Qatar Development Bank’s (QDB) ‘Made at Home’ exhibition held in Doha last October generated sales worth QR2.15mn from the 185 exhibitors that participated in the week-long event.
Under the patronage of HE the chairperson of Qatar Museums Sheikha al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, QDB organised the event, in collaboration with the Qatar Chamber, Nama Centre, and the Ministry of Administrative Development Labour & Social Affairs, and sponsored by Ooredoo.
QDB said ‘Made at Home’ witnessed the participation of different micro and small entrepreneurs, and attracted 11,916 visitors who lauded the level of organisation of the event, which represented an ideal platform to help home-based businesses achieve greater growth and showcase their capabilities.
The exhibition also featured 185 exhibitors from different sectors, such as crafts, fashion, food, and perfumes. Service providers were also included in this year’s edition, such as printing, design, and logistics. The booth rents for the event also ranged from QR3,000 to QR5,000 compared to an average of QR15,000 at other exhibitions in Qatar, QDB said.
Noor Ali, one of the participants and owner of Noor Stationary, said, “It is very convenient to gather all the home-based businesses in one exhibition to showcase their products. We have been able to establish close relationships and fruitful co-operation with other entrepreneurs, as well as exchange experiences.
“I would like to thank all those who participated in the success of this edition of the exhibition, which exceeded my expectations in terms of organisation, and making available the service providers of printing, marketing and delivery, in addition to providing a huge resting area for visitors, which enabled them to stay longer and have enough time to inquire about other products. This resulted in an increase in our sales.”
Aysha al-Kubaisi, the owner of Sister’s Cake, said, “The sales rate was very high, and there was close co-operation with other projects to meet the needs of the visitors.”
Sita Rashed, the owner of Dar Oudi Perfumes, said, “Thanks to QDB, the first and second edition of Made at Home exhibition were well-organised and was a huge success with good visitor turnout. Besides, the remarkable media presence during the exhibition contributed greatly in creating awareness among the public about our products, and resulted in an increase in our sales.”
As part of a national programme for developing home-based businesses, ‘Made at Home’ was launched by QDB in 2015 to support this sector, which in return will contribute effectively to the local economy.
The exhibition aims at encouraging and supporting Qatari home-based entrepreneurs to develop their abilities and capabilities by offering them a unique opportunity to display their products and services to the local market by creating new marketing windows, which will contribute to the diversification of the national economy.