OMAN. Muscat’s Seeb International is the latest Middle East airport to boast a new duty free complex after the official opening of the Oman Sales and Services Company (OSSC) stores yesterday.
The facility was opened by Darweesh bin Ismael al-Balushi, Finance Affairs Undersecretary at the Oman Finance Ministry.
He told reporters and dignitaries that duty free has become a genuine part of airports all over the world, offering passengers a variety of services and products. He added in a statement that duty free would improve the airport’s revenue and stimulate tourism in the Sultanate.
OSSC is owned by Oman Aviation Services Company (OAS) and Aer Rianta International-Middle-East. The total duty free area covers 12,000 square metres. OSSC has a long-term, nine-and-a-half contract. The opening ceremony was also attended by Said bin Hamdoun al-Harthy, chairman of the Oman Aviation Services Company, officials from Oman Airports Management Company and ARI-ME, Seeb International Airport and Royal Oman Police.
OAS runs national carrier Oman Air, and also provides cargo, engineering and catering services. Seeb airport is run by the Oman Airport Management Company under a 25-year concession agreement. OAMC is 35%-owned by Suhail Bahwan Group, BAA holds 25%, the Omani Government 20%, OAS 5% and Swiss finance company ABB Equity Services 15%.
Aer Rianta International-Middle East (ARI-ME) managing director John Sutcliffe told The Moodie Report: “We have nearly doubled the size of the shop and have taken the passenger profile of the airport into account in the mix. In Oman there is a big Indian and sub-continent passenger base.
“For example, we have combined the liquor, tobacco, confectionery and toiletries [a big sector for sub-continent passengers] sectors into one large self-service supermarket area. By bringing it all together, we create convenience for our passengers.”
The store also offers a wide range of traditional duty free items plus a full Omani corner, Sutcliffe added. An “exceptional” gold area is featured in the middle of the store.
A major factor in designing the store was its relatively short life-span. The existing terminal will be replaced in two-and-a-half years so the retailer had to “balance life-span and cost” in creating the store, Sutcliffe said.
“It’s substantially better than what went before but naturally we’ll be investing even more in the new terminal,” he said. “We’re already working very closely with BAA [which oversees all retail matters] on the conceptual design for the new terminal, which will be absolutely magnificent. The new Muscat Duty Free logo (pictured) reflects the strong African influence in Oman, so there’s a big emphasis on vibrant colours.”
Sutcliffe said he was delighted that the operation had already achieved the targeted spend per passenger in just three months. The departures store, which accounts for 94% of sales, was doing well, he said.
But a new arrivals store, which includes liquor for the first time, was currently underperforming due to a lack of marketing and a serious drop-off in passengers through March and April because of the war in Iraq. “War affected traffic in Oman very badly,” he said. “Gulf Air is a key carrier and the war really hit their frequencies.”
Footnote: Statistics issued by Seeb International Airport showed that passenger traffic rose by +12.8% year-on-year during April. The number of passengers during the first four months reached nearly 840,000, constituting a +1.1% year-on-year increase.
