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The UAE and Saudi Arabia are firmly on the centre of a speedy acceleration in espresso consumption throughout the Center East, reinforcing the area’s place as one of many world’s most dynamic and complicated specialty espresso markets.
The surge comes as World of Espresso Dubai prepares to stage its fifth version at Dubai World Commerce Centre from January 18 to twenty, 2026.
Rising consumption, increasing café tradition and deeper funding throughout provide chains are reshaping how espresso is produced, traded and consumed throughout the area, with the Gulf markets setting the tempo.
Espresso trade
The UAE continues to anchor regional development, with its espresso market now exceeding AED12bn (roughly $3.2bn). Dubai has strengthened its place as one of many world’s most café-dense and various cities, supported by a pointy rise in out-of-home consumption.
Spending in cafés and eating places accounts for about 93 per cent of complete espresso expenditure within the UAE, one of many highest proportions globally, underscoring the nation’s sturdy café-led consumption mannequin and premiumisation pattern.
Saudi Arabia is matching the UAE’s momentum with scale. The Kingdom is residence to greater than 5,100 branded cafés, representing almost half of all branded cafés throughout the Center East. Each day espresso consumption now exceeds 36 million cups.
The whole variety of registered cafés in Saudi Arabia has surpassed 61,000, spanning specialty retailers and conventional espresso majlis, highlighting each modernisation and cultural continuity in consumption patterns.
World of Espresso Dubai
In opposition to this backdrop, World of Espresso Dubai is increasing considerably. Organised by DXB LIVE in partnership with the Specialty Espresso Affiliation, the exhibition has grown from 5,000 sq. metres in 2022 to greater than 20,000 sq. metres in 2026.
The growth displays rising regional demand for specialty espresso, pushed by client curiosity in espresso origins, roasting high quality and premium experiences throughout the Center East and North Africa.
Past the Gulf, North African and Levant markets are additionally gaining tempo. Espresso consumption in Egypt has doubled over the previous 5 years, whereas Morocco recorded a 23 per cent enhance in espresso imports in 2024.
Throughout the area, the branded café sector has grown by greater than 11 per cent, supported by a younger demographic profile, with greater than 60 per cent of the inhabitants beneath the age of 35. Youthful customers more and more view espresso as a life-style alternative, cultural assertion and social expertise.
Commerce and infrastructure
Whereas café tradition attracts essentially the most consideration, the infrastructure supporting the sector is evolving quickly. Inexperienced espresso imports throughout the GCC have risen sharply, with Dubai rising as a regional re-export hub.
Re-export values exceeded AED3.5bn ($953m) in 2024, underpinned by funding in warehousing, cupping laboratories, high quality management centres and specialised buying and selling platforms.
Khalid Al Mulla, Chairman of the Specialty Espresso Affiliation – UAE Chapter, mentioned: “The tempo of development we’re witnessing within the area is just not mirrored solely within the proliferation of cafés or consumption figures, but additionally within the infrastructure being developed throughout all the worth chain. World of Espresso Dubai embodies the accelerated trajectory of the espresso motion within the Center East, advancing immediately with larger depth and international connectivity than ever earlier than.”
Shouq bin Redha, Director of World of Espresso Dubai, added: “We’re seeing the emergence of a brand new era of entrepreneurs, producers, and importers who’re driving innovation, sustainability, and long-term development throughout the sector. World of Espresso serves as a key assembly level for this ecosystem, and the dimensions of its growth displays the area’s rising affect throughout the international espresso commerce.”
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