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Nestled in the corner of the temporary retail outlets behind the tennis stadium, Dubai Duty Free is deceptive from the
outside. Seemingly small, it actually holds a surprising number of items: from souvenir tennis shirts, shoes and racquets, to sunglasses, electronic items, cuddly camels and traditional dates.
The shop is open from 10am until the last game finishes, and boasts 22 staff of six nationalities, speaking nine languages.
Sean Staunton, operations manager for Dubai Duty Free and the outlet, said: "We want the outlet to be like an Aladdin's cave and a representation of Dubai Duty Free, so you'll find a mix of merchandise like sunglasses and electronics, because a lot of people coming here are tourists as well. About 70 per cent of the merchandise we sell is the ATP merchandise or the sports merchandise — this is something we concentrate on."
Smoothly
Organising the retail outlet set-up has run smoothly, Staunton continues, because the stadium is part of the Aviation Club,
which is under Dubai Duty Free. Units and shelves used in the shop are set up around three weeks beforehand and a
"merchandising planogram" is prepared, to cement what is actually going to be sold.
"This is our bread and butter," Staunton continues about the outlet. Some of the staff have been working with DDF for 15 or
16 years, while some are still in their first year with the company, which "gives us a nice balance" he comments.
'Everyone Helps Out'
While this is Staunton's seventh year managing the tennis outlet, and his 14th year working for Duty Free in the Middle East,
he insists that organising the set-up and smooth running of the shop is definitely a team effort. "We have a display
department within operations, which specialises in ordering the products to be sold, and then we have our on-site supervisor Michael Trinidad, who liaises between all of them. The marketing department does a lot as well. Everyone helps out," Staunton
enthuses.
This is Trinidad's first year as outlet supervisor, although he worked on the tennis shop floor in 2007. He's lucky enough to
have spotted some of the players: "Usually a lot of players come in, but I haven't seen any this year yet. But when the men's
tournament starts, usually the coach of Roger Federer comes in and looks at the racquets."
Evening Atmosphere
At around 50 times smaller than the Dubai Duty Free Airport outlet, the tennis shop is "just a snippet", says Staunton. "We
try to cover as many of the things that we think people might want." The evening atmosphere, Staunton continues, is "like a carnival", with the small forecourt opening up for children to try their hand at the game, while parents and guardians shop
for souvenirs.
DID YOU KNOW?
Reggie and Lawrie Doherty were brothers who won nine singles titles (1897-1906) and eight doubles titles at Wimbledon.
Sweden's Bjorn Borg, just 15 on his debut in the Davis Cup in 1972, beat New Zealand's Onny Parun, then a top-notcher in five
sets. In 1974, he forced John McEnroe to a marathon five setter in a Davis Cup match lasting six hours and 32 minutes.
Bjorn Borg went on to win five consecutive Wimbledon titles (1976-80), dominated the French Open with six titles in eight
years (1974-81), and appeared in four US Open finals (1976-81).
The US doubles pair of Stan Smith and Bob Lutz won every set for their country in 11 years between 1968 and 1979 spanning
five Davis Cup finals.
— Compiled by Ravi Kant Srivastava
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