Dufry expands in Europe, Asia and the Americas

Stefanie Ives

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The travel retailer will add 4,300sq m (46,270sq ft) of retail space by the end of 2007

The Dufry Group has completed several expansion projects in Moscow, Belgrade, Hong Kong, the Dominican Republic and Aruba, increasing retail space by 4,300sq m (46,270sq ft).

At Moscow Domodedovo airport the retailer opened three stores following the completion of renovations to the international departures area. The shops include a 28sq m (300sq ft) Hugo Boss branded fashion boutique and a 25sq m (270sq ft) watch outlet dedicated to Swiss luxury brands.

In Belgrade, Dufry has unveiled a number of new shops at Nikola Tesla International airport. Airside, Dufry has opened its main 550sq m (5,920sq ft) duty-free shop offering fragrances and cosmetics, wines and souvenirs. The retailer has also opened three watches, jewellery and fashion corners, boosting the airside retail space to 927sq m (9,975sq ft). Landside, Dufry has opened three Minut2 news and convenience stores as well as a Futura Plus outlet, run by a local newspaper distributor and kiosk operator.

In the SkyPlaza centre at Hong Kong International airport terminal two, Dufry will run two Bijoux Terner shops covering a total area of 80sq m (860sq ft), a 183sq m (1,970sq ft) Mango branded fashion and accessories boutique and a 62sq m (667sq ft) Segue shop. The retailer will also operate a 137sq m (1,475sq ft) confectionery shop and a 90sq m (960sq ft) souvenirs outlet offering destination merchandise.

Dufry continues to expand its presence in the Dominican Republic and has signed agreements to operate duty-free shops at Santiago Cibao International and La Romana International airports. The contracts will last for 10–14 years. At Santiago, Dufry plans to run four shops covering a total space of 470sq m (5,059sq ft). At La Romana, two shops are planned of about 300sq m (3,228sq ft). At both airports, the agreements include departures and arrivals duty-free shops.

Elsewhere, Dufry has opened several duty-free stores at Santo Domingo International airport, one of its existing operations in Dominican Republic. In addition to a 310sq m (3,335sq ft) duty-free arrivals shop, Dufry has also opened a 560sq m (6,025sq ft) general duty-free outlet and Last Minute shops covering about 100sq m (1,076sq ft) in the departures area. The company also plans to add a fashion, accessories and watches boutique and a general duty-free shop at Santo Domingo, each of them measuring about 500sq m (5,380sq ft). The new shops are expected to be operational by the third quarter of 2007.

In the coming months, Dufry plans to open three shops at Puerto Plata International airport and two at Samana International airport.

At Reina Beatrix International airport in Aruba, Dufry has won the exclusive contract to operate duty-free shops offering fragrances and cosmetics, liquor and tobacco and delicatessen items. The concession is for five years and operations are due to start in the fourth quarter of 2007. The travel retailer will run six duty-free shops covering a total of 633sq m (6,810sq ft).

Dufry Group CEO Julían Diáz said: “All these locations will enhance and further diversify our concession portfolio, and are another step towards achieving profitable growth.”