Melbourne Airport has re-appointed leading global travel retailer Dufry as its partner for international duty free retail. The partnership extends the existing contract held by Dufry-owned Nuance to 2022, representing a significant milestone for Melbourne Airport as it continues to expand its retail offerings for local and international travelers. The new store will incorporate key elements of the ‘next generation stores’ being developed by Dufry.

The current airside duty free retail operations located in Terminal 2, will undergo a total metamorphosis over a 12 month period, with a 30 per cent increase to the retail footprint and a new layout when completed by first quarter 2017. With 2,743m² of retail space in the new Departures store and 1,074m² of retail space in the new Arrivals store, the shops will serve nearly nine million annual Victorian and international visitors, delivering a new duty free retail experience which promises to be world-class.

The partnership is a first for Dufry in Australia, who demonstrate a clear intent to grow its presence within the Australian market through the newly extended partnership with Melbourne Airport.

This next phase of retail transformation at Melbourne Airport quickly follows the successful opening of the new T4 domestic terminal and transport hub in late 2015. T4 is built on 20,000m² over three levels and can accommodate up to 10 million passengers a year. It incorporates the latest self-service technology to provide passengers with a quick and easy start to their journey. A central departure lounge with more than 30 specialty retail and food and beverage stores provides passengers with a place to shop, eat and relax.

Quotes attributable to Mr Andrew Gardiner, Customer Executive at Melbourne Airport

“The growth of our international duty free retail offering underpins a critical component of Melbourne Airport’s retail transformation. When complete, local and international visitors to the airport will benefit from a duty free retail experience that is in keeping with Melbourne’s renowned reputation as the fashion and retail capital of Australia.”

"Melbourne Airport is fast becoming a preferred international gateway for many overseas visitors, especially Chinese travelers, where we have seen a 24 per cent year-on-year increase in 2015. It is our ambition to make Victorians as proud of the airport as they are of our great city and to deliver a world-class experience to our international visitors.”

“Over the past eight months, Dufry senior executives have demonstrated a refreshing engagement with Melbourne Airport and impressed with both their vision for the duty free retail precinct and commitment to deliver an exciting, modern, attractive and diverse offering to our visitors.” 

Quotes attributable to Julian Diaz, CEO Dufry:

“As its transformation journey continues, Melbourne Airport offers one of the most exciting expansion opportunities for Dufry’s duty free retail business in Asia – evolving well beyond our prior presence through our Nuance subsidiary. We thank Melbourne Airport for the renewal of this longstanding partnership and the trust put in our company and our local teams. In creating a new, world-class duty free retail concept for Melbourne Airport, we have drawn on our expertise, which spans 63 countries and services more than 1.5 billion potential international and domestic customers worldwide. As the only major airport in Australia that offers 24/7 operations and strong international passenger growth, Melbourne Airport’s approach has been one of partnership and we look forward to getting started on delivering our duty free retail vision and concept. Furthermore, this contract is an important step in our strategy to further expand our footprint across Asia.”

For further information please contact:

Renzo Radice

Corporate Communications & Investor Relations

Phone: +41 61 266 44 19

renzo.radice@dufry.com