SOUTH KOREA. Incheon International Airport Corp (IIAC) today revealed all-time high duty free sales for 2011 of US$1.53 billion – staking a claim to be the world’s biggest single duty free retail location.
The figures, announced to The Moodie Report, represent a +21.4% increase over 2010’s US$1.26 billion – at the time also a record performance. We’ll bring you a breakdown of the results as soon as it is available.
Incheon’s extraordinary performance, driven by a surge in high-spending Chinese travellers and the opening of the world’s first-ever Louis Vuitton airport store in September 2011, edges the airport ahead of Dubai Duty Free, which recently posted its own record-breaking sales for 2011 of AED5.3 billion (US$1.46 billion), a +15.69% increase over 2010 – itself an all-time high year.
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September’s opening of the world’s first Louis Vuitton airport store gave Incheon a huge second-half revenue boost: (Left to right): Ms Lee Boo-Jin, CEO and President, Hotel Shilla; Yves Carcelle, Chairman and CEO, Louis Vuitton; Lee Chae-Wook, CEO, Incheon International Airport; and Jean-Baptiste Debains, President, Louis Vuitton Asia Pacific |
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This image captures the spectacular shop frontage of the new Louis Vuitton store |
In the first half of 2011, Incheon claimed to have been the world’s leading duty free retail location with sales of US$727 million– a world record for a single location. Dubai Duty Free posted sales of US$698 million in the period.
In 2010, Incheon International Airport, which boasts a powerful portfolio of stores run by Lotte Duty Free, The Shilla Duty Free and Korea Tourism Organization, was just behind table-topping Dubai Duty Free’s US$1.27 billion, according to The Moodie Report Research.
Incheon’s prospects for further strong growth look good, underpinned by the rise in Chinese travel, and a tantalising passenger profile dominated by Koreans, Japanese and Chinese.
As reported earlier this week, the number of Chinese visitors to South Korea soared by +17% year-on-year in 2011, to 2,061,116, representing a 23% share of arrivals, according to year-end figures from Korea Tourism Organization.
IIAC is also planning a second terminal, which is due to open in time for the 2018 Winter Olympics, hosted by South Korea. That will boost the airport’s capacity to 62 million travellers a year.
Underlining its commitment to non-aeronautical revenues, IIAC is the host of next month’s Trinity Forum in Seoul, the world’s leading airport commercial revenues conference. Incheon International Airport Corporation Chief Executive Officer CW Lee will address the Forum and lead an airport CEO’s panel on day 1, 14 February.
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