The Public Investment Fund (PIF) announced on Monday the establishment of Al Waha Duty-Free Company (Al Waha), a travel retailer and the first Saudi-owned duty-free operator.
Al Waha, a wholly owned PIF company, will become a leader in travel retail and secure a greater share of passenger spending for the Saudi economy, said PIF in a statement.
Al Waha will develop luxury retail outlets in select locations across the Kingdom and feature a variety of merchandise including unique, high-quality Saudi products. The company will operate its airport outlets on a duty-free basis, and will explore additional travel retail opportunities at land border crossings and seaports, as well as channels such as inflight shopping.
Head of Consumer Goods and Retail in MENA Investments at PIF Majed Al-Assaf said: “By establishing Al Waha as a national travel retail champion, PIF intends to grow the Saudi travel retail industry and further support its ambitions for the tourism sector in Saudi Arabia.”
“Al Waha will offer a distinctive traveler experience across Saudi travel retail touch points through diverse product offerings, a duty-free operation and a superior digital customer journey,” he added.
There is considerable potential for Saudi Arabia to gain a larger share of travel retail spending in the future, and the continued increase in visitors coming to the country - as well as global events being hosted locally - offer new opportunities to generate sustainable travel retail revenues, he remarked.
PIF is unlocking the capabilities of strategic sectors to diversify the Saudi economy, stressed the statement.
