Frequently asked questions

A market entry consultant helps a company decide whether and how to enter the UAE, then runs the work: market research, route to market, compliance and permits, logistics, company set-up and finance. At Arcus, trade, marketing and human capital advisory sit under one roof, and each service is delivered by an expert who has done it themselves, not just advised on it.

Yes. You can engage us for a single stage of the trade journey, a single service, or any combination of trade, marketing and human capital advisory — scoped to exactly what you need.

Yes. Our founder has 30+ years in foreign trade across the Gulf, Turkey and Europe and owns and runs a trading company in Turkey. We work with Turkish manufacturers and brands entering the UAE and the Gulf, in English and Turkish.

It depends on who buys from you. A mainland licence lets you trade directly with customers anywhere in the UAE and opens the tender market. A company in one of the UAE's economic zones can suit re-export and regional trade, but selling into the local market usually goes through a distributor or local partner. We advise on the structure based on your customers, not on set-up cost alone.

Both work; they trade speed for control. A distributor or agent is the fastest entry with the least control. Your own entity gives full control of brand, price and data and opens the tender market. Many companies start with a distributor and move to their own entity as they grow — we search, screen and negotiate with distributors, and plan the switch when you outgrow them.

Requirements depend on the product. Typically: an import licence and customs code registration for the importing entity, product registration with the relevant authority, conformity certificates and lab testing where required, Arabic-language labelling and packaging requirements, halal or other certifications where relevant, and shipping documents in the correct form. We map them product by product before the first shipment, not after.

Check which channels and customers they actually reach, how they handle product registration, stock and payment terms, and what the contract says about exclusivity, targets and exit. Choosing a distributor without a way to check them is one of the most common mistakes we see. We search, screen and negotiate on your behalf, and make sure you can exit when you outgrow them.

Yes. The UAE is the re-export hub for the Gulf, East Africa and South Asia — one entry point, many markets. For companies that want Dubai as a regional base, we structure the entity, the logistics and the finance for re-export, and open the tender and key-account markets.

Add every cost between the factory gate and the shelf — freight, duty, VAT, handling, storage and delivery, per unit — then the margin structure through the chain. Landed cost calculated without duties, VAT, storage and last-mile is a common reason first shipments fail. Every route we plan comes with a landed-cost sheet, so the shelf price is known before the order is placed.

Yes. We cover bookkeeping, VAT registration and returns, corporate tax registration and filings, management reporting your head office can read, audit coordination, and corporate bank account opening with its compliance file. After set-up, we can stay on as your outsourced finance and compliance function.

The one configured around your sales and service process, not a generic rollout. We compare platforms against how you actually sell, then configure the CRM, build the AI agents and wire the customer lifecycle ourselves, alongside your team — implementation included, not just the blueprint.

A full marketing life-cycle audit reviews acquisition through retention, channel by channel, scored and ranked into a fix list you can act on. A MarTech stack audit looks at the tools: what's in place, what's missing, and where the data stops flowing between them.

Yes. Talent acquisition and executive search covers sourcing, screening and closing roles across the Gulf, from first hire to leadership. It can be a single search or part of a wider human capital plan for the company you're setting up with our trade advisory.