Economy, recession, Naira to dollar rate is not only a cry in Nigeria as Dubai luxury shops have started lamenting over the absence of Nigerians who have been kept away from their usual travels to the Asia’s shopping capital.

Apparently, Nigerians who typically buy huge volumes of luxury goods such as gold and assorted jewelleries and wristwatches as well as clothes, fabrics, shoes , other accessories and electronics, are cutting down on their expenses as a result of the economic downturn, dollar scarcity and high air fares.

“Before now, purchases from Nigerians made up about 18 percent of our market share, but it has dropped to about eight percent this year. I tell you the truth, we really miss Nigerians here and we hope things get better so that they can shop again as they used to,” Bilal Chaouch, sales manager, Paul Smith, a unisex luxury fashion clothing outfit told BusinessDay in Dubai.

“We hope the government in Nigeria will help provide dollars for Nigerians to come and shop here as they use to do. We hope things get better because patronage by Nigerians has been part of our success story,” he added.

According to BusinessDay, Timex, a wristwatch brand, First Group, Dubai’s leading property developer, and Emirate (airline), are among the brands which decry how their sales had been badly affected by the spate of the panting economy.

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