DENMARK. Copenhagen Airports says first half concession revenue from its Shopping Centre was up +8.1% year-on-year, to DKK397.2 million (US$63.1 million).
The main drivers were an increase in departing passengers and an improved shop and brand mix among speciality shops and restaurants. Passenger traffic was up +2.3% to 14.0 million.
“The growth in the tax free shops should be seen in conjunction with both the increase in the number of departing international passengers and a higher spend per passenger,” the company said in its interim first half report.
“The speciality store concept has been optimised with an expanded product mix through the opening of stores such as Paul Smith and Björn Borg, and the renovation of Gucci, giving passengers a wider choice of attractive options. The restaurant segment has been expanded with a new ReTreat unit.”
Revenue from parking grew by +2.3%. This was due to the continuing stronger online and media campaign as well as increased capacity in the budget category, Copenhagen Airports said.
Other revenue was up +4.8%, mainly because of continued growth in the advertising contract with Airmagine.
Overall, concession revenue climbed by +6.1% year-on-year to DKK609.9 million (US$96.8 million), but non-aeronautical revenue was down -1.2% to DKK867.8 million (US$137.8 million).
“In 2016, for the first time, there were days when more than 100,000 passengers passed through Copenhagen Airport. More than 30 such days are expected in 2017,” said Copenhagen Airports CEO Thomas Woldbye.
“Danes are travelling more frequently, and Denmark has become an attractive destination for many tourists, particularly from southern Europe. We seek to continue this development with ‘Expanding CPH’, our plan to expand the airport to be able to accommodate more than 40 million passengers a year.”
Several new routes from Copenhagen opened in the first half of 2017 – some to new destinations such as Oakland (California), Valencia and Turin, and some with new airlines to existing destinations, for example SAS’s routes to the Faroe Islands and Riga.
Company revenue in total was up +1.8%, although the company said underlying revenue grew by +4.3%. EBITDA increased +6.0% with pre-tax profits up +1.0%.
