Sydney Airport is adding an incremental 500sq m of extra space at terminal one in the first half of next year, on top of the 500sq m it has created at terminal two – with a raft of new retailers entering the airport.

 

Among the newcomers to T1 are Cerrone, Crumpler, Kailis, La Perla, Napoleon Perdis, National Geographic, Ooosh Oregano, Samsonite, Toscow, and Victorinox. Meanwhile, well known wine house Penfolds, owned by Treasury Wine Estates, will be opening its first ever standalone store at the hub according to Sydney Airport Holdings.

 

TOBACCO HITS HARD

The airport operator says that the duty free changes it has instigated at the airport are now nearing completion with “initial results positive”. However, in the first half of 2013 retail revenue growth was sluggish at +0.9% to reach A$116.4m ($104.4m).

 

This was largely due to a A$750,000 ($672,000) per month amendment to its duty free tobacco contract with Nuance, following the imposition of strict tobacco allowances in Australia. Sydney Airport Holdings says that on a normalised basis its retail growth would have been +5.3%.

 

TRAFFIC BUOYANT

Traffic in HY1 rose by +3.0% with international up +3.6% to reach a record 18.2m total. Traffic growth over the previous five-year period has been +3.5% (CAGR). Among the drivers of international growth were rising numbers of inbound Asians, especially Chinese nationals and the full-year effects of low-cost carriers Scoot and AirAsia X.

 

The airport also expects a big boost from Indian nationals now that India will be serviced directly for the first time in 22 years by Air India.

 

On its duty free revenue position overall Sydney Airport maintains that “productivity of space remains high” and that “significant demand for airport retail space continues”.