April 23, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Lotte Duty Free has opened a new airport duty free store in Vietnam‘s southeastern city of Nha Trang, its second airport outlet in the Southeast Asian state and seventh among its total overseas locations, the company said on July 1.

The company has secured exclusive rights to run the store until 2028 over the 1,680 square-meter area at Cam Ranh International Airport’s new terminal, according to officials.

 

Lotte Duty Free‘s second airport outlet in Vietnam’s Cam Ranh International Airport’s new terminal in Nha Trang. Lotte Duty Free

Nha Trang has recently risen as the largest tourist destination in central Vietnam, attracting some 1.2 million foreigners last year.

The Nha Trang business will be run by local joint venture Phu Khanh Duty Free, in which Lotte has a 60 percent holding. The company expects to attain some 700 billion won ($644 million) in sales over the upcoming 10 years of operation.

In November last year, Lotte Duty Free opened the first outlet in Vietnam at Da Nang International Airport, also through a venture jointly set up by Lotte and a local partner. It was the first duty-free outlet in Vietnam established by a Korean operator.

“Lotte Duty Free will thrive in the Vietnamese market on the back of a combination of differentiated services and Hallyu star marketing,” said Lotte Duty Free CEO Jang Sun-wook.

The company said it aims to open additional outlets in Vietnam’s major cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh over the next three years. 

By Kim Da-sol/The Korea Herald (ddd@heraldcorp.com)