Duty Free Uruguay opens new arrivals store

John Rimmer

Print Article E-Mail Article E-Mail Author

The operator's new walk-through arrivals store at Montevideo Carrasco aims to capitalise on proposed allowance changes

Montevideo Carrasco operator Duty Free Uruguay opened a new arrivals store last week. The move completes airport management company (and Duty Free Uruguay sister company) Puerta del Sur's renovation of the airport's retail operations. The 700sq m (7,532sq ft) store is a walk-through outlet situated between immigration control and baggage reclaim, and offers a full range of duty-free goods including fragrances, cosmetics, liquor, wines, tobacco, electronics, confectionery and clothing.

Duty Free Uruguay CEO Martin Leal told RavenFox.com that he expected sales in arrivals to grow by 30% as a result of the opening. He also expressed the hope that Uruguayan Customs will soon give final approval to changes to arrivals allowances lobbied for by South American trade association ASUTIL. Up to now, returning Uruguayans and visitors to Montevideo have been permitted to buy duty-free goods worth up to $300—as elsewhere in the Mercosur bloc—but only two litres and two cartons of imported liquor and cigarettes. ASUTIL has obtained recognition from the Uruguayan government that the limit on liquor and tobacco purchases is contrary to Mercosur policy and its removal is expected by June (RavenFox.com, March 8).

"This is a very important change to make and it will have a very important effect on our business," said Leal. "We're confident the new arrivals store will be a big success although it is never easy to predict shopper behaviour in arrivals. For example, if people are arriving on a 12-hour flight from Madrid, they might not be interested in shopping. But we now have 'first-world' stores at Carrasco and our walk-through outlets in departures and arrivals show that we have adopted a more dynamic sales approach."

Duty Free Uruguay opened a new 560sq m (6,025sq ft) outlet in Carrasco's departures area last July. Moving the airport's duty-free operation to the ground floor resulted in a considerable rise in penetration, said Leal, and a 50% rise in sales since opening.