How to sell across the GCC from one store

Pick your first country

Don't open all six countries on the same day. Start with the one where you already have demand. Look at where your Instagram followers live, and where the WhatsApp messages asking about delivery come from.

One new country teaches you the real costs: delivery, returns, payment fees and time spent on customer messages. Once those numbers work, adding the next country is much easier.

GCC currencies at a glance

Each GCC country has its own currency. Shoppers trust a price in their own currency more than a converted guess, so show it when you can.

1. Kuwait: Kuwaiti dinar (KWD), three decimal places.
2. Saudi Arabia: Saudi riyal (SAR), two decimal places.
3. United Arab Emirates: UAE dirham (AED), two decimal places.
4. Qatar: Qatari riyal (QAR), two decimal places.
5. Bahrain: Bahraini dinar (BHD), three decimal places.
6. Oman: Omani rial (OMR), three decimal places.

Set prices for each market

On Mawg3, the Markets add-on lets you run one store across several countries. A market is a group of countries that share settings. Each market can have its own currency, tax, delivery and payment gateway. Anything you don't change is inherited from the store default.

When you create a market, you pick its countries and currency. Your products keep their prices in your store currency, and Mawg3 converts them with an exchange rate managed automatically in the background.

You do not need to enter or maintain an exchange rate. Visitors are matched to their market by country, and you can show a country and language selector in your site's footer or navigation.

Shipping zones: where you deliver and what it costs

Shipping zones decide which countries can check out and what delivery costs there. You build them on the Delivery page, under Shipping zones.

Price delivery to cover your real cost. Cross-border delivery usually costs more than local delivery, and customers accept that when the fee is clear before they pay. A Free over amount works well here too. Set it high enough that the order value pays for the trip.

1. Open Delivery and select Add zone.
2. Name the zone, for example GCC, and choose its countries.
3. Select Add shipping option and choose Flat rate.
4. Enter the price, and an amount for free delivery if you want one.
5. Add a delivery time that customers see at checkout, such as 3 to 5 business days.
6. If you use Markets, make sure each country in the zone also belongs to a market, or shoppers there can't check out.

Delivery partners, customs and returns

Armada, Jaak and DoDelivery connect to Mawg3, so you can send a delivery request straight from an order. Check each partner's coverage on its own site before you promise delivery to a new country. If you ship with another courier, add the tracking number to the order so the customer can follow it.

Ask your courier three questions before your first cross-border order: what paperwork each country needs, who pays any duties or taxes on arrival, and which items they can't carry. Then decide how returns will work. A return from another country can cost more than the item, so say in your policy who pays for it.

Taxes: VAT differs by country

Four GCC countries charge VAT at a standard rate. Saudi Arabia charges 15%, run by the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA). The UAE charges 5%, run by the Federal Tax Authority. Bahrain charges 10%, run by the National Bureau for Revenue. Oman charges 5%, run by its Tax Authority.

For Kuwait and Qatar, check the Ministry of Finance in Kuwait and the General Tax Authority in Qatar for the current position before you price.

Whether you must register for VAT in another country depends on that country's rules, your sales and where your business is based. This guide is not tax advice. Check the official authority, or ask a tax adviser who works in that country. Once you know what applies, you can set the tax for each market in Markets, under Taxes and duties.

Payments for shoppers outside Kuwait

KNET connects Kuwait's local banks, so shoppers in other GCC countries will usually pay by card or Apple Pay. Ask your payment gateway which countries, cards and currencies it accepts before you open a market.

In Markets, you can choose a different payment gateway for each market. That helps when one gateway is strong in Kuwait and another suits shoppers elsewhere. If you offer Tabby, check on its site which countries it serves.

Speak your customers' language

Across the Gulf, many shoppers read English but search and buy in Arabic. A Mawg3 store can run in Arabic, English or both. Write your main text in one language, then add the other on the Translations page. Auto-translate All gives you a fast first draft.

Read the Arabic yourself before you publish. Product names, sizes and delivery terms need words your customers actually use. A wrong word in a size chart costs more in returns than an hour of checking.

Checklist to sell across the GCC

Work through this list for each new country. Then place a test order as if you were a customer there.

1. Confirm the courier, its price and its delivery time to that country.
2. Check the VAT rules with the official tax authority.
3. Create the market and choose its currency.
4. Add the country to a shipping zone with at least one shipping option.
5. Confirm your payment gateway accepts shoppers from that country.
6. Check your Arabic and English text, including the returns policy.
7. Place a test order and check the total, the delivery fee and the confirmation email.