Generation Research claims that Dubai Duty Free takes no 1 spot

By Charlotte Turner |

Generation Research claims that Dubai Duty Free has regained its position as the largest single airport retail operation in the world, based on sales figures of US$1.8bn in 2013.

 

This is the fourth time (2008, 2009, 2010 and 2013), that Generation Research has placed the airport operator in first place, this time ahead of Seoul Incheon, Singapore Changi and London Heathrow airport.

 

In 2013, global duty free and travel retail sales reached a record US$60bn, representing a 7.5% increase over the previous year. Airport duty free sales account for US$34.67bn of that business, with the remainder including ferries, border shops and airlines.

 

More recently, when asked if DDF thought it was on target to take that number one spot in 2014, Colm McLoughlin, Executive Vice Chairman of Dubai Duty Free told TRBusiness: “We sure are. And you know it’s never been foremost in our minds, but sometimes we seem to be number one and sometimes Incheon seems to be number one.

 

 

NUMBER ONE?

“One study says one thing and one study says another, but we’ll do the $1.9bn and that should be good enough.

 

“Traffic is good here. You are aware we had 66m passengers last year and we’re on target for 72m this year and apparently that will also pass Heathrow as the largest international traffic in the world.”

 

According to GR, based on 2013 figures, Dubai Duty Free, took the crown. As a single operator, GR says DDF accounts for 5.19% of global airport duty free business and almost 3% of the wider duty free and travel retail global business.

 

MID EAST AIRPORT SALES UP TO $3.9BN

The research analyst says that, in the Middle East, the value of airport-based duty free sales reached US$3.9bn, representing a 10% increase over the previous year.

 

Dubai Duty Free accounts for 45.73% of airport sales in the region. Meanwhile in the world’s top 25 countries for duty free and travel retail shopping, the UAE ranked 7th , taking 4.1% of market share.

 

Colm McLoughlin, Executive Vice Chairman of Dubai Duty Free said: “We are obviously delighted to regain the No. 1 spot for the fourth time and to note that our business, along with the duty free business across the Middle East, continues to grow significantly.

 

“This is a dynamic part of the world in terms of airport retail and the continued investment in airport infrastructure reflects that. At Dubai Duty Free, our expansion plans continue in line with the development at Dubai International Airport (DIA), where our retail operation will reach 33,000 square metres with the opening of Concourse D next year.

 

MASSIVE PLANS AT DWC

“Meanwhile at Al Maktoum International (AMI), our operation of 2,500 square metres will grow in line with the massive development plans of Dubai World Central.”

 

Dubai Duty Free continues to witness positive sales growth in 2014 and is looking to end the year with sales of US$1.9bn.

 

In an interview with TRBusiness, Dubai Duty Free says it is on target to hit $1.9bn in sales for the first time in 2014 after it performed much better than expected throughout the recent disruptive 80-day runway refurbishment period.

 

DDF’s Executive Vice Chairman, Colm McLoughlin, told TRBusiness that despite having only one runway for the entire period, the retailer is still up by 7%, in the first eight months to the end of August, by an impressive Dhms.255m ($69.4m).

 

 

UP 7% ON LAST YEAR

“We were expecting to drop Dhms.380m ($103.4m), so we actually only dropped Dhms.220m ($59.8m),” he said. McLoughlin continued: “So we’re 7% up on last year, which means we’re just a tiny bit up on our budget. In Dirham talk that is over Dhms.7bn for the year, and that will be $1.9bn, and it looks like we’re going to do that.”

 

He added that Dubai International Airport is also still expecting to hit 72m passengers this year compared to last year’s 66m, which will also make it the largest international airport in the world.

 

By 2018, DDF’s duty free sales are also forecast to exceed $3bn and passenger traffic is expected to pass 95m by 2020. Some of the sales volumes that Dubai is already achieving are literally astonishing.

 

“In the next five years we expect 90m passengers and the suggestion in duty free is that we could easily double the volume sales of liquor from the 7m bottles, which we expect this year, to 14m, and they’re expecting that we would sell 7m cartons of cigarettes – and the note here says as well as another 6m bottles of perfume.

 

[An in-depth interview with Colm McLoughlin appears as a special bonus feature in the World’s Top 10 Operators Report 2014 (page 93) which accompanies the October issue. Dubai Duty Free will also be strongly featured in the November issue of TRBusiness-Ed].

Asia & Pacific

Asia Pacific Travel Retail Awards: The Winners

TRBusiness and m1nd-set can today (13 March) reveal the winners of the 2024 Travel Retail...

The Americas

Details emerge of JFK T1 commercial programme and duty free tender

Qualified travel retail operators are being invited to participate in a request for proposals...

International

JCDecaux research offers major passenger insights

New research insights from Ipsos UK compiled for JCDecaux provide a revised outlook of air...

image description

In the Magazine

TRBusiness Magazine is free to access. Read the latest issue now.

E-mail this link to a friend