CANADA. Frontier Duty Free Association president Julian Lewin (left) says the Canadian land border duty free business should grow significantly this year despite a -13.7% year-on-year fall in sales in 2003 to C$194.8 million (US$147 million).
“Traffic numbers look promising,” he told The Moodie Report. “We’re anticipating growth in 2004. 2003 was the year from hell but if you look at in perspective, we did C$225 million in 2002, C$200 million in 2001 and C$188 million in 2000. So we’re simply back to where we were at the turn of the century.”
Lewin said the strong Canadian dollar – which has appreciated almost +20% against its US equivalent over the past year – is helping to drive US-bound Canadian traffic.
“We’re seeing Canadians start to travel south a lot more now,” he said.
Lewin announced that the Frontier Duty Free Association will hold its annual convention in Quebec city on November 7-10.
