Do you want more luxury corridors lined with vitrines telling brand stories? Are your summer months looking flat? The Dubai malls expansion 2026 story answers both questions at the same time. The Dubai Mall expansion and the Mall of the Emirates expansion are running in parallel, with a combined AED 6.5 billion rebuild redrawing where the city shops through 2027. Attention is in the details.
Dubai Mall vs Mall of the Emirates: the setup
Dubai Mall opened in 2008 and operates more than 1,200 retail outlets and over 200 dining venues across 13 million square feet. It pulled in 111 million visitors in 2024, a record, up from 105 million the year before and 88 million in 2022. Dubai Mall held the position of the most visited place on earth for two consecutive years.
Mall of the Emirates opened in 2005 and now runs more than 630 shops alongside Ski Dubai and a VOX cinema. Mall of the Emirates footfall in 2024 reached more than 40 million visitors, with occupancy at 98 percent in the first half of 2025.
Dubai Mall AED 1.5 billion expansion: The District and Fashion Avenue
Emaar committed AED 1.5 billion to the Dubai Mall expansion in June 2024. The first major phase, The District Dubai Mall, opened near the Ice Rink on the ground floor. Once complete, The District will bring 279 outlets online, with 198 retail units and 81 food and beverage concepts. The first wave at The District Dubai Mall includes Klay by Karak House for modern Emirati cuisine, Home Bakery Kitchen, specialty coffee from Peet’s Coffee and Toby’s Estate, and a revamped Cheesecake Factory. The former Souk area turns into a curated quarter with terracotta palettes and wide boulevards. Fashion Avenue at Dubai Mall carries the luxury weight, and rents rose 9 percent year on year, ranking Fashion Avenue as the 11th most expensive retail location globally.
Mall of the Emirates AED 5 billion expansion: 100 new stores and Covent Garden
Majid Al Futtaim launched the AED 5 billion Mall of the Emirates expansion in April 2025 to mark the mall’s 20th anniversary. The plan adds 20,000 square metres of retail space, around 100 new stores, wellness centres, and a 600-seat theatre. AED 1.1 billion has already gone into wellness, cultural facilities, and infrastructure upgrades. A AED 165 million flyover linking Umm Suqeim Street and Sheikh Zayed Road is open. The New Covent Garden Mall of the Emirates cultural hub, built with the Dubai Performing Arts Academy, opens this year. A new IMAX at VOX follows in late 2026, with an open-air food and beverage courtyard arriving early 2027.
What’s new at Mall of the Emirates: Skims, Ulta Beauty and more
Mall of the Emirates loaded up on first-to-market launches in the past five months. Ulta Beauty Dubai made its Middle East debut at Mall of the Emirates by end of January 2026. Sephora opened its largest Dubai store. H&M reopened following a multi-million-dirham transformation. Jo Malone London arrived by end December 2025. Skims Mall of the Emirates opened its first and only regional flagship by end December 2025, with COS following in mid-January 2026. Omega opened mid-January, Italian jewellery house Vhernier by end January. Gymshark added a second standalone store. Victoria’s Secret reopened in a refreshed space. Rolex relaunched a reimagined concept. Louis Vuitton expanded its boutique. BRED Bakery debuts its first Middle East concept by end January 2026. Dubai Mall new stores lean toward homegrown and food-led concepts inside The District, paired with continued luxury additions on Fashion Avenue. If you wanted storytelling vitrines and reinvented flagships, you got them.
Stores closing at Dubai Mall and Mall of the Emirates
The Dubai malls expansion 2026 cycle came with exits. Debenhams shut its Dubai Mall outlet and is moving to digital only, while its Mall of the Emirates branch remains open for now. West Elm closed its Dubai Mall store in July and then closed across the region. Pottery Barn, also under the Alshaya Group, is winding down. River Island has announced its UAE closure, including a stand inside Debenhams at Mall of the Emirates. The stores closing at Dubai Mall and Mall of the Emirates cleared shelf space, and the rebrand walked straight in.
Dubai Mall vs Mall of the Emirates: the difference
Owner. Emaar runs Dubai Mall. Majid Al Futtaim runs Mall of the Emirates.
Location. Dubai Mall sits in Downtown Dubai at the base of Burj Khalifa. Mall of the Emirates sits in Al Barsha on Sheikh Zayed Road.
Scale. 13 million square feet and over 1,200 stores at Dubai Mall. More than 630 stores at Mall of the Emirates.
Footfall. Dubai Mall footfall 2024 hit 111 million visitors. Mall of the Emirates footfall reached 40 million.
Investment. AED 1.5 billion for Dubai Mall versus AED 5 billion for Mall of the Emirates. The Mall of the Emirates expansion is putting more money on a smaller base.
Anchor draws. Dubai Mall pairs retail with the Burj Khalifa, the Dubai Fountain, the Dubai Aquarium, an Olympic-sized ice rink, and more than 150 luxury shopping and dining experiences on Fashion Avenue. Mall of the Emirates pairs retail with Ski Dubai, the new Covent Garden cultural hub with its 600-seat theatre, and the new IMAX at VOX.
Brand strategy. Dubai Mall stacks more luxury at Fashion Avenue and folds in food-led and homegrown concepts inside The District. Mall of the Emirates loads up on first-to-market global launches and reinvented flagships.
Catchment. Dubai Mall serves tourists arriving in Downtown Dubai. Mall of the Emirates balances visitors with the Al Barsha residential catchment where median household incomes exceed AED 25,000, plus the Sheikh Zayed Road commuter flow.
Function. Dubai Mall sells the tourist itinerary. Mall of the Emirates sells the weekend routine.
Why now: Dubai retail 2026 in numbers
With summer ahead and outdoor temperatures climbing past 45 degrees, indoor air-conditioned destinations turn from option to default. The new IMAX, the New Covent Garden cultural hub, the wellness centres, the revamped Fashion Avenue, and the cooled outdoor courtyard arriving early 2027 target the months your beach plans collapse. Dubai retail contributes 25.3 percent of the city’s GDP, the highest share of any sector, and one new millionaire moves to Dubai every hour. The city took in 9.88 million visitors in the first half of 2025, a 6 percent increase. Population approaches 4 million. Majid Al Futtaim’s mall occupancy ran at 97 per cent, and prime retail rents are up 16 percent year on year. Rebuilding while staying open is the cheaper bet.
What the Dubai malls expansion 2026 means for 2027
By 2027, Dubai Mall and Mall of the Emirates split the city’s retail traffic on cleaner lines. Dubai Mall holds tourism and prime luxury. Mall of the Emirates holds the Al Barsha and Sheikh Zayed Road corridor as a lifestyle and cultural anchor. The two are spending to defend their leads. Watch the vitrines. Watch the closures. Watch where the cooled courtyard chairs end up.
