The world’s Top 10 international duty free and travel retail operators achieved total sales of $28.65bn in 2015, a +7.6% increase on 2014 as they collectively outperformed 2014 and outpaced the global industry, where sales fell back by -2.7% to $62bn.

 

All Top 10 Operators as ranked here accounted for 46.2% of the entire $62.00bn total sales generated by the DF&TR industry in 2015.

 

The ranking – which is noted for its accuracy over a period of several years – saw Dufry come in at number one with sales of $6.20bn (+47.6%), followed by Lotte Duty Free with $4.20bn (+4.5%) and Lagardère Travel Retail in third place, with $3.98bn (+10.6%).

 

RANKINGS THROUGH TO TEN

The subsequent rankings from fourth to tenth were as follows: DFS Group $3.50bn (-14.6%); Heinemann $3.10bn (+19.2%); Shilla Duty Free $2.20bn (+4.8%); King Power International Group/new entry $2.00bn; Duty Free Americas $1.30bn (+4.0%); China Duty Free Group $1.20bn; and Aer Rianta International $0.97bn (+12.8%).

 

 

These are the top line findings in the exclusive TRBusiness Top 10 Operators Report 2016 where sales were based on average exchange rates from 2015 for the first time since the report has been published every year since 1998.

 

NEW METHODOLOGY

This new methodology serves to help smooth out currency fluctuations and provide what we believe is a better reflection of each company’s ‘real’ performance. Even so, this does not negate all the real impacts that fluctuating currencies had on some retailers in this year’s report.

 

Various operators endured sustained negative currency impacts on corporate earnings. For example, companies reporting in euros saw the dollar continue its 2014 rally against the Eurozone currency into this year.

 

In 2015, volatility was not merely isolated to the euro; after an early fight-back devaluation of the Russian rouble continued, while the Brazilian real saw a steady weakening in 2015 – with some far-reaching consequences, especially for Dufry.

 

The world’s biggest DF&TR operator said it faced ‘a tough economic environment impacted by considerable FX volatilities’ last year. In an exclusive interview with TRBusiness, the company’s CEO, Julián Díaz, said the volatility last year was the ‘strongest’ he had seen in his career.

 

 

 

ALL TOP 10 RETAILERS FACE CHALLENGES

Meanwhile, the world’s biggest duty free market in South Korea certainly felt the pain, although this was not directly related to currencies but more to the MERS virus, which kept high spending Chinese tourists at home for several months in 2015.

 

Fortunately, this lasted just a few months, allowing Lotte Duty Free and Shilla to go on to post impressive total sales of $4.2bn and $2.2bn respectively.

 

Third-place Lagardère Travel Retail also made some good progress in 2015, despite the tragic November 2015 Paris attacks which dented sales.

 

Both LTR’s Chairman and CEO Dag Rasmussen; Ambroise Fondeur the CEO of Aelia and Frédéric Chevalier, LTR’s Chief Business Officer were all seemingly reasonably confident about the future in the face of very real threats to the broader DF&TR market.

 

This report was written by Charlotte Turner, Kevin Rozario and Doug Newhouse, with all of these retailers mentioned so far interviewed on a one-to-one basis at the highest management levels for this 94-page analysis – as were nearly all of the remaining seven.

 

 

UNRIVALLED DETAIL

All of the individual retailer reports in this analysis also cover detailed commentary on each and every company in greater performance detail than any other single report produced anywhere on the planet.

 

As such, this report can be accessed on a very limited ‘first-come, first serve’ basis within the publications area of the Palais de Festivals at the Cannes TFWA World Exhibition between 2-7 October.

 

Thereafter, it can only be accessed only as a subscriber to TRBusiness magazine, or on a one-off purchase basis.

 

For more information contact Janice Hook at: Tel: 44 (0) 208330 9444, or by email at: [email protected]