This year Downtown Design has doubled in size, is hosting 6 international design weeks and has introduced a new Buyer's Programme for VIP exhibitors, says Fair Director Rue Kothari.

A year of firsts, 2015 has seen my debut as the fair’s director, coinciding with a new venue at Dubai Design District, d3. Doubling in size from last year, we present over 86 brands: 70% of which will appear for the first time as exhibitors; some of which have never been seen in the region before. Curated from a long list of applicants, the brands you’ll discover have been carefully reviewed to ensure a mix of established and emerging regional and international brands that cover a wide breadth of product categories. This year, we’re more diverse than ever, hosting 6 design weeks from around the world, who bring a total of 18 exciting new brands.

As a dynamic business platform, this year we’re encouraging a greater number of the region’s buyers to engage with our exhibitors via our first Buyers Programme. Working with the latest in VIP matching software, our dedicated team is able to facilitate a smooth and productive experience, with a stable of additional benefits including access to exclusive events and talks.

Finally, as the commercial nucleus of the inaugural Dubai Design Week, both visitors and exhibitors to Downtown Design will be able to experience unique initiatives including: regional design pavilions, the world’s first Global Grad Show, installations by world famous designers and an extensive programme of talks to be held in the Downtown auditorium, that will see luminaries from the design, business, fashion and tech industries provide insight on how design is transforming the world.

This October, Dubai will be the only place to be for industry and design enthusiasts.

Rue Kothari
Fair Director 
Downtown Design