TÜRKIYE. Setur Duty Free, pioneer of the country’s travel retail sector, has posted a +35% year-on-year increase in first-quarter sales to the end of March, a performance the company described as “a sustainable and strong growth trend”.
The result was boosted by the 1 June 2023 opening at Cologne (Köln) Bonn Airport, Germany, which the Koç Holding-owned company described as a first move towards becoming a global brand.
The robust Q1 performance follows a +40% year-on-year rise in revenue in 2023 to a record (though undisclosed) high.
Setur Duty Free said its 2023 and Q1 results have been driven by an array of strategic initiatives across marketing, product range, customer experience and store design.
Buoyed by the German store opening, the perfume & cosmetics, boutique and accessories and food categories collectively grew +98% year-on-year in 2023.
Commenting on the Cologne-Bonn opening and subsequent performance, Setur Duty Free said the entry had been marked by a range of innovative store applications designed to enhance the customer experience.
“Setur Duty Free will offer its customers a unique shopping experience with innovative store practices that digitize shopping and prioritise customer experience and satisfaction in sales areas with sustainable architectural designs,” the company said.
Besides its German operation, Setur Duty Free manages 55 stores in 22 locations across Türkiye, offering more than 40,000 products from approximately 600 brands under eight main categories – perfume & cosmetics, tobacco, liquor, food, souvenirs, toys, electronics and boutique-accessories.
Its stores occupy some 22,000sq m at airports, land borders and seaports. ✈
