The UAE’s retail scene is undergoing a renaissance where centuries-old souq traditions — personal service, product discovery, and community trust — meet modern digital platforms. Online marketplaces, social commerce and mobile-first shopping are re-creating the sensory, bargaining and discovery experiences of the souq at scale, while enabling smaller merchants to reach customers across the emirates and beyond.
This shift is measurable: the UAE’s e‑commerce market was valued at roughly $8.8 billion in 2024 and is projected to expand sharply in the coming years, highlighting how fast consumers are adopting digital channels for everyday and specialty purchases. These trends are driven by faster logistics, cashless payments, and richer product discovery tools that mirror the serendipity of traditional markets (Digital Commerce 360).
For merchants, the playbook now blends online reach with offline authenticity: curated online storefronts, localized fulfillment, and personalised communications let sellers preserve the authenticity of a souq stall while offering conveniences like same‑day delivery and in-app customer service. Platforms and stores that combine curated product curation with responsive customer care — whether a specialty perfumery or a home‑care brand — benefit from both trust and scale; examples on Fursaad illustrate how local shops are adapting, from established multi‑product sellers to focused offerings like the Souq Pro and the sustainable cleaning brand through the EcoTabs shop.
Looking ahead, the “digital souq” will not replace the physical market so much as extend it: richer product storytelling, augmented reality try‑ons, and community reviews will sit alongside popup experiences and neighbourhood pickup points. For consumers, that means easier discovery of niche Emirati brands and artisan goods; for retailers, it means new channels to scale while retaining the relationship-driven elements that make the souq uniquely resilient.
As Emirati makers move from souk to smartphone, many are blending traditional craft and storytelling with modern commerce tools to reach global customers without losing local identity. Successful brands present provenance, craftsmanship and cultural context directly on product pages, use bilingual content for wider reach, and layer social commerce—shoppable posts, livestreams and influencer partnerships—on top of their own e‑commerce stores to create discoverable, narrative-driven shopping experiences. Payment and platform choices matter. Local consumers increasingly prefer digital wallets and flexible payments, a trend highlighted in a recent UAE e‑commerce report , which notes the growing share of wallet-centric payments in 2025. At the regional level, enterprise e‑commerce is scaling rapidly: an industry guide for the GCC points to a sizable market trajectory as businesses invest in headless platforms, cross‑border logistics and phygital integrations to support export-oriented Emirati brands ( GCC e‑commerce guide ). For homegrown sellers this means three practical priorities: 1) make the story part of the product page (origin, maker, craft), 2) optimise for social discovery with clear shoppable links and short-form video, and 3) offer local-friendly checkout options and international shipping details to remove friction. Fursaad’s marketplace already showcases local examples—see brands like Eco‑Tabs and storefronts such as Papaana Cosmetics —that combine regional identity with online-first merchandising. Preserving heritage online is a long game: consistent storytelling, quality imagery, and community engagement (reviews, maker Q&As, cu...
Modern Emirati retail is adopting AI, AR/VR, IoT and contactless payments in ways that enhance convenience while preserving cultural authenticity. Rather than replacing personal service, these technologies can extend it—delivering tailored recommendations in Arabic, enabling respectful virtual try-ons, and streamlining payments so more time is spent on hospitality and storytelling. AI-driven personalization helps retailers surface relevant products and craft localised journeys. Regional reporting shows rapid consumer uptake: recent coverage notes that around 70% of UAE shoppers now use AI to support their buying decisions, underlining the opportunity for Emirati retailers to adopt recommendation...
