Around 30 underprivileged children from the Dubai branch of the Emirates Red Crescent (ERC) were invited on a shopping spree at Al Ghurair Centre in Deira, Dubai, to mark extended Eid Al Adha celebrations.

The initiative that is part of Al Ghurair Centre's ongoing CSR initiatives, saw the kids in the age group 10-15 years accompanied by volunteers of Emirates Red Crescent, shop at the centre's fashion and lifestyle store Red Tag.

The shop staff of around 20 sales executives were present to welcome the children, accompanied by ERC volunteers, who were given a free hand to shop for whatever they wanted within a budget of Dh200.

During their visit, Zeinab Badar, head of marketing at Al Ghurair Properties and Centre, said: "We believe it is important to seed happiness in the lives of people, and through such initiatives we aim to stand true to this belief. It gives us immense pleasure to be part of these children's happiness. Seeing the gleam of joy on their faces when they were asked to buy clothes of their choice made our Eid happier."

Faisal Salahuddin, a sales executive at Red Tag, said: "Since our manager knew that children will be coming in big numbers, she called even the off duty staff to help them; the morning and afternoon staff were also called together to be with the kids that day.

"It felt so lively as we saw kids of different nationalities come together, enjoy, play and shop with complete sense of freedom. Most of the kids were attracted to the footwear and fashionable clothes section. It was quite exciting for us to see the children so engrossed in shopping that they spent almost two hours in our store. Each child bought about four pieces each," he added.

The initiative was part of Al Ghurair Centre's Omniyati (make a wish) campaign wherein one of the winners had requested to take some underprivileged on a shopping spree.

The kids were ecstatic, as some were seen hunting through racks of clothes. For some others, it was like a dream come true as they were visiting the mall for the first time.

A six-year-old boy, while enjoying his shopping spree, said: "I have always worn clothes donated by someone. But, today, I am so excited to buy new clothes of my choice. Thank you to all for making this Eid a special one."

A 12-year old girl said: "I bought a pink floral dress, just like the princess on TV shows. Thank you so much for helping me buy this beautiful dress this Eid." The children were taken on a short tour of the mall followed by some refreshments at the food court.

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