privilege Club loyalty program. The global rollout, unveiled simultaneously at the Paris Air Show at Le Bourget and Business Travel Market in London, allows both the individual and the company to accumulate Qmiles for any given flight.
Panasonic
Panasonic has launched a new model for its Lumix slim and stylish FX series, complete with a 25mm ultra-wide-angle LEICA DC lens and powerful 5x optical zoom. The lens in the DMC-FX580 and DMC-FX48 captures almost double the viewing space at the same shooting distance compared to ordinary 35mm cameras, resulting in remarkable images with unprecedented width and depth. The FX580 also includes a touch-screen interface on a large 3.0-inch LCD, which brings greater enjoyment to digital photography and enables easy manual operation. “The ultra-wide-angle lens opens up a new world of opportunities for Panasonic customers,” said Hitesh Ojha, product manager, Panasonic Marketing, Middle East.
