Total sales exceed $52.5m at GITEX Shopper 2011

Total sales at this year's Gitex Shopper, the retail arm of Dubai's annual technology show, exceeded AED193m ($52.5m), organisers have revealed. The 2011 show delivered its strongest performance yet with retailers across the board reporting an increase in sales figures. Millions of dirhams worth of gadgets and electronics were sold over the eight day shopping event, with laptops, tablets, digital cameras, smart phones, and LED's/LCD's among the best performing categories, organisers said in a statement. Retailers participating in the show reported total sales in excess of AED193m, while visitor numbers swelled to 169,018. More than 160 retailers took part in this year's show and over 25,000 different products were available for sale. Organised by Dubai World Trade Centre, the sales event will return "even bigger and better" in October 2012. Trixee Loh, senior vice president, Dubai World Trade Centre, said: "Gitex Shopper continues to grow year after year and the 21st edition of the show was no exception. With record visitor and sales numbers in 2011, Gitex Shopper proved once again that it plays a significant role in boosting retail sales in the UAE." Avinash Shanbhogue, head of mMarketing, retail division at Jumbo Electronics, said: "Jumbo Electronics witnessed record foot-fall and double digit growth at Gitex Shopper, outperforming last year's results." Ashish Panjabi, COO, Jacky's Electronics, added: "Gitex Shopper has been very positive for Jacky's. Footfall is up and our results are strong - we believe that we have improved our sales results over last year."