Global travel retailer Dufry has won a six-year extension to its retail concession business at the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, Jamaica, covering duty-free and duty-paid shops.

The new deal between MBJ Airports, which manages Sangster, and Dufry, which has travel retailing operations in 63 countries, comprises a six-year duty-paid concession effective June 2021 for several Dufry specialised shop concepts such as Tech-On-The-Go for electronics, Spirit of Jamaica for souvenirs, and the typical Hudson convenience shop offering an assortment of travel essentials.

These new shops are spread across the whole Sangster airport to serve both domestic and international travellers. The second part of the two-part Dufry agreement includes a new five-year duty-free contract effective from August 2021.

The recently signed concession arrangement

This features a newly designed walk-through shop, two last-minute duty-free shops in the departure areas, and a duty-free arrivals shop. The duty-free offering includes all traditional categories such as perfume and cosmetics, spirits, food and confectionery, tobacco, watches and jewellery, accessories, electronics, and luggage.

MBJ Airports has been expanding and redeveloping the retail space at the Jamaica airport hub, as part of a wider modernisation of the whole facility and invited tenders covering 29 units in a redesigned retail programme, for which Dufry has been successful.

The selection process for retail and duty-free partners to operate 29 units in the airport's redesigned retail programme drew 116 proposals. These were assessed using international benchmarks for design and product mix, anchored by a core set of criteria requiring future operators to create store aesthetics infused with a strong Jamaican sense of place while creating meaningful experiences, not just an offer of products or brands.

The concluded agreement allows Dufry, a long-term incumbent at the airport, to increase its retail space at the country's busiest gateway from 1,800sq m to 2,260sq m. Dufry, which has been operating at the airport since 2012, will now offer an extended product assortment to the approximately 4.6 million travellers, who pass through the airport in a regular year.

Dufry's successful bid

Dufry Group CEO Julián Díaz said his company is proud to have been awarded this new concession contract in the completely renewed Montego Bay airport and sees the Caribbean in general as an important and attractive tourist destination, where the company has been successfully operating for many years. He declared that Dufry is now looking forward to welcoming its customers with an increased offer of renowned global brands and local premium labels.

“I would like to thank our partners at MBJ Airports Limited for the trust put in Dufry and our local team, which we will honour with a state-of-the-art shopping environment, to create a mutually successful business,” Díaz remarked.

MBJ Airports CEO Shane Munroe expressed confidence that “Dufry will continue to build on its excellent work in the past”.

According to Munroe,“We have enjoyed a successful relationship with Dufry since they commenced operation at MBJ in 2012, and we are very pleased to have them continue with us as we enhance the retail offer and level of service to our passengers.”