Dubai Duty Free reported a rare decline in annual sales

Dubai Duty Free Group sales reach US$1.933 billion in 2015

Dubai Duty Free recorded an impressive 26,848,832 sales transactions in 2015, which is an average of 73,558 sales transactions per day across both Dubai International and at Al Maktoum International.

The New Year began on a high note for Dubai Duty Free as the group, which incorporates the airport retail operation and its Leisure division, announced turnover of US$1.933 billion for 2015. The figure includes Dubai Duty Free sales, which reached US$1.888 billion for the year.

Dubai Duty Free, which operates at both Dubai International Airport and Al Maktoum International recorded its highest sales for the year in December 2015 when figures reached US$197.77 million. The December sales were fueled by Dubai Duty Free’s 32nd anniversary celebrations when the operation offered a 25% discount across a wide range of merchandise from the 18th-20th December and recorded US$27.22 million in the 72-hour period. Over the three days, the cash registers recorded a total of 402,000 sales transactions with nearly 207,000 sales transactions alone on 20th December.

Reflecting on the year at Dubai Duty Free, Colm McLoughlin, Executive Vice Chairman said: “Overall, it has been a very good year and I would like to thank H.H. Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and Chairman of Dubai Duty Free, for his ongoing support and I join His Highness in thanking our great team of staff, our suppliers and of course our customers, who are fundamental to our continued growth.

“There is a lot to look forward to in 2016, including the opening of Concourse D at Dubai International, which is a fantastic facility that will be very well received. We have a 7,000 sq metres retail operation in Concourse D and will be introducing some new brands and concepts there,” added McLoughlin.

Dubai Duty Free recorded an impressive 26,848,832 sales transactions in 2015, which is an average of 73,558 sales transactions per day across both Dubai International and at Al Maktoum International.

Category wise, Perfumes continued to be the highest selling category with annual sales topping US$311.58 million which represents 16.50% of total annual sales. Liquor and Cigarettes followed, with sales of US$293 million and US$161.55 million respectively. Confectionery came in 4th place with sales amounting to US$152.37 million followed by Gold with US$150.50 million.

Departure sales, which account for 87% of the total annual sales reached US$1.640 billion, while Arrivals sales showed a 6% increase over last year and accounted for 11% of the total annual sales. Moreover, Terminal 2 recorded an 18% increase in sales over last year to reach US$175.21 million.

While the successful running of the retail operation is a major focus for Dubai Duty Free, it has received over 500 awards to-date which bear testimony to its retail success.

In 2015 alone, Dubai Duty Free was presented with 27 awards including the prestigious Frontier Award for “Best Marketing Campaign of the Year by a Retailer” and the US Global Traveler Award for “Best Duty Free Shop”. Dubai Duty Free’s Executive Vice Chairman, Colm McLoughlin also received several awards including the “Best Business Leader in Retail Award” presented at the inaugural Middle East, North Africa & Asia (MENAA) Best Business Leaders Award held last month at Burj Al Arab.

Looking ahead, Dubai Duty Free will continue to maintain its busy events and promotional calendar which includes the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships to be staged at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium from the 15th to 27th February.