Dubai:The big wins just keep on coming at the Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) as more residents and visitors scoop great prizes.

This 26^th edition of DSF has seen lots of lucky shoppers presented with life-changing gold rewards as part of the Dubai Gold & Jewellery Group (DGJG) grand raffle. One of the most popular giveaways of DSF, which is organised by the Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment (DFRE), the DGJG grand raffle sees weekly winners receive 250g of gold out of a mega prize giveaway of 25kg.

The raffle runs until the end of DSF, with customers at DGJG stores who spend AED500 on gold jewellery receiving one raffle coupon, and customers who purchase diamonds, pearls, or watches worth AED500 receiving two raffle coupons. Every other day during DSF, four raffle winners share 1kg of gold equally. On the final day of DSF, on 30 January, 3kgs of gold will be shared equally among 12 winners as part of a huge prize draw. 

The latest group of happy shoppers to scoop 250g of gold are Emirati Hamdan Khaled Al Kendi, Indians Riyaz PC, Kishan Rabar and Babaldeep as well as Sharon Hoffrij from the UK.

A delighted Hamdan Khaled Al Kendi said: “I was with my sister shopping for gold. We were given raffle tickets and I thought it would be super lucky if I won. Later I received a call from my father-in-law telling me he’d heard my name on national television. Of course, I thought it was a coincidence but as soon as he hung up I got the call confirming I’d won. This is the first thing we’ve won in our family so of course we are exhilarated. I plan on putting all of it into savings.”

Sharon Hoffrij explained how she was skeptical of her win at first, but her doubt soon turned to happiness. She said: “My husband bought me a beautiful bracelet for Christmas, and it came with a bunch of raffle tickets. I filled them out and dropped them off, and the next thing I knew I got a call saying go to Global Village. I remember thinking that’s a long way to go for a scam and I did not believe it until I was sent my raffle ticket and I saw my handwriting. So, I went and ended up on national television. I felt really nervous, but I consider myself very lucky to have won this prize.”

Riyaz PC said: “I live alone, but I always knew that my mother was looking out for me from India. I’m all she has since my dad passed away three years ago. I was planning a vacation to surprise her and went to buy a gold necklace as a small gift to thank her for all her hard work raising me and looking after my house and affairs while I am working here in Dubai. I was handed a raffle ticket and I filled it in while thinking of my mother. Days passed and I received a phone call saying that I had won. I transferred the gold to money and sent it to India where, for the first time in my life, I became a property owner thanks to my loving mother.”

Kishan Rabar said he planned to use his money to pay for his son’s education so that he can one day join his father in Dubai: “Living in Dubai for 13 years, alone and with no family, can be very hard. But Dubai has always welcomed me and raised my spirits when I was homesick or missing my family. I have a beautiful wife and a 17-year-old son who I see once every six months. When I found out I’d won I thought this would all go towards my son’s education. I would like him to be the most successful boy and join his father in the beautiful land of opportunity – Dubai. I am extremely proud of this country and what it has to offer, and I’m very grateful for this lovely prize.”

Babaldeep explained that his win brought him some unexpected but very welcome joy. He said: “Even though these are very hard times we are all going through, I feel like this prize made it all worth it. I never expected to win, and I never thought it was real until the day I received the phone call. I live here by myself, but I am planning to save this money and invest in my future, after all there is no better place than the UAE to start dreaming.”

Other great chances to win this DSF include the highest value raffle in the festival’s history, the DSF Supercar Raffle, with a AED6 million W Motors Fenyr SuperSport to be given away to one lucky winner. Shoppers who buy a special scale model of the Fenyr SuperSport for AED1,500 will receive a raffle coupon. The scale model cars and raffle coupon are available to buy online at www.idealz.com and www.mydsf.ae until 30 March. The raffle winner will be presented with a customised version of a Fenyr SuperSport made by W Motors.

The INFINITI Mega Raffle is giving away the INFINITI QX60 during DSF, with daily draws taking place at Global Village. Raffle tickets priced at AED200 can be purchased at selected ENOC and EPCO petrol stations, Zoom stores and Dubai Metro stations, while shoppers who spend AED200 at The Gold Souk and Global Village plus participating shopping malls will enter a raffle to win an INFINITI QX60 car and AED200,000 each day. One person will also win AED500,000 on the final day of DSF.

The Nissan Grand Raffle will see 45 brand-new Nissan vehicles given away along with cash prizes of AED10,000 per week. Shoppers need to spend AED25 on non-fuel items at any EPCO or ENOC petrol station in Dubai to win during DSF. The Nissan Grand Raffle features two Nissan Patrols, one Nissan Pathfinder, eight Nissan X-TRAIL crossover SUVs, 10 Nissan Kicks vehicles, 12 Nissan Micra compacts and 12 Nissan Sentra sedans. Winners will be announced at daily raffle draws.

Also during DSF, the Dubai Shopping Malls Group (DSMG) is hosting a Spin & Win raffle for cash prizes of up to AED100,000 each week. With every spend of AED150, AED200 and AED300, customers will be entitled to red, blue or yellow vouchers respectively. Shoppers with red vouchers can win a total of AED250,000, whereas blue voucher holders can win a total of AED350,000 and yellow voucher holders AED400,000. Twenty-four lucky winners will be selected from a raffle draw to spin the wheel for a chance to win prizes ranging from AED2,000 to AED20,000. Shoppers at their nearest neighbourhood mall will have the chance to win cash prizes during the final Spin & Win event on 30 January.