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Aldeasa welcomes delegates to ASUTIL at the retailer’s Santiago de Chile International Airport Arrivals store |
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Aldeasa’s walk through Arrivals store gives a quality first impression of travel retail in Chile |
SOUTH AMERICA. The 10th annual conference of Asociación Sudamericana de Tiendas (ASUTIL) begins today after an opening cocktail at the Sheraton Hotel in Santiago de Chile last night.
This year’s event has attracted a record attendance of over 215 delegates, ASUTIL Secretary-General José Luis Donagaray told The Moodie Report. Business has been strong across this diverse region for the year to date, though some retailers, notably Brasif and InterBaires, have been hit in recent weeks by bans and then restrictions on sales to US-bound passengers.
But they have been quick to adapt, and Dufry Group South America Director Gustavo Fagundes told The Moodie Report that business is almost back to normal. Similarly InterBaires’ sales fell just -4% to -5% short of an aggressive budget for August, but succeeded in growing the business year-on-year in high double-digits, according to President and CEO Enrique Urioste.
Urioste, who is also Vice President of ASUTIL, welcomed delegates to the opening cocktail last night which InterBaires sponsored alongside Pernod Ricard – whose Regional Vice-President of Travel Retail Steve Corrigan issued a warm welcome. The conference begins this morning with the official opening by ASUTIL President Walter Zeinal followed by an evaluation of regional sales and key indicators by Donagaray.
