Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — The Public Investment Fund (PIF) has announced the launch of the Duty Free (Al Waha), a retail travel company, which will become the first Saudi-owned duty-free operator.

The company will be a national leader in travel retail, redirecting a greater portion of travel spending back into the Saudi economy.

It will develop luxury retail outlets in select locations across Saudi Arabia, offering a diverse range of goods, including high-quality Saudi products. It’s also will operate its outlets at airports on a duty-free basis and will explore additional retail opportunities at land border points and ports, in addition to in-flight sales.

Majed Al-Assaf, Head of Consumer Goods and Retail in MENA Investments at PIF, said: PIF aims to enhance the growth of travel retail and support its aspirations in the local tourism sector by launching “Al Waha” to be a leading national company in the field of travel retail. “Al Waha” will provide a distinctive experience for travelers in various travel facilities in Saudi Arabia through diversifying products, distinguishing duty-free operations, and developing an advanced digital shopping experience.

“We have significant opportunities to increase Saudi Arabia’s share of travel retail spending in the future. The expected growth in the number of travelers to Saudi Arabia, as well as global events hosted locally, provide new opportunities to generate sustainable revenues for the travel retail sector,” Al-Assaf added.

The launch of Al Waha is in line with a series of major investments by the PIF in the tourism, aviation and retail sectors, including King Salