Dufry set to take over final duty free space at Nairobi Airport as rival’s legal challenge dismissed

KENYA. Dufry looks set to take over the final space covered by its master licence at Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. It follows rival Maya Duty Free’s failure in a legal battle to halt its eviction from its Terminal 4 premises, as reported this week by Business Daily.

The Kenyan newspaper reported that Maya Duty Free had failed to convince the High Court that its constitutional rights had been infringed when it was issued with an eviction order by Kenya Airports Authority (KAA). In February 2017 KAA gave Maya Duty Free 14 days to vacate its space, which had been awarded as part of a master concession licence to Dufry.

Maya Duty Free has continued to challenge the eviction notice since. On Thursday the High Court found against Maya Duty Free, though an appeal may follow, noted Business Daily.

How Business Daily reported the latest twist in the legal battle over the duty free concession at Jomo Kenyatta Airport.

A Dufry spokesperson told The Moodie Davitt Report: “We won a 2014 tender for the development and management of duty free retail services under a single Master Licence at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to operate the duty free stores, restaurants, a foreign exchange bureau and telephone cards in Terminal 4 (the new terminal in Nairobi).

“We are already operating all the stores under the Master Licence except for the duty free space that the previous incumbent, duty free competitor Maya, refused to vacate.”

On the court challenge, the company said that it preferred not to comment “until the case has been completely closed”.

Dufry’s status at the airport has been the subject of repeated challenge from other bidders since it won the master licence. A previous case brought by from long-time local incumbent World Duty Free Kenya (no relation to World Duty Free Group, now owned by Dufry) was dismissed in 2015.

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