Construction in the Middle East is still far-outstripping what’s going on in more mature markets such as western Europe. It’s one of several factors that have seen me look to the Middle East for growth in recent years.
As a result, I’ve visited often and had always been impressed by their desire to make a statement and build things bigger, faster, stronger and taller than anyone else has ever managed.
That passion, seen in the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, has drawn me to the region. But it does beg the security question, and even in an Islamic region, the biggest or best of anything engenders jealousy and needs protection from attack.
Couple that with oil, or black gold, the source of Arab wealth, which needs securing like never before, and you begin to understand why I see opportunity aplenty in the Middle East.
It’s great news, therefore, that they seem to have a hunger for quality British manufacturing. We took a punt in January by making our first ever visit annual security industry show Intersec in Dubai.
We shouldn’t have been so nervous nor waited so long. We received unprecedented interest in the raft of new premium British-made product innovations in the highest-security fencing solutions we exhibited, which have secured world-first accreditations.
Indeed, we’ve now gone the whole hog and opened an office in the Emirates Towers in Dubai’s financial district after establishing lots of new contacts and bolstering our focus on the Middle East market as a major source of growth.
It’s visible confirmation of our commitment to and interest in this region. It will enable our dedicated sales and technical staff to devote their energies to satisfying customers in the Middle East.
