"Abu Dhabi has got nothing like this," says Richard Foulds, the property manager at Etihad Towers, as he takes us on a tour around Avenue, a new retail space located in the heart of the UAE's capital, at the beachside district of Ras Al Akhdar.
Style-heads make a beeline: connected to the city's first Jumeirah hotel and part of an integrated community of five high-rise towers, Avenue at Etihad Towers happens to be Abu Dhabi's first stand-alone destination for high-end designer brands.
Spread over two levels and comprising 7,000 square meters, Avenue is currently home to 13 boutiques carrying luxury ready-to-wear items, as well as haute couture, jewellery and watches. Twenty-two more shops are scheduled to open by October.
Five shops are making their first showing in Abu Dhabi: Cartier, Hermès, Van Cleef & Arpels, Manolo Blahnik and Salvatore Ferragamo. Two stores are still vacant, with more than 20 brands jostling for spots.
"Gentlemen won't feel left out here," says Avenue's marketing manager Natalie Kardoush. "While other malls and shopping areas are geared towards a more female clientele, here we have a healthy mix of brands catering to both male and female shoppers."
Avenue's environment, its architecture and interiors, are an impressive sight: intimate, calm, easy to navigate. Designed by the Australian firm DBI Design, the space features semi-precious stone finishes in walls and flooring, wide corridors and trendy lighting fixtures. And when you get tired of credit-card swiping (or good ol' window-shopping), there are deep lounge chairs around the area. A "more comfortable, personable experience", Kardoush calls it.
"Abu Dhabi has long played second fiddle to Dubai when it comes to retail options," Foulds says. "We wanted something that would attract the GCC region to shop."
Avenue at Etihad Towers is open throughout Ramadan, Saturdays to Thursdays, 10am to 2pm; Fridays, 8pm to 1am. After Ramadan, regular store hours are Saturday to Thursday, 10am to 10pm; Friday, 3pm to 11pm
jgabrillo@thenational.ae
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Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
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RESULT
Huddersfield Town 2 Manchester United 1
Huddersfield: Mooy (28'), Depoitre (33')
Manchester United: Rashford (78')
Man of the Match: Aaron Mooy (Huddersfield Town)
MATCH INFO
Manchester United 2 (Heaton (og) 42', Lindelof 64')
Aston Villa 2 (Grealish 11', Mings 66')
Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Company%20profile
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BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
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The specs: 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLA
Price, base / as tested Dh150,900 / Dh173,600
Engine 2.0L inline four-cylinder
Transmission Seven-speed automatic
Power 211hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque 350Nm @ 1,200rpm
Fuel economy, combined 6.4L / 100km
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Uefa Nations League: How it Works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
How the UAE gratuity payment is calculated now
Employees leaving an organisation are entitled to an end-of-service gratuity after completing at least one year of service.
The tenure is calculated on the number of days worked and does not include lengthy leave periods, such as a sabbatical. If you have worked for a company between one and five years, you are paid 21 days of pay based on your final basic salary. After five years, however, you are entitled to 30 days of pay. The total lump sum you receive is based on the duration of your employment.
1. For those who have worked between one and five years, on a basic salary of Dh10,000 (calculation based on 30 days):
a. Dh10,000 ÷ 30 = Dh333.33. Your daily wage is Dh333.33
b. Dh333.33 x 21 = Dh7,000. So 21 days salary equates to Dh7,000 in gratuity entitlement for each year of service. Multiply this figure for every year of service up to five years.
2. For those who have worked more than five years
c. 333.33 x 30 = Dh10,000. So 30 days’ salary is Dh10,000 in gratuity entitlement for each year of service.
Note: The maximum figure cannot exceed two years total salary figure.
