DDF sales exceed $44.33mn on 33rd anniversary

Airport retailer Dubai Duty Free’s (DDF) total sales on its 33^rd anniversary topped $44.33 million backed by special 25% discount on a wide range of merchandise over three days, which began at midnight on December 18 and continued until midnight of the anniversary day on December 20.

The anniversary discount resulted in a spending spree at Dubai International and Al Maktoum International with sales figures on December 18 reaching $9.67 million and $9.01 million on December 19. On December 20, sales reached $25.6 million in the 24-hour period.

“The anniversary celebrations spread over three days were fantastic and received positive results across all the concourses. Extending a 25% discount to our customers is our way of saying thank you for their support through the year,” says Colm McLoughlin, executive vice chairman and CEO of DDF.

From a category point of view, perfume was the highest selling category with sales of $6.93 million followed by watches and cosmetics on December 20.

During the three-day 33rd anniversary sales, DDF’s distribution centre issued over 6,198 pallets of merchandise and conducted 592 trips from the warehouse to the airport. The total number of picks in the warehouse during this period was 91,503 for 2,851,391 units of merchandise. Over the three-day period, the cash registers recorded a total of 293,903 sales transactions with nearly 102,493 sales transactions alone on December 20.

The 33^rd anniversary also saw a series of celebrations in various locations over three days led by McLoughlin, COO Ramesh Cidambi and other members of the senior management team who conducted the Millennium Millionaire and Finest Surprise draws.

While passengers availed the discounts and participated in the draws, DDF employees also enjoyed a special Staff Surprise draw, which resulted in a total of over $23,000 being won by employees.