Record-Breaking Year Culminates with Strong December Sales.
Dubai Duty Free (DDF) closed 2024 on a high note with the establishment of a new annual turnover record at AED 7.901 billion (US$2.16 billion). The growth was largely attributed to a dramatic increase in sales during the final weeks of the year, including December, which was the retailer’s best month so far.
PC: ThePrint
DDF recorded sales of AED 821.94 million (US$225.19 million) in December 2024, marking a +2% increase from December 2023, the previous record-setting month in the retailer’s history. DDF’s 41st-anniversary celebrations on 20 December contributed to this performance, as a -25% discount on a wide range of products triggered a shopping spree amounting to AED 59.99 million (US$16.44 million) within just 24 hours.
This December success was followed by a robust November performance with year-over-year sales growth continuing the momentum seen throughout the year.
Important Product Categories and Transactions
Confectionery emerged as the top performer in December at +29.46% growth in sales above December 2023. Throughout the year of operation, there were 20.733 million sales transactions averaged at 56,649 per day. Furthermore, a total of 55.137 million units of merchandise sold across the year is reflective of the retailer’s vast scale of operations.
It is estimated that over 13.7 million customers shopped at Dubai Duty Free’s arrivals and departures stores in 2024, underscoring the operation’s immense reach.
Online Sales and Performance by Segments
The total turnover was contributed by AED 197 million (US$54 million) in online sales, which was 2.5% of annual sales. While departures stores account for majority sales growth +0.84% year on year to AED 7.121 billion (US$1.951 billion), the declines in arrivals sales of -12.21% generated AED 537 million (US$147 million). Departures sales hold 90% of the turnover, and arrivals sales of 6.8%.
Future Plans
Dubai Duty Free is aiming to expand and enhance its retail operations further in 2025. The company is nearing the completion of the final phase of renovations for its arrival shops across all three terminals at Dubai International Airport. This extensive construction and renovation work is anticipated to be fully finalized by the beginning of this year.
Excellent performance for DDF in 2024 speaks to the resilience and innovation, and is a signal of continued future success.
