Dubai Duty Free has officially welcomed the 2020 Chinese New Year (Year of the Rat) with an exclusive Chinese-themed celebration at Dubai International Airport Terminal 3 (Concourse B and Concourse C — Control Tower).

The celebration, which took place on Tuesday (21 January) was attended by Dubai Duty Free management and staff, including Executive Vice Chairman & CEO, Colm McLoughlin and Ramesh Cidambi, COO. Guests from the Chinese Consulate in Dubai were also invited. These included Consul General Li Xuhang and Vice Consul General Sun Xudong. They were joined by members of the Chinese media.

A five-minute performance of the Chinese song ‘Me and My Motherland China’ by the Chinese Philharmonic Youth Orchestra kicked off proceedings. The orchestra then welcomed officials, guests and passengers, before The Consul General was invited to join the draw for the Dubai Duty Free Millennium Millionaire and Finest Surprise promotions. Following the Millennium Millionaire draw, three luxury vehicle winners were unveiled in the Dubai Duty Free Finest Surprise draw.

After the draw, the Dubai Duty Free group and Chinese officials were led by Dubai Duty Free Chinese staff in traditional dress to Concourse C (Control Tower) for the ceremonial cake and ribbon cutting. A traditional tea making ceremony and calligraphy show also took place, while the Chinese Philharmonic Youth Orchestra played a Chinese New Year song.

As part of the promotional activities, Dubai Duty Free rolled out a range of Chinese New Year initiatives across all concourses and terminals at Dubai International and Al Maktoum International Airports.

CHINESE ‘WISHING TREE’

These include a Chinese ‘Wishing Tree’ which has been implemented in Concourse C (Control Tower). This gives passengers spending in excess of Dhs888 ($222) the opportunity to win duty free goods worth up to DHS8,000. Passengers are invited to hang their ‘wish list’ on the Chinese tree and six winners will be drawn during the promotional period.

To mark the Chinese New Year celebration earlier this week, the first three Wishing Tree winners were announced. These were Dr Sharmin Yaqin, Easha Soman Kadian and Yue Yin.

Dubai Duty Free has also teamed up with UPI and Alipay to roll out promotions. For every minimum spend of AED1,500 on perfumes and cosmetics with UPI, customers will receive a fixed discount of AED75. Alipay users will receive a one-time instant saving of RMB50 on every purchase of RMB1,200 in Dubai Duty Free. Both campaigns will run until 29 February.

Meanwhile, Dubai Duty Free followers on Chinese social media platforms, WeChat and Weibo can avail a discount of up to 25% on selected brands including Dior, Benefit, Goldkenn and Tag Heur throughout January.

In addition to major categories that have created a range of travel retail exclusives for Chinese New Year, some beauty brands have introduced Dubai Duty Free exclusives. These include Estée Lauder, Clinique, Lamer, L’Oréal and Urban Decay.

All Chinese New Year promotions are supported by colourful displays featuring peach blossoms, Chinese lanterns and red envelops at counters and themed retail areas across all concourses and terminals.

McLoughlin said: “China is a very important market for Dubai Duty Free and every year we try to come up with exciting promotions and activities to provide our Chinese customers with a memorable shopping experience during this festive period. We are very happy to be joined by Consul General Mr Li Xuhang and his team in today’s celebration of the Chinese New Year.”

Li Xuhang commented: “I am also very glad to be here and to join Dubai Duty Free’s Colm McLoughlin and Ramesh Cidambi. On behalf of the Chinese Consulate in Dubai, I would like to congratulate Dubai Duty Free for organising a great event and express our heartfelt appreciation for its full support of  Chinese passengers and staff.  I wish you all a happy and prosperous Chinese New Year.”

Dubai Duty Free, which celebrated its 36th year in December 2019, has almost 6,100 employees, of which 800 are Chinese.