What Projex does

Projex is a UAE-headquartered design and build firm founded in 1994 that designs, fabricates, and installs exhibitions, event environments, and immersive physical spaces for government entities, cultural institutions, and large enterprises across the GCC. The company operates across three integrated service lines: custom exhibition stands and museum installations, event experiences including hospitality pavilions and summit environments, and permanent or semi-permanent environmental design such as visitor centers and themed environments. Execution is anchored by an in-house creative studio in Dubai Design District and a 90,000 square foot production facility in Dubai Investment Park 2 that consolidates storage, graphics production, and fabrication under direct control, enabling end-to-end delivery from concept to completion.

The business model is project-based professional services revenue: each engagement is a custom-built deliverable priced on scope and complexity rather than a standardized product, with customers engaging Projex directly through long-term relationships rather than via intermediaries. Customer segments are split between government and public sector clients (Dubai Future Foundation, Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi, Dubai Municipality, Abu Dhabi Police) and enterprise corporations (Mubadala, ENOC, dnata, Meydan, Rotana, HUB71, EWEC), with marquee project references including the Museum of the Future installation, Louvre Abu Dhabi exhibits, Emirati Expressions, and stands at ADIPEC, Dubai Airshow, ATM, GITEX, and the World Future Energy Summit. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and there is no software, API, or AI/ML product surface.

Operations span five sites: a Dubai creative studio, a UAE production facility in Dubai Investment Park 2, an Abu Dhabi office, a Riyadh corporate office, and a Riyadh warehouse facility, giving the company physical presence across the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Projex is privately held and founder-owned, with Philip Shuker (Managing Director since 2007), Martin Clough (Commercial Director since 2010), and Paul Hawkins (Finance Director since 2018) constituting the senior leadership team. Marketing is led by a project portfolio, Instagram and LinkedIn presence, and visibility through the major trade shows where the firm both exhibits and delivers client stands.

Name

Projex

Legal name

Projex

Website

https://projexuae.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Projex is a UAE-headquartered design and build firm, founded in 1994, that designs exhibitions, event environments, and immersive spaces for government entities, cultural institutions, and large enterprises across the GCC.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Experiential Design and Build Services

NAICS

Indoor and Outdoor Display Advertising (541850), Interior Design Services (541410)

akta.pro primary industry

Event Fabrication & Scenic/Set Build (Custom Builds, Installations) (BPAFAGAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Pavilion & Country/Group Exhibit Build-Outs (THAHAHAD), Booth Maintenance, Refurbishment & Reuse Programs (THAHAHAM), Event Theming, Mood Boards & Concept Design (HSACAOAH)

Keywords

• Exhibition design
• Event experiences
• Environmental design
• Experiential marketing
• Custom fabrication

Headquarters

HQ city

Dubai

HQ country

United Arab Emirates

HQ region

Middle East

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Design and Build Services: Projex generates revenue through designing and building custom exhibition stands, event environments, and immersive experiences for corporate and government clients. Projects are custom-designed and built for each client engagement, suggesting a project-based professional services model.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Projex designs, fabricates, and installs custom exhibition stands, event environments, and immersive themed spaces for government entities, museums, and major corporations across the UAE and GCC. All work is delivered through an in-house creative studio in Dubai Design District and a 90,000 square foot production facility in Dubai Investment Park 2, enabling full control from concept to on-site completion. Projects are custom-designed per client engagement and span trade show stands, museum exhibitions, cultural center environments, corporate event installations, and permanent themed spaces.

Product overview

Projex is a design and build experiential company operating in the UAE and GCC region for over 30 years. The company operates as a unified design and build service rather than a modular software platform. Their core offerings consist of three integrated service areas: Exhibition Design and Build Services (custom exhibition stands and displays for trade shows, museums, and cultural institutions), Event Experiences (event installations, hospitality pavilions, and temporary experiential spaces), and Environmental Design (permanent and semi-permanent themed environments including cultural centers and visitor centers). All services are delivered through their in-house design studio located in Dubai Design District and their 90,000 square feet production facility in Dubai Investment Park 2, enabling complete control from concept to completion.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Exhibition Design and Build Services Custom exhibition design, fabrication, and installation services for trade shows, museums, and cultural institutions. Projex creates immersive environments and experiences for clients including museums, government entities, and corporations across the UAE and GCC.
• Event Experiences Design and build of event installations, hospitality pavilions, and temporary experiential spaces for corporate events, summits, and conferences across the UAE and Middle East region.
• Environmental Design Creation of permanent and semi-permanent environmental spaces including cultural centers, museums, visitor centers, and themed environments that engage and immerse audiences.

Named customers12 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• GES (Global Experience Specialists): One of the largest global exhibition services and custom exhibit firms, serving trade shows and brand activations worldwide — a scaled incumbent competing on similar trade-show and event engagements.
• Jack Morton Worldwide: Global brand experience agency within IPG that designs and builds experiential environments, pavilions, and immersive installations for major brands — broader and communications-led but overlaps on physical environment design.
• The Freeman Company: Large global experiential and event marketing firm offering custom exhibits, environments, and event production; significantly larger than Projex but competing for the same Gulf enterprise and government event contracts.
• Sparks: Global experiential marketing agency producing brand experiences, exhibits, and event environments for enterprise clients — adjacent on physical fabrication with a more digitally-led creative base.
• George P. Johnson Experience Marketing: Global experiential marketing agency delivering brand experiences, event environments, and pavilions for large enterprise clients — broader strategic/experiential offering that overlaps on physical build projects.

Emerging players

• MKG: Independent experiential marketing agency focused on brand experiences, events, and immersive activations for enterprise clients — partial overlap on experiential design and event production.
• BRC Imagination Arts: Specialist design and build firm for brand attractions, museum exhibitions, and immersive cultural environments — directly comparable on Projex's Environmental Design line (Louvre, museum work).

Direct peers

• Pico International: Hong Kong-headquartered global brand activation and exhibition firm with a major Middle East presence offering custom exhibition design, fabrication, and event environments — the closest direct competitor in both capability and Gulf footprint.
• Derse: US-based exhibit and experiential marketing firm specializing in custom design-build of trade show exhibits, brand environments, and events — closely comparable services and mid-market size profile.
• Czarnowski: US-headquartered custom exhibit and experiential design/build firm with a 75+ year track record of museum, trade show, and event installations — directly comparable full-service design-to-fabrication model with similar client profile of cultural institutions and enterprise.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/projex-event-services
• Instagraminstagram.com/projexuae
• Xx.com/projexdubai

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Projex