FRANCE/INTERNATIONAL. LS travel retail’s sales growth in 2013 was fuelled by strong growth in its duty free (+14%) and food services (+13%) divisions, the company said today.
Parent Lagardère Services last week announced a +5.4% rise in LS travel retail sales (+3.5% like-for-like) for the year, to €2.8 billion. This maintains LS travel retail’s place in the front rank of the world’s travel retailers. It ranked third in The Moodie Report’s Top 25 rankings last year (based on 2012 numbers), a position it looks likely to retain in the final 2013 rankings (to be published later in the year). See below for the 2012 chart.
On a like-for-like basis, the company noted healthy regional growth in Asia (+29.5%), as well as in Romania (+7.5%), the Czech Republic (+5.6%) and Poland (+4.9%).
These positive factors were partially offset by the decline of printed products (sales in the travel essentials arm dipped by -1% compared to 2012), and a slowdown in the growth of air traffic, though with an improvement at year-end.
The company also noted some recent developments that it expects will feed through into growth in 2014.
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LS travel retail’s duty free sales climbed by +14% in 2013 |
In the fourth quarter of 2013, LS travel retail opened 13 fashion outlets at the new domestic airport in Shenzhen (China).
On 4 December 2013, it announced the acquisition of Gerzon’s fashion businesses at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, comprising 12 outlets spanning 2,400sq m, a business which had net sales of €54 million in 2012.
On 15 January, the retailer won a tender at Warsaw Airport consisting of 25 sales outlets in duty free & luxury, travel essentials and food service and spanning an area of 3,000sq m.
LS travel retail today operates in more than 25 countries throughout Europe, North America, Asia and the Pacific.
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LS travel retail was third in The Moodie Report’s acclaimed annual Top 25 Travel Retailers ranking for 2012 (the 2013 version will be published in coming months) |
