Book Review: “The Culture Code”

As part of our series of marketing-related books, we have reviewed Clotaire Rappaille’s book “The Culture Code.” In marketing research, Rappaille is known for his style and unique theories on human behavior. He is known for his rejection of the traditional focus group; instead he proposes a 3-hour focus group in which he does unstructured probing of obscure questions to elicit deeply rooted emotions and attitudes. In the book, he talks about how a culture has a code for every concept, and that it is the job of marketers to decode those meanings.

Rapaille lays out 5 central principles that belie his marketing research approach.

The Next Wave in GCC Hospitality

In the June edition of Gulf Business, Mr. Welf Ebeling, EVP and COO of the “Leading Hotels of the World” indicated that while the number of 5 star hotels in Dubai is exploding, the next wave to follow is budget hotels.

Carrefour Emerging Markets Market Research

Discover how Carrefour expands in Emerging Markets.

Setting up a Business in Turkey

By Nese Yahya, Managing Director of Expatia

The Legal Framework

Starting a business in a new country is challenging, as it is everywhere. As a foreigner if you intend to set up a business in Turkey, you first have to look at and get familiarized with the Foreign Direct Investment Law (No: 4875), which was introduced in Turkey in 2003. The most important principles introduced by this law are those of non-discrimination and equal treatment, as they set the legal framework of the liberal investment environment in Turkey.

According to the Foreign Direct Investment Law, the prerequisites and obligations for establishing a company with foreign capital will be equal to those for local companies. Consequently, the various compulsory permits in the past in founding a company with foreign capital are now eliminated. Companies that are founded with foreign capital as considered by the rules of the Turkish Commercial Code are considered Turkish companies. Therefore, all duties and responsibilities are identical despite the nature of the company’s capital creation.

Additionally, within the new FDI law, there are no rules requiring Turkish participation in the capital or management of a company with foreign capital. A company may be established with 100% foreign capital, and almost all sectors are open to foreign capital. The company establishment procedures have also been simplified to a great extent. Now, with the efficient procedures, a company’s registration and establishment of a company in Turkey can be completed in as little as one day. Companies must submit a standard form at one location and will not need to submit applications to many authorities for approvals. Also, the law provides that it is no longer mandatory to establish either a limited liability company or joint stock company. These all are important points to be taken into consideration by foreign investors who plan to do business in Turkey.

Qatar Economic Outlook and Market Research

Qatar has a favorable business landscape.

Islamic Banking update

At the end of the first quarter of 2008, Islamic banks comprised 13.4% of UAE’s banking assets, according to Kuwait’s Global Investment bank. The sector is on the move with strong growth, rising share of the total banking market, new products and strong deposits. According to this report, the sector is introducing innovative products to account for new market needs. Among these products are Ijarah and Murabaha.

Many banks in the Middle East already have an Islamic banking unit or even converting existing non-Islamic subsidiaries into Islamic ones. The report goes on to mention that compound annual growth rate of deposits at Islamic banks has risen 44% over the past 5 years.

A previous report by SIS International indicates that Islamic Banking has attracted a key market of banking clients, high net-worth individuals (HNWI’s), particularly in the Gulf. While Bahrain is traditionally known as a hub for Islamic banking, banks in the UAE and Qatar are making in-roads into the market by creating Islamic Financial Services subsidiaries.

Telecommunications consumer research

Expatriate Arabs and Expatriate Asians, who compose the vast majority of the population in the UAE and a large proportion of the population in the rest of the GCC, keep in contact with their families back home via VOIP and through their mobile phones.

An interesting insight to report from our analysts on-the-ground in the GCC countries in the Middle East. Family members back home often place “Missed Calls” to the expatriates working in the GCC, where they hang up and expect to be called back. Despite it being cheaper for family members to call from India, Pakistan and from Levant countries, the underlying psychology behind family placing Missed Calls is to see that their family members in the GCC care about them and that the expatriates have enough love to call them back.

Economic snapshot: Islamic Banking

At the end of the first quarter of 20008, Islamic banks comprised 13.4% of UAE’s banking assets, according to Kuwait’s Global Investment bank. The sector is on the move with strong growth, rising share of the total banking market, new products and strong deposits. According to this report, the sector is introducing innovative products to account for new market needs. Among these products are Ijarah and Murabaha.

A previous report by SIS International Market Research indicates that Islamic Banking has attracted a key market of banking clients, high net-worth individuals (HNWI’s), particularly in the Gulf. While Bahrain is traditionally known as a hub for Islamic banking, banks in the UAE and Qatar are making in-roads into the market by creating Islamic Financial Services subsidiaries.

