Dubai Duty Free reach Dhs1 billion annual sales target ahead of shedule

Sales, which have remained ahead of budget since January this year, have been closely monitored in the past few days in anticipation of reaching the target before the year-end.

Commenting on Dubai Duty Free's new Dhs 1 billion milestone, H.H. Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of the Department of Civil Aviation, Dubai and Chairman of Emirates Group said, "This is a great achievement for the operation and one which sets a new benchmark for the region. The Dhs1 billion sales figure places Dubai Duty Free around fifth in the world in terms of turnover and I congratulate the team for achieving the annual budget ahead of schedule."

Commenting on the overall success of Dubai Duty Free in the past 12 months, Colm McLoughlin, Managing Director said, "We had set an ambitious target for the year and are delighted to have achieved that target way ahead of schedule. I would like to thank all of our customers and staff for helping us to achieve such tremendous sales results and look forward to even greater success next year."

With sales in all categories showing a solid increase, Dubai Duty Free is likely to finish the year with sales running at 20% higher than last year. With an average of 18,000 sales transactions a day, the operation has recorded over 7 million transaction so far this year.

In addition to its retail success, 2002 has proven to be a memorable year for Dubai Duty Free in terms of industry and media recognition. In February, the operation was honoured in the Dubai Quality Awards when it was named 'Company of the Year - Trade' in the Gold category. Two industry awards were presented this year, including the Gulf & Africa Duty Free Award for 'Most Distinctive Retailer of the Year' and the Raven Fox Award for "Middle East Travel Retailer of the Year'. In May, Dubai Duty Free accepted the Business Traveller Award for 'Best Duty Free Shopping'.

On the sporting front, the Dubai Duty Free Women's Open was voted the players favourite tournament in the world in the annual WTA Tour awards.

More recently, Dubai Duty Free was honoured by the Philippine government when it accepted two top awards including the Presidential Award of Distinction and the International Employers Award of the Department of Labor and Employment.

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