Market Research · Dubai · UAE · Oman · Gulf
The market research company that goes and measures.
We measure brand choice on the ground, and prove it.
SMRC is an independent market research company in Dubai. We run mystery shopping, retail audits, focus groups and survey research across the UAE, Oman and the wider Gulf, with our own GPS-tracked field team behind every visit.
2017Independent since
In-houseGPS-tracked field team
6Gulf markets covered
Same weekFindings, not month-late PDFs
Coverage, from a Dubai base
One field team, measuring across the Gulf.
Every node is a market we field in-house. Every pulse is data coming back to Dubai with a GPS and timestamp attached.
Who we are
An independent research house, built for the Gulf.
SMRC (Systematic Market Research Consultancy) is an independent market research company in Dubai, serving the UAE, Oman and the wider Gulf. It was founded in 2017 by researchers from GfK and MEMRB, two of the largest names in syndicated retail measurement.
Where many agencies rent freelance panels, SMRC chose from day one to build its own field force: full-time, trained, and GPS-tracked, so every store visit, interview and audit carries a location and timestamp you can trace. That is the difference between data you hope is right and data you can prove.
The result is a research partner that handles the full picture, from consumer surveys and focus groups to mystery shopping, retail audits and competitor intelligence, under one accountable roof.
What we do
Every method you need to understand your market.
One partner across qualitative and quantitative research, fieldwork and measurement. Explore any service below.
Mystery Shopping
Trained evaluators measure the real customer experience, with audio, photo and GPS evidence on every visit.
Explore →Retail & Merchandising Audit
Distribution, availability, pricing, share of shelf and planogram compliance, verified with image recognition.
Explore →Retail Universe Census
A street-level count of the outlets that make up a market, the foundation for any distribution strategy.
Explore →Focus Groups
Moderated qualitative sessions that surface the why behind the numbers, in-person and online.
Explore →Customer Experience
Programmes that connect what customers feel to the branches, journeys and staff that shape it.
Explore →Competitor Intelligence
Structured tracking of rival pricing, promotions and presence, on the same scorecard as your own.
Explore →Quantitative Research
Face-to-face, telephone and online surveys at scale, from concept tests to national tracking.
Explore →Automotive Price Benchmarking
Genuine and aftermarket parts, labour and job pricing across independent, chain and OEM channels.
Explore →AI Voice-Agent Surveys
RingUs.AI runs natural spoken interviews at scale, in multiple languages, under UAE data law.
Explore →Why SMRC
Research you can act on, because you can trust how it was collected.
In a market where a lot of "data" is assembled from freelance panels and syndicated feeds, SMRC is built differently. Four things set the work apart.
01
Our own field force
A full-time, trained, GPS-tracked and time-stamped team. Every visit has an audit trail, so results hold up when a decision depends on them.
02
Built by category veterans
Founded in 2017 by senior researchers from GfK and MEMRB. The methods behind global retail measurement, applied locally.
03
Speed that matters
Findings in the same week, with red-flag alerts on critical failures as they happen, not a report a month after the shelf changed.
04
Data you own, compliantly
Collected, stored and owned by SMRC on your behalf, under the UAE Personal Data Protection Law. Never resold from a shared feed.
Your shelf data should not arrive three weeks after the shelf changed. We photograph the bay, our system reads it, and you see it the same week.
The SMRC differenceWhat you get
Clear inputs, decision-ready outputs.
| What we measure | What you learn |
|---|---|
| On-shelf availability & distribution | Where you are winning or losing space, store by store |
| Price & promotion compliance | Whether your pricing holds in the real world, not just on paper |
| Service & experience standards | How staff actually perform against the standard you set |
| Brand & category perception | What customers think, and why they choose one brand over another |
| Competitor activity | Rival pricing, presence and promotions on the same scorecard |
How a study runs
From your question to evidence you can act on.
Scope
We start with the decision you need to make, then shape the markets, sample, method and timing around it.
