TUNISIA. Hamila Duty Free is to open Tunisia’s first land border duty free store at Maaloula on the frontier with Algeria next year. The company captured a ten-year contract after the government liberalised its Customs rules to allow the border retail channel to open.
Hamila Duty Free will open a large complex that includes a duty free store in 515sq m of space, three smaller boutiques, a food court and other services. The crossing is the busiest between the two countries, handling 1.5 to 2 million travellers per year.
Deputy General Manager Laroussi Sfar told The Moodie Davitt Report: “The crossing serves mainly Algerians who come to Tunisia for leisure or business. The formalities on the border can take around three hours so we are providing a space for people to relax, eat and shop, with facilities for families with children too. This is in fact the first land border shop in the region.”
The company is also investing in several other big initiatives. It has struck an agreement to open a duty paid ‘Take 5’ concept with Oil Libya, covering petrol stations on highways in Tunisia. Hamila will manage the non-oil business including retail, coffee shops and restaurants.
In other news, Hamila is developing its duty paid fashion retail business both on- and off-airport. It has opened two stores under the De Facto fast fashion label, one each in Sousse and Tunis, with more to follow.
*Full details on Hamila Duty Free’s expansion plans will appear in The Official MEADFA Guide, published by The Moodie Davitt Report, which appears at the Middle East & Africa Duty Free Conference on 20-21 November in Beirut.
