Lotte Duty Free secures 10-year extension for Brisbane Airport store

Lotte Duty Free's Brisbane Airport store [LOTTE DUTY FREE]

Lotte Duty Free has won the bid to operate its duty-free shop in Australia for another 10 years until 2034.

The announcement comes on the heels of the company's effort to strengthen its foothold in the global duty-free market, following its exit from Incheon International Airport after a 22-year tenure in July.

In addition to the extended duty-free operations at Brisbane Airport in Australia, Lotte Duty Free unveiled expansion plans that involve a phased increase in the store size from its current 2,975 square meters (32,040 square feet) to 5,120 square meters. The expansion will particularly focus on enhancing the liquor category, showcasing popular Australian items such as wine, and include the introduction of a dedicated tasting space.

Lotte's Brisbane Airport store, in operation since January 2019, has been offering an array of duty-free items, including liquor, fashion and cosmetics, under exclusive operating rights. Lotte Duty Free currently operates six stores in the Oceania region.

"Brisbane Airport is the third busiest airport in Australia with 3.21 million visitors annually as of 2019 and is the designated venue for the 2032 Summer Olympics," said a Lotte company official. "We anticipate generating 2 trillion won ($1.5 billion) in revenue over the 10-year operational period of the Brisbane Airport store."

In addition to the developments in Brisbane, Lotte Duty Free recently marked the complete reopening of its Singapore Changi Airport store on Dec. 12.

Having faced partial closures since June 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the store, located from Terminals 1 to 4, specializes in the exclusive sales of liquor and tobacco products. With a size of 8,700 square meters, it is Lotte Duty Free's largest overseas store.

The company aims to achieve an annual sales figure of 500 billion won at the Changi Airport store alone, contributing to its goal of reaching one trillion won in overseas sales ahead of schedule.

BY SEO JI-EUN [seo.jieun1@joongang.co.kr]