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Dunhill has officially opened its new boutique at Dubai Mall, marking a confident return to the region for the 130-year-old British House. For Creative Director Simon Holloway, the reopening represents both a strategic shift and a natural evolution. “We were active in this region a number of years ago, and quite honestly, we are trying to rebalance our footprint geographically,” he told ICON MENA. “We have a very strong Middle Eastern client in London, many of whom spend part of their time here.” The intention, he added, is to offer those clients the same depth of service and product they experience abroad. “About 80 percent of our clients spend time in London, and they are very, very happy that we are open here.”
Speaking about the local consumer, Holloway highlighted a deep appreciation for versatility, refinement, and quality. “What we found globally is that there is a very high level of desire and acceptance around what we refer to as casual elegance,” he said. “It can be an outerwear piece, or denim and chambray worn with tailoring. That is how we casualise the English code.” At the heart of it, he noted, the Dubai client responds to substance over surface. “Ultimately the client is interested in good cut, great fabric and high quality in terms of finish and make,” he said. “We do have this offer that kind of flexes really nicely with the client’s lifestyle.” Since opening, it comes as no surprise that the boutique has already attracted a constant stream of customers. An even more positive sign for the brand is that these customers are a distinctly regional audience with the foot traffic comprising mostly local Emirati clients alongside Kuwaiti and international customers moving between global cities.
For Holloway, the Dunhill customer is defined less by trends and more by a long-term relationship with clothing. “The real Dunhill client is a watch guy,” he said. “It is seen as a wardrobe that you build over time, over many seasons, over many years. It is not disposable fashion.” That philosophy underpins the House’s resistance to trend-driven luxury, a business model that has served them well. “It is not fast fashion on a luxury level. It is timeless classicism that lasts forever. We are not chasing trends. Almost what we do is quite antithetical to the entire industry.” Already, that message is translating across generations on an international level and right here in Dubai. “We have had fathers and sons shopping together,” Holloway added. “You get this great transferal of appreciation from one generation to the next.” In that sense, the Dubai Mall opening feels less like a launch and more like a continuation of a story rooted in endurance, taste, and modern British elegance.