NYU’s Globalization Plan into the Middle East

Last year, New York University (NYU) announced an agreement with the Emirate of Abu Dhabi to build NYU Abu Dhabi. The research university, with a complete integration of a liberal arts and science college, will be the “first world-class, liberal arts university in the Middle East.”

NYU Abu Dhabi is still underway, with the first formal academic year planned to start on the fall of 2010. NYUAD, which offer NYU B.A. and B.S. degrees, as well as specialized graduate programs, is projected to enroll at least 2,000 undergraduate students and approximately 800 graduate students. The students will be admitted from all over the world, especially the broad Middle East and South Asia.

The campus will be located on Saadiyat Island, 500 meters off the coast of Abu Dhabi. This island is still not developed, but is being planned for a population of 150,000 people.

The convergence of NYU and Abu Dhabi, the capital of both the emirate of Abu Dhabi and the United Arab Emirates, highlights every university’s race to take the lead on globalization. An increasing number of American research universities have been expanding internationally, many of which have created programs in the Middle East.

Luxury Movie Theaters in the UAE & Middle East

Luxury Movie Theaters in the United Arab Emirates can be an important source of revenue for Movie launches, and provide insights from High Net Worth Individuals.

MNP in Saudi Arabia

By Ahmad Al-Assad, Maktoob Research

My wife once told in one of our shopping If we bought this couch I would never ask for anything . The couch was ugly and expensive, but I took my s words literally and was tempted by her promise: not asking for anything else! Well, I should have done more analysis into it. I found out later that my wife meant that she would never ask for anything unless she liked something else!

One of the most important questions in competitive mobile markets if you can keep your mobile number when changing between mobile operators, would you be willing to change. In most surveys, a two-digit percentage of respondents always say yes.

As a result of this incredible potential and competition booster, a technology called: Mobile Number Portability (MNP) came up. MNP enables mobile users to keep their mobile numbers when changing from one mobile network operator to another.

Islamic Banking: Opportunities and Obstacles for the U.S. Financial Industry

The Islamic industry has grown dramatically since the 1960s into a multinational industry with a substantial impact on global finance. This sector largely involves religious (Shari’ah) and cultural norms into its mission, transactions and processes. Intending to promote the public good, Islamic banking forbids usury, interest-based financing and profits from alcohol, tobacco and pornography.

It accounts for more than $250 billion dollars, and has grown at least 10% each year during the past ten years. Supporting this extensive growth is oil windfalls from Islamic countries and the fact that the Islamic population (around 1.5 billion) is growing at one of the fastest paces. Currently, only about 300 Islamic banking institutions and European banks like HSBC and BNP Paribas are already in this market. Growth opportunities abound for these companies, and many Islamic Banks have already listed on the London Stock Exchange. Foreign banks, operating in countries with Muslim populations.

The Islamic banking sector reaches a growing segment of the world’s population that seeks alternative financial services. Furthermore, investments in these banks offer some protection from global financial shocks. For instance, Islamic banks were unaffected by the financial shock after September 11.

Estimates forecast that Islamic banks could manage as much as half of all Muslims’ individual savings worldwide in a decade. The industry also caters to a large number of high net worth individuals (HNWIs) given the prosperity in the Gulf region and provide financing to large-scale construction projects in emerging markets. Not only could it possibly give foreign banks a larger reach into the Islamic world and exposure to large deposits in Gulf countries, but also it conceivably opens them to Muslim communities in their own respective countries.

Carrefour Expanding in the Middle East

Discover how Carrefour is expanding in the Middle East and worldwide.

An Eye on the Arab World by Ahmed Nassef, President of Maktoob Research

These days, it is practically impossible to pick up a major American newspaper without reading about Dubai. Whether it is the construction of the world’s tallest building (which will also include the world’s first Armani super-luxury hotel), the world’s biggest shopping mall or the world’s biggest amusement park (housing the biggest Universal Studios), Dubai’s incredible growth has made it a center of commercial attention and has brought the larger Middle East market into focus for many of the world’s businesses.

However, reaching Arab consumers is not always easy, and trying to reach them online presents its own special set of challenges. While Dubai’s high Internet penetration rates (over 60 percent) should present fertile ground for online research, you’ll be hard pressed to find much of it being conducted, even by local branches of some of the international research firms. And beyond Dubai, the rest of the Middle East offers additional obstacles for online researchers as well.

Global Competitive Intelligence Company

Discover new insights that can transform your business.

Thought Leadership

By Nese Yahya, Managing Director of Expatia

The Legal Framework

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