ABU DHABI — Stand in the center of Abu Dhabi’s newest luxury shopping district and turn your head three times: the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, the Louvre Abu Dhabi, the Zayed National Museum.
That sightline and the unique positioning in the heart of one of the world’s most concentrated cultural districts is what Aldar sold to more than 100 brands — among them Audemars Piguet, Brunello Cucinelli, Bulgari, Cartier, Chaumet, Dior, Fendi, Loewe, Louis Vuitton, Tiffany & Co. and Van Cleef & Arpels — to fill Saadiyat Grove.
“From the central atrium, you just need to flip your head,” said Saoud Khoory, chief retail officer at Aldar, in an interview with WWD. “Look right and you see the Guggenheim, look straight and you see the Louvre, look left and you see the Zayed Museum, while you’re surrounded by all this amazing retail space around you.”
The development, set to open in the fourth quarter of this year, is being positioned not as a mall but as a destination fusing museums, hospitality and next-generation retail into a single, tightly choreographed district. And it is the clearest signal yet that the emirate intends to compete for luxury shoppers, not just museumgoers.
“What is going on in Abu Dhabi as a whole is a vision coming from the leadership about where Abu Dhabi is going — and it’s coming to life as we speak. Retail is a component of that,” Khoory said.
Saoud Khoory
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“Before we put together the tenant mix, the vision was the most important thing we wanted to sell to the tenants,” Khoory said. “We needed to compete with different markets. They will be thinking, ‘Why Abu Dhabi?’”
Aldar has secured 20 first-to-market concepts for the region, including 14 new restaurants and six entertainment and retail brands. Beams, the Tokyo culture shop, will open its first store outside of Asia. Fendi is introducing what Khoory described as “the world’s first Fendi cinema within a retail store,” a multiuse space for screenings, podcasts and brand storytelling. Audemars Piguet is unveiling a global boutique concept inspired by Le Brassus, while Chaumet will spotlight its tiara-making legacy through a world-first immersive display. Loewe opens its first personalization bar in the region and Louis Vuitton is planning facade finishes Khoory claimed the house has never attempted.
Tiffany & Co.’s concept at Saadiyat Grove is rooted in elements from its Fifth Avenue flagship.
Khoory said they worked closely with tenants to bring concepts to market that would offer visitors a unique experience. “We went to them and said, ‘Here is the list of things we think is different,’” Khoory explained. “First of all, education. You are surrounded by cultural sites and museums. What can you do in your store that is inspirational?”
Some of that involved dedicating space to content rather than product — a departure from the footage calculations that have historically governed luxury flagships.
“The convincing part became easy when they came to site,” he added. “Once they saw the scale and understood the impact, they were open to doing something they’ve never done before.”
Hospitality as a Design Principle
If culture provides the framework, hospitality is the connective tissue in the development — which Khoory ranks “even beyond everything else.”
“Wherever you go in Abu Dhabi, infusing Emirati culture is a must,” he said. “The way you’re welcomed, the cup of coffee, the way someone shows you around and explains the history and makes you feel at home, we looked at all those details for this experience.”
Glass ceilings flood the interior portions of Saadiyat Grove with natural light.
Khoory described the project as an “indoor high street” with natural light and generous landscaping drawn from the local context.
“It feels like an outdoor mall, but it’s actually covered,” he said. “You have natural light flowing everywhere, and even the trees we selected are local Emirati species.”
Khoory said Aldar encouraged brands to connect with local architects to work on facades to communicate the emphasis on art and place-making. Cartier will open with a design that focuses on regional stories and local artists.
Food, Not Food Courts
“Food and beverage is one of the most important things because it brings people back again and again,” Khoory said. “We needed a wide variety, whether it’s coffee shops, bakeries, casual dining, food hall, premium or fine dining, even Michelin.”
What the development will not have is a conventional food court: instead, an upmarket food hall and a curated mix of restaurants and cafés. Alain Ducasse Café will sit alongside Monsieur Paul, the Bocuse brasserie format; Kokoro Handroll Bar, and Momofuku, from David Chang’s New York group. Abu Dhabi’s first Time Out Market will gather 16 kitchens from the city’s leading chefs and homegrown operators, and Gymkhana, Barrafina and Le Palais extend the offer next door at Louvre Abu Dhabi Residences.
“We asked the operators to create for us something special here,” he said. “Visitors will find several local homegrown concepts exclusive to us.” Many, he said, are affordable fast casual. The uniting idea was it be “unique.”
Wellness, Residences and Long-stay Tourism
Wellness is another strategic pillar of the development, which Khoory called the “next phase of luxury.” BXR, the London gym backed by heavyweight boxer Anthony Joshua, will take 21,500 square feet in its first Middle East flagship, alongside a wellness center and longevity clinic.
At the center of the development is Saadiyat Forum, a 75,000-square-foot transformable venue for cultural programming, alongside a 23,700-square-foot executive club and 269,000 square feet of office space. More than 1,000 homes across Louvre Abu Dhabi Residences, Baccarat Residences Saadiyat and The Arthouse are due for handover in the coming months — a resident base Khoory expects to balance evenly with tourists.
The opening will be staged rather than fully leased on Day One, and Khoory expects the mix to evolve.
“We’re constantly looking globally at what’s happening in the market and making sure we get the best to Abu Dhabi that our market likes,” he said, citing inspirations from Bal Harbour in Miami to K11 in Hong Kong. “The balance is trying new things while making sure we are always catering to the customer.”
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