Dufry recently signed a master concessionaire agreement to operate duty free spaces at Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA), Sri Lanka. Located in the Southeast of Sri Lanka, MRIA was officially opened as Sri Lanka’s second international gateway in March 2013.

With 10 parking bays and an initial annual passenger handling capacity of 1 million, the airport expects to reach its first phase capacity by 2015. By 2016, the second phase expansion plans are anticipated to have been completed, taking the terminal’s annual handling capacity to 5 million passengers and 20 parking bays.

A joint venture between Dufry and Sri Lankan company Perpetual Capital Holdings, Dufry will operate all airside retail space in the terminal. The main duty free offering will include core Liquor, Tobacco, Perfumes & Cosmetics and Confectionery categories at both the departure and arrival levels of the airport. Dufry will work with trusted Sri Lankan partners to provide an attractive range of electronics, local souvenirs, convenience and other items to travelers. As the passenger numbers approach the first phase handling capacity, Dufry envisions approximately 1000sqm of retail space evenly distributed between the departure 500 sqm and arrival areas 500sqm, reflecting the strong arrival duty free sales in Sri Lanka. Additional enhancements will be made to the retail offer as the airport expands into its second phase.

Julian Diaz, Chief Executive Officer of Dufry said:  “With our experience in the Middle East and a growing presence in East Asia and China, the main destinations served out of MRIA -  we believe Dufry is the ideal partner to roll out a fresh travel retail experience here. We are honoured to have been chosen by the Airports Authority of Sri Lanka (AASL) as their retail partner at the country’s second international airport. We are pleased to cement our relationship with Perpetual Capital Holdings, continuing a long standing Dufry tradition of working with strong local partners in many countries we enter”.

Arjun Aloysius, Chairman of Perpetual Capital Holdings, added “Perpetual and our sister companies have nearly 100 years of experience in Sri Lanka in businesses as diverse as tea plantations, infrastructure, liquor manufacturing & distribution. This is our first foray into the mainstream duty free sector, where we have had presence in Duty Free electronics at the Colombo International Airport since 1996. We look forward to a long and fruitful relationship with Dufry to expand our presence in other transportation hubs within Sri Lanka.”

With the addition of Sri Lanka, and the recently secured Bali and Kazakhstan concessions, Dufry now operates in eight countries in the Far East, Middle East, and Central Asia, bringing the total number of countries in our global portfolio to 47.

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