Longfor International Center

72 offices and not a single apartment: Longfor bets on Dragon Mart's SMEs

International City is mostly made up of residential buildings. Longfor International Center goes against the grain with a scheme that is 100% commercial: 72 offices spread across six floors, sitting above a ground floor and two podium levels, with a rooftop terrace on top. The district was launched in 2002 in the Al Warsan area and covers roughly 800 hectares. It runs on the rhythm of Dragon Mart, regional trade and a dense resident population. Longfor Group, the developer, knows this market well, since its shareholders have been selling lighting fixtures there since 2008. The brochure points to completion in the third quarter of 2027, while the project's official record lists 31 December 2027.

Twelve offices per floor, five unit types

The math is straightforward: 72 units across six floors works out to twelve offices per floor plate. They are split into five types, labelled A through E. The smallest (types A and E) measure around 716 to 755 sq ft internally. Type B units run around 800 sq ft, type C reaches 1,131 sq ft, and the two type D units, likely positioned at the corners, go up to 1,287 sq ft. Including the balcony, total floor area on levels 2 through 6 ranges from 899 to 1,476 sq ft. These sizes suit a company of five to fifteen people, not a regional headquarters.

On the first floor, the balcony rivals the office itself

The first floor stands apart from the rest. On levels 2 through 6, balconies are capped at 162 to 188 sq ft. On level 1, they jump to between 575 and 816 sq ft, likely because they sit on the podium roof. A type A unit there offers 717 sq ft indoors and 691 sq ft outdoors, nearly as much space outside as in. The largest type D unit totals 2,103 sq ft, compared with 1,476 sq ft for the same layout on the upper floors. Buyers should keep one nuance in mind though: a tenant pays primarily for indoor space, and the rental value of a large office terrace remains hard to pin down.

A Dragon Mart lighting trader turns developer

Longfor Group has nothing to do with the Chinese giant Longfor Properties. Its roots trace back to STAR LANG Lighting, a brand described as one of the leading lighting traders at Dragon Mart. It runs a 3,000 sqm showroom along with several retail outlets across Dubai. The group also claims subsidiaries in Abu Dhabi, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Kuwait. The brochure, however, does not cite any previously delivered building. Buyers are essentially purchasing the commercial roots of a local player, not a verifiable construction track record.

Traders and small businesses as the target market

The project is aimed first and foremost at the ecosystem surrounding Dragon Mart: importers, trading companies, service providers and SMEs looking for freehold office space near their warehouses and showrooms. For a trader, buying a freehold unit in the building they occupy makes real sense, since it eliminates rent payments. For a landlord, demand rests on the steady flow of small businesses in the district. DXB airport and the E44 highway, shown running past the building on the location map, round out the logistics case.

Three parking levels and a coworking area

Covered parking occupies the ground floor and the two podium levels (G, P1 and P2), a notable feature in International City, where parking remains a headache at peak times. The building also includes a coworking area, a social space and lounge corners, useful for occupants of the smaller units who need to meet a client or hold a meeting without booking an external room. Renderings show an entrance lobby with a lit feature wall, a nod to the developer's original trade, and a lift lobby sized for office use. The technical specification (air conditioning, number of elevators, internet bandwidth) is not detailed and should be requested before making any reservation.