QATAR. Hamad International Airport (HIA) has captured the prestigious accolade of ‘World’s Best Airport Shopping’ in the Skytrax World Airport Awards 2024. The award – HIA’s second in succession – recognises the pioneering retail work of Qatar Duty Free at the travel hub.

As reported, HIA was also recognised by Skytrax as ‘World’s Best Airport’ for the third time and ‘Best Airport in the Middle East’ for the tenth consecutive year.

The awards – with the winners calculated from data gleaned through global air traveller surveys – were hosted during the Passenger Terminal Expo 2024 in Frankfurt, Germany.

QDF attributed its success to its “dedication to innovation, exceptional customer service and delivering unique experiences”.

The retailer said: “As a vital component of the passenger journey, the retail delivered at Hamad International Airport by Qatar Duty Free has continuously elevated the airport’s overall offer, delivering memorable, world-first experiences regardless of budget, offering ‘something for everyone’ and further strengthening the airport’s reputation.”

In the last year, QDF has been responsible for numerous world-first openings, building on its footprint of more than 200 retail and dining outlets. This includes the unveiling of new concepts from Bally, Montblanc, Ralph Lauren and Tag Heuer and Souq Al Matar, an experiential mixed retail and dining concept which recreates the atmosphere of a traditional Qatari souq.

Click above and below for on location videos at Hamad International from The Moodie Davitt Report 

Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive Officer, Engr. Badr Mohammed Al-Meer said: “It is a source of great pride for Hamad International Airport to be recognised by Skytrax with a number of awards highlighting our leadership in delivering memorable experiences across all our customer touchpoints.

“First-class shopping is an important element in our overall proposition and the team at Qatar Duty Free continues to push boundaries in retail that set Hamad International Airport apart and establish world-leading standards in the aviation industry.”

Qatar Duty Free Senior Vice President Thabet Musleh commented: “We are extremely proud to have played a central role in Hamad International Airport’s continued success at the Skytrax World Airport Awards. Being ranked by travellers as the world’s best airport for shopping validates our vision for elevating this element of the passenger journey from services to experiences.

“Our commitment to delivering unique retail through pioneering approaches such as ‘Transit Tourism’ has made our home a destination in its own right, and with a raft of new openings and innovations in the works we will continue to find new ways of refreshing and differentiating our offer and exceeding the expectations of customers.”

The World Airport Awards began in 1999, when Skytrax launched its first global airport customer satisfaction survey. They are regarded as a quality independent benchmark for the world airport industry, assessing customer service and facilities across over 500 airports.

This latest recognition from Skytrax follows QDF’s success at the 2023 FAB Awards and Frontier Awards, the leading airport F&B and travel retail awards respectively.

QDF won Airport Food & Beverage Offer of the Year at the FAB Awards and was voted Airport Retailer of the Year at the Frontier Awards, marking the first time any company has won both in the same year. ✈