Field
Our own GPS-tracked team collects the data, with photo, audio and timestamp evidence on every visit.
Quality
Human quality control checks the edge cases before anything reaches your dashboard.
Report
Live dashboards with drill-down to store or branch level, plus same-week findings and red-flag alerts.
Sectors we serve
Deep experience where service and shelf decide the winner.
The same rigour, tuned to the standards and journeys of each industry.
Banking & Financial ServicesRetail & FMCGHotels & HospitalityRestaurants & F&BAutomotiveAirlines & AirportsHealthcarePublic Sector & Government
How we collect data
On the ground, on the phone, and online.
Most studies blend methods. We run all of them in-house, so quality and timing stay in our hands rather than a subcontractor's.
Face to face
Field & CAPI
In-store, in-home and street interviewing by our own trained team, tablet-captured with GPS and timestamp.
Voice
Telephone & AI calling
Human CATI and RingUs.AI voice-agent interviews that hold a real conversation, in the respondent's language.
Digital
Online & mobile
Online surveys and app-based capture for reach and speed, with quality controls built in.
Observed
Mystery shopping & audits
Scenario-based evaluation and shelf audits with photo, audio and image-recognition evidence.
Qualitative
Groups & depth interviews
Moderated focus groups and in-depth interviews, in a facility or online, for the reasons behind behaviour.
Dashboards
Live reporting
Drill down from national to store or branch level, or take a clean feed into your own BI stack.
Where we work
A Dubai base, a Gulf-wide reach.
SMRC is headquartered in Al Qusais, Dubai, and fields studies across all seven emirates and into the wider Gulf. One team, one standard, whether the sample is in Dubai, Muscat or Riyadh.
United Arab EmiratesOmanSaudi ArabiaQatarBahrainKuwait
All 7
emirates fielded from one Dubai base
Head office · Al Qusais, Dubai
Field team · in-house, GPS-tracked
Coverage · UAE, Oman & the GCC
Questions buyers ask
Market research in the UAE, answered.
What does a market research company in Dubai actually do?
It helps a business make decisions with evidence rather than assumption: measuring what customers think and do, how a brand performs on the shelf and in service, and how a market is structured. SMRC covers the full range, from surveys and focus groups to mystery shopping, retail audits and competitor tracking, across the UAE and the Gulf.
Do you have your own field team, or do you subcontract?
Our fieldwork is delivered by an entirely in-house, full-time, GPS-tracked and time-stamped team. We do not rely on public freelancer panels, which is what lets us guarantee an audit trail of evidence for every visit and keep quality and timing in our own hands.
Which markets do you cover?
SMRC is based in Dubai and fields studies across all seven emirates of the UAE, plus Oman and the wider Gulf, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait.
How quickly do we get results?
Findings arrive in the same week, with red-flag alerts on critical failures as they are found. You work in live dashboards with drill-down to store or branch level, rather than waiting weeks for a static report.
Is the research compliant with UAE data law?
Yes. Studies run under the UAE Personal Data Protection Law. Consent is recorded, respondents can decline or stop at any point, and the data is collected, stored and owned by SMRC on your behalf, not resold from a syndicated feed.
Can you handle both qualitative and quantitative research?
Yes. SMRC runs quantitative survey research at scale, face-to-face, by phone and online, alongside qualitative focus groups and in-depth interviews, and blends the two where a study needs both the numbers and the reasons behind them.
Guides
Go deeper on the decisions.
Practical guides for teams scoping a research programme.
Retail Audit vs Mystery Shopping →
Which method answers which question, compared side by side, so you scope the right one.
Mystery Shopping Cost in the UAE →
What actually drives the price, the pricing models, and how to brief for an accurate quote.
Have a decision to make? Let's go and measure it.
Tell us what you need to know. We will scope the study, the sample and the timing, and put a clear proposal in front of you.
Book a consultation →