Dufry’s New Jv With Bengaluru Airport For Tourists Booking The Best Last Minute Flights
- About Dufry
Dufry AG is a Swiss-based travel retailer that operates duty-free and duty-paid shops as well as convenience stores in airports providing flight and best last minute flights, cruise lines, seaports, railway stations, and central tourist areas. The company, headquartered in Basel, employs nearly 36,000 people and operates in over 65 countries worldwide.
- What makes Dufry so special
Dufry is dedicated to good corporate governance, transparency, and openness for the benefit of its shareholders, customers, business partners, and employees. This section contains all of the information about the company’s structure, how it is run and governed, and how it is regulated.
Dufry strives for excellence in all aspects of its business, including customer service and internal operations. This has been recognized by the outside world throughout its decades of experience, and Dufry is delighted and proud to have received a variety of awards that reflect its status as the global leader in travel retail.
- Dufry’s tie-up with Bengaluru Airport
Dufry, which has operated duty-free shops at Kempegowda International Airport Bengaluru (KIAB) through its subsidiary Nuance since 2008, has secured an additional 15-year contract to operate and manage duty-free outlets in the airport’s new Terminal 2. Dufry will operate these new locations in a 50:50 joint venture with airport operator Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL). Making great news for international passengers coming by cheap international flight tickets.
In November 2021, a global-open tender was launched, and leading duty-free operators from around the world participated.
Kempegowda International Airport is India’s third-largest airport, serving over 33 million passengers per year with the best last minute flights service (as of 2019 data), and Terminal 2 was built to accommodate increased passenger traffic in the coming years.
The collaboration is consistent with BIAL’s recently revised commercial strategy, which is based on trust and collaboration, as well as risk and reward sharing. BIAL will be a 50% shareholder in the duty-free joint venture company to ensure equal representation and sharing of both risks and rewards. Because the joint venture is not limited to core duty-free shops, Dufry will be able to investigate opportunities in luxury retail and other formats.
Alberto Iglesias, Chief Operating Officer, Mediterranean, Eastern Europe & Middle East at Dufry, stated, “We are committed to supporting BIAL’s vision of developing Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport as a preferred destination for shopping and dining.” We will honor BIAL’s renewed trust and build on our longstanding and appreciated relationship by providing domestic passengers & international passengers, especially American travelers coming by flights from USA to Bangalore online with an enhanced shopping experience that meets the highest international standards and features a significantly expanded product assortment.”
“We are passionate to resume our long-standing connection with Dufry.” The company is one of the superior global travel dealers, and we will leverage Dufry’s expertise to elevate the airport’s shopping and brand experience to a whole new level. With this collaboration, we hope to strengthen our offering across categories, particularly in luxury fashion, beauty, and confectionery. “We are excited to collaborate with Dufry to deliver a world-class shopping design and experience that is aligned with BIAL’s vision of becoming a leader in sustainable development, technology, and innovation,” said Kenneth Guldbjerg, BIAL’s Chief Commercial Officer.
- A joint venture to promote luxury, fashion, and beauty
BIAL refers to the new T2 as a “terminal in a garden” because of the complex’s greenery, which includes planted walls, hanging gardens, artificial waterfalls, and outdoor gardens surrounding a lagoon. The building, which is officially inaugurated by India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 11, will increase Bengaluru Airport’s passenger volume coming by cheap international flight tickets by 25 million per year in the first phase of the project. A further 20 million will be added in the second phase.
Dufry’s contract includes nearly 40,000 square feet of retail space spread across international departures and arrivals in the new terminal with the best last minute flights service. The joint venture is not limited to core duty-free shops, but also allows Dufry to consider introducing luxury boutiques and other formats. According to a spokesperson, “further developments and contract extensions within the JV are possible.”
This isn’t Dufry’s first airport joint venture. Similar partnerships exist between the travel retailer and Milan Linate Airport, Sharjah in the UAE -0.1%, and several U.S. airports where ACDBE cooperation is often required by law. Airport owners have increasingly turned to joint ventures with retailers in order to increase revenue over the years. Other examples include Heinemann and Fraport at Frankfurt Airport, as well as Lagardère Travel Retail at Paris Charles de Gaulle and Paris Orly airports.