Dubai Duty Free celebrates outstanding May sales of US$198.5 million
The month of May continued the positive sales momentum for Dubai Duty Free with "extraordinary" sales figures
Dubai Duty Free has announced “extraordinary” sales of AED724.7 million (US$198.5 million) during the month of May, marking a 12.5% increase over May 2024, and the highest monthly sales figure recorded this year.
May 2025 is the second-highest sales month ever for a non-December period, trailing only behind November 2024, and ranks ninth among the all-time top ten sales months when including December figures.
Ramesh Cidambi, Managing Director of Dubai Duty Free, said, “May continued the strong growth story of 2025 and I am especially happy that the increase in sales was seen in many of the major categories. As of May 31, our revenue has exceeded AED3.5 billion (US$1 billion), reflecting a year-to-date growth of nearly 6.5%. These positive results are a direct reflection of the commitment and excellence shown by our entire team of staff.”
The 12.5% sales growth for May is expected to outpace passenger traffic by 7-8% (based on DDF’s internal estimates and pending DXB figures), which averaged approximately 242,000 passengers per day. Daily sales averaged AED23.3 million (US$6.38 million), driven by strong performance metrics: penetration rose to 28% (up from 26.3% in May 2024), and average spend per departing passenger climbed to US$46.7, an increase of US$3 year-on-year.
In May, sales growth was strong across all major product categories with Confectionery up 81% with AED73.9 million (US$20.2 million) sales, boosted by the continued success of ‘Dubai chocolate’. Perfume sales reached AED132.8 million (US$36.4 million) showing an almost 15% increase over the same month last year.
Confectionery sales increased by 81% in May
Cosmetics were up 10.8% with AED35.2 million (US$9.6 million) sales, Cigarettes and Tobacco climbed 14.4% generating AED77.6 million (US$21.3 million) in sales. Gold sales were up 11.65%, reaching AED70.7 million (US$19.4 million) and Precious Jewelry saw a notable 31.75% increase with sales of AED20.2 million (US$5.5 million). Liquor sales rose to nearly 4% to AED89.9 million (US$24.6 million) and Electronics recorded a 5.4% increase with AED41.7 million (US$11.4 million) sales.
The Fashion boutiques also performed well, recording a 4.7% increase over May last year with sales of AED71.3 million (US$19.5 million).
In total, these increases contributed to over AED80 million (US$22 million) in additional sales compared to May 2024.
Among the concourses, Concourse B in Terminal 3 led the growth with a 17.5% increase, followed by Concourse D in Terminal 1 at 10.7%, Concourse A rose by 7.8% and Concourse C by just under 1%. Terminal 2 Departures recorded an exceptional 20.8% year-on-year increase, while Arrivals shops across all three Terminals posted a combined growth of 6.25% following the completion of its renovations and refurbishment.
All key passenger regions showed positive sales with Europe up 25.9%, the Russian region up 14%, the Far East up 5.2%, Middle East up 14% and the Indian-sub continent up 4%, despite recent travel disruptions.
