Dubai Duty Free's 2012 sales hit $1.6bn

Dubai Duty Free announced on Wednesday that its full-year sales for 2012 totalled AED5.9bn ($1.6bn), a 10 percent increase on the previous year.

The announcement came as the retailer opened its new operation in Concourse A at Dubai International Airport, the world's first A380 terminal.

The retail area extends over 8,000 sq m, bringing Dubai Duty Free’s total retail footprint to 26,000 sq m.

The company added in a statement that sales in December set a new monthly record of AED619m, boosted by single day sales of nearly AED77m on December 20.

Colm McLoughlin, executive vice chairman, said: “We are thrilled to announce such a positive year in 2012. The entire team at Dubai Duty Free has worked hard to continue to drive sales, while focusing on the expansion of our business in Concourse A.

"We have recruited a total of 1,600 new staff in 2012, bringing our staffing levels up to 5,200, all in preparation for our growth plans which are very exciting.”

Dubai Duty Free's operation recorded a total of 23.5 million sales transactions in 2012, which average at 64,200 per day.

Perfumes retained its position as the top selling category with sales reaching AED907m, an increase of 13 percent.

Sales increases were seen across all Dubai Duty Free retail areas in all three terminals - Terminal 1 recorded a seven percent rise, Terminal 2 sales jumped by 15 percent and Terminal 3 by 11 percent.