Pointe-à-Pitre, 20^th June 2017. – On Friday Dufry celebrated the opening of its Dufry Pôle Caraïbes stores at Guadeloupe Pôle Caraïbes Airport. The latest store to be unveiled is the new 800sqm duty-free store in the international departures area of the airport. In May this year, the company opened two landside stores; Beach Store, a surf shop located on the ground floor of the international terminal, as well as the region’s latest Hudson convenience shop in terminal 2, dedicated to regional traffic.

The refurbishment project was carried out in partnership with CAFOM, Dufry’s local partner in Guadeloupe and with Société Aéroportuaire Guadeloupe Pôle Caraïbes. Dufry has been operating in Guadeloupe for 17 years and this latest collaboration is the result of two year’s planning, development and implementation. The next projects for the partnership are to be unveiled in the coming months; a new 108sqm Hudson News store landside in the international terminal and a complete revamp of the regional departure hall duty-free shop, including a significant increase in commercial space, of triple that of the current store

Guadeloupe Pôle Caraïbes Airport is ranked first amongst the French Overseas Departments airports and 11^th at national level, handling more than two million passengers each year, and serves as the gateway to this important tourist destination, famed for its beaches and nature parks. As is customary, Dufry was determined to reflect the spirit of Guadeloupe in its new stores and Dufry Pôle Caraïbes is no different, offering travelers more than 300 local food and liquor products. Included in the store range are celebrated Guadeloupian regional rum brands such as Damoiseau, Bologne, Bielle, Longueteau, Karukera and Madras to name a few, accompanied by a new tasting bar with 250 tasting days planned each year on local rums, for passengers to enjoy their final sip before they fly.

The new Dufry Pôle Caraïbes duty-free store also offers a wide assortment of local delicacies, such as fine chocolate and confectionery goods, jam, honey, locally grown and produced coffee; all key elements of the ever-more popular eco-tourism which the island has to offer. For those who want to take home the memory of their moments in a beach restaurant or ‘lolo’, eating fresh fish ‘accras’, the store has bottles of the island’s renowned spicy sauce ready to take away. The focus on local culture and produce in-store is an important aspect of Dufry’s business approach and a key part of the Dufry Pôle Caraïbes concept.

As well as celebrating local flavor, the new duty-free store provides customers with Dufry’s international brand assortment, specially tailored to suit passengers who fly through Guadeloupe Pôle Caraïbes Airport. The newly refurbished store has doubled the perfume and cosmetics area to 200sqm, a quarter of its commercial area, in line with the demands of travelers at this airport. The company’s signature walkthrough store design ensures that all passengers get the opportunity to see and experience the key commercial offer at the airport.

Great importance has been placed on making the retail offer in Guadeloupe new and exciting for passengers, with a complete review, renewal and update of the product range. In the perfume and cosmetics section alone, based on customer demand, 18 new brands have been introduced, including Zadig & Voltaire, Escada, Roberto Cavalli, Tom Ford, Tommy Hilfiger, Clinique, Nuxe, and OPI.

In the jewelry and watches category, the store now houses 8 new brands such as Hugo Boss, Swatch, Skagen and Daniel Wellington and in the sunglasses category, 8 new brands popular in Dufry stores across the world, including Maui Jim, Havaianas, Polaroid and Armani. Finally, the fashion category has been updated with iconic global brands such as Furla.

The inauguration event was presided over by Pedro Castro, the Division CEO for Southern Europe & Africa at Dufry and Guadeloupe Pôle Caraïbes Airport’s Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Colette Koury and Chairman of the Management Board, Alain Bièvre.

Colette Koury opened proceedings, saying that “The strengthening of our partnership with Dufry was a strategic decision, to group all the boutiques operated by different retailers in the boarding area into a single commercial space, with a ‘walk-through’ concept. Guadeloupe Pôle Caraïbes was the first ‘Département d’Outre Mer’ airport to house this new shop concept, which was very innovative at the time. Dufry was chosen amongst tough competition from other key operators, but the company’s experience, very precise knowledge of the specific expectations of our customers and above all the business ties, partnerships and trust that has been established with local producers is what made the difference.” She finished saying “I congratulate you Mr. Pedro Castro and your team and your local partner Mr. André Saada of CAFOM, for the renewal of your commercial concession agreement for 10 years”.

Alain Bièvre added; “The inauguration we are celebrating marks the pursuit of our business relations for the next 10 years and I am sure that they will be as fruitful as the 17 that have just ended. We are delighted with the professionalism, reactivity, and the best-in-retail standards that Dufry brings to Guadeloupe Pôle Caraïbes airport”.

In his speech, Pedro Castro stressed that “It is crucial that each store fits into the backdrop of the country in which it is located, and that we would not be where we are today without our local teams”. He continued; “We have had the good fortune to work with Guadeloupe Pôle Caraïbes Airport for 17 years almost to the day. The two way support and sharing of know-how for our mutual business needs and objectives, to create the commercial offer that the airport has achieved today, is an example to follow and repeat across the world. Our fantastic local partners, CAFOM, have been crucial in adjusting our business strategy here to best fit in the Guadeloupian local context and we are positive that the outcome of these strong partnerships will provide the foundation for our joint success over the next 10 years”.

Castro closed, saying “In a difficult economic context, we have created 15 new job positions today, and plan to keep expanding and investing in this local area throughout our partnership. I wish to thank the airport for the trust they continue to place in us. We hope that our passengers enjoy our new store as much as we do and are delighted to be here to celebrate this milestone today”.