The latest Qatar Retail Trends Report 2025, released by Doha Festival City, offered insight into how the country’s fashion, beauty and retail landscape is evolving – shaped by shifting consumer values, growing cultural confidence and the interplay between global influence and local identity.
The report drew on proprietary data from Ipsos and the Doha Festival City 2025 Consumer Survey, alongside industry insights, expert voices, and regional market analytics, the report maps the shifts shaping how people shop, express themselves, and build community across Qatar’s retail environment.
Mohamed El-Sharkawy, Associate Director – Malls Leasing, Doha Festival City says, “Through in-depth research, collaborations with leading institutions and brands, and insights from a range of expert voices, this first-of-its-kind report in Qatar reflects how Doha Festival City, the premier destination for style, expression and coveted trends, continues to evolve alongside the vibrant community it serves. Driven by data, defined by experience, and deeply attuned to what inspires today’s shoppers, we see retail trends not as simple transactions, but as a wider window into culture and community.”
The consumer
Qatar’s retail landscape is undergoing a behavioural shift. Malls are no longer defined purely by transactions – they increasingly function as social infrastructure. Consumers are visiting as much for connection as for consumption, blending shopping with dining, leisure, fitness and family time.
Ipsos data and Doha Festival City’s internal insights showed that most visitors attend weekly and spend an average of 2.7 hours per visit, reinforcing the mall’s role as a consistent part of everyday life rather than an occasional destination. On average, visitors combine 3.2 activities per trip, pairing shopping with dining, entertainment, or fitness. Qatar nationals are even more likely to engage in leisure services like cinema and event offerings. Both Ipsos and the Doha Festival City 2025 Consumer Survey confirm malls are part of weekly life. Ipsos finds most visit 1–2 times weekly for around 2.7 hours.
The audience itself is young, diverse and globally attuned. Nearly half of Doha Festival City visitors are under 35, with Millennials and Gen Z shaping demand across streetwear, beauty, modest fashion and jewellery.
Social media remains central to discovery for Gen Z, but the report suggested a shift in how influence operates. Regional creators are encouraging authenticity and real-world connection, with influencer engagement moving away from volume-driven visibility towards more value-led interaction.
Fashion
Among Gen Z women, beauty and fashion choices reflect hybrid identities rather than fixed categories. Across Doha Festival City shoppers, 34 per cent favor streetwear, 32 per cent are drawn to premium perfumery, and 28 per cent prioritise modest fashion.
According to Qatar Retail Trends Report 2025, around 22 per cent Qatari Gen Z females prioritised modest-meets-contemporary fashion. 8 per cent of female Gen Z Qataris actively experiment with genderless fashion, with 10 per cent blend affordability, modest wear, and global trends in their personal style. The result is a consumer comfortable moving between aesthetics, price points and cultural references.
Among men, 42 per cent of young Arab expat professionals shop for athleisure and sportswear, with 39 per cent of non-Arab expat male students also prioritising the category – reinforcing the region’s growing activewear economy.
Brand desirability remains high, with international labels such as Cos and Ralph Lauren among the most sought-after. Sport-coded aesthetics also play a defining role, shaped by Qatar’s sporting legacy and a demographic that integrates athletic wear into everyday dress.
The rise of gaming and esports has also introduced new digital references into fashion, while the seasonal calendar – from Ramadan to international sporting tournaments – continues to drive demand for occasion dressing, beauty and elevated fragrance.
Beauty and fragrance also ranked among the strongest visit drivers, particularly for Gen Z women, with makeup emerging as the leading category for spend, followed by fragrance and skincare.
Beauty and fragrance
In the wider Arabian Gulf, prestige beauty led luxury growth in 2024, expanding by 12 per cent. Skincare emerged as the fastest-growing subcategory, rising 17 per cent, while fragrance remained the largest segment, accounting for 49 per cent of the market. Beauty has become one of the clearest expressions of cultural identity in Qatar’s retail landscape and continues to drive engagement.
The report highlighted the rising influence of K-Beauty and Japanese beauty, reflecting demand for performance-led, clinically inspired formulations. This innovation coexists with a strong reverence for heritage – oud, bukhoor, and artisanal perfumery remain central to local consumption and continue to inform international fragrance trends.
Gen Z Qatari women were identified as the most engaged demographic, with makeup, fragrance, and skincare forming the core of their spend. 40 per cent cited makeup as their top beauty expenditure, followed by fragrance at 25 per cent and skincare at 20 per cent.
Major beauty retailers continue to play a key role in the market. Sephora remains popular for its broad international range, KIKO MILANO caters to budget-conscious but enthusiastic consumers, and MAC Cosmetics retains a loyal following for its quality offerings.
Jewellery
In 2025, jewellery in Qatar continues to build on a decade defined by storytelling through design.
This trend is reflected in Doha Festival City shoppers: young Arab expat professional men dedicate 13 per cent of their spending to accessories and jewellery, while non-Arab expat women shop across beauty and jewellery categories, according to the mall’s major consumer survey. By global standards, the 13 per cent spend among young Arab expat men is unusually high suggesting that this demographic’s interest in jewellery is driven less by fleeting trends and more by lifestyle and personal expression.
Malls as cultural hubs
The Qatar Retail Trends Report 2025 signals a clear shift: retail in Qatar is no longer confined to commerce but is becoming a medium through which culture, community and identity are expressed.
As beauty, fashion and lifestyle categories continue to flourish – powered by a young, globally connected audience – malls are evolving into spaces where discovery, connection and experience sit at the heart of the consumer journey. For brands and retail leaders alike, relevance now lies not just in what is sold, but how it resonates with the values and rhythms of everyday life in a rapidly transforming market.
