The Dufry Group has unveiled more details relating to its new Aéroport Nice Cote d’Azur concession agreement to operate nine new duty free fashion and luxury shops.

 

 

The world’s biggest DF&TR operator confirmed that the seven-year retail license begins this year and including the concession agreement for two gourmet shops already awarded in March 2015, Dufry’s total new additional retail footprint will comprise more than 1,100sq m – effectively increasing the retailer’s overall retail space at Nice by 65%.

 

 

The company said: “Based on the agreement awarded in a tender, Dufry will operate 968sq m of additional retail space, which includes shop brands like two Hermès stores, Max Mara, Emporio Armani, Baccarat, Michael Kors, Ferragamo and a multi-brand Fashion store ‘Attitude’. The new retail space will allow Dufry to offer its clients a unique shopping experience in the high-end segment.

 

 

“The commercial area will be located at the departure areas of both Terminal 1 and Terminal 2, with three shops covering 234sq m in T1 and six shops of 734sq m in T2.”

 

 

[Dufry received notice that it had been awarded the concession to operate two gourmet stores in March 2015: One 77sq m outlet on an eight-year contract in Terminal 1 and another 83sq m store on a six-year contract in Terminal 2-Ed].

 

 

 

 

The retailer is planning to open phase one in the last quarter of this year in T1 with the gourmet and Baccarat stores and these will be followed in April 2016 by the Hermès and Max Mara shops. All other outlets will commence operations in the first quarter of 2017.

 

 

Commenting on this new initiative, Julián Díaz, CEO of Dufry Group said: “We are very pleased about this additional agreement with Aéroport Nice Cote d’Azur. Dufry has been operating eight shops at Nice Côte D’Azur Airport in Terminal 2 ever since 2002 and the new commercial presence in Terminal 1 is very significant, as this Terminal handles 38% of total airport traffic and constitutes for Dufry a potential of 2.2 million additional customers.

 

 

“It strengthens Dufry’s position in the Mediterranean and will allow us to further develop the business in one of the top tourist destinations of the world.”

 

 

Dominique Thillaud, Chairman of the Management Board of Aéroports de la Côte d’Azur stated: “This new step in the renovation of our commercial offer further strengthens our project, developing the ‘sense of place’ of the Cote d’Azur, inseparable from our airport, and setting up a diversified offering that will ensure the satisfaction of all our categories of customers”.

 

 

Filip Soete, Chief Commercial Officer, explained: “We chose brands corresponding to the four pillars we wanted for our offer: the inescapable heavyweights, the trend-setters of today and tomorrow’s fashions and iconic products evoking the ‘French Riviera’ and also just ‘France’. We also chose to work with Dufry, a proven and recognised travel retail partner.”

 

As reported previously, Nice is the third busiest airport in France, handling 11.7m passengers in 2014.

 

[TRBusiness originally reported the concession wins by Dufry and LSTR on May 13 and this report can be found by clicking here: http://www.trbusiness.com/regional-news/europe/dufry-and-lstr-gain-fashion-as-nice-continues-its-radical-rethink-2/76370]