It is no surprise that when you combine Asians’ love of shopping with travel that the Duty Free market would be booming in Asia Pacific… and it is.

Provisional figures released by Generation AB show that global duty free and travel retail sales in 2013 reached US$60 billion. The Asia Pacific region accounted for US$22.3 billion, 37% of the total, up 12% on 2012 which was well ahead of the global trend of +7.5%. In 1995, when the first TFWA Asia Pacific Exhibition & Conference was staged, the region’s share was 30.5%; over the next decade it is forecast to reach 45%.

Interestingly, in terms of growth, downtown duty free stores delivered the greatest year on year sales growth in the region, unlike most other regions where airport stores are the major driver.

The TFWA event broke records once again for exhibition space, exhibitors and visitor numbers, an outstanding performance which is testament to the dynamism of the duty free & travel retail industry in Asia Pacific.

A total of 2,683 visitors, up 9.4% from last year, visited the show, from 1,022 companies (+1.8%). Of this total, 982 were duty free & travel retail operators and landlords (key buyers), up +8.7% on 2013, from 255 companies (+6.2%).