Dubai Duty Free hits AED8 billion retail landmark

Dubai Duty Free reached an historic milestone on Tuesday when the airport retailer passed AED8 billion in annual sales for the first time in its 42-year history.

The achievement is the continuation of record monthly sales this year, with 9 out of 11 months setting new records, topped by November’s all time high sales of AED876.56 million.

A purchase worth AED371 by a passenger travelling to Delhi pushed the sales figures across the AED8 billion mark. 

Recognising the milestone in Terminal 3, Ramesh Cidambi, Managing Director, who was accompanied by the management team and staff said, “It’s a momentous occasion....From the bottom of our hearts, we want to thank all of you who are working 24 hours a day, 365 days a year – on the shopfloor and in the back office - to make these transactions happen and to drive the business to this level at year end.

"We are up 17.6 per cent compared to last December for the first nine days. The last few days have been fantastic, and we are up 9.8 per cent for the year, which is AED710 million more than what we achieved last year – equivalent to one full month of sales.

“Our Chairman, His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum congratulated each and every member of the Dubai Duty Free team for the outstanding performance in November and looks forward to a strong finish for the year.” added Cidambi.

Looking ahead to the remainder of the year, the retail operation will celebrate its 42nd Anniversary on December 20 and will mark the occasion by offering a 25 per cent discount on a wide range of products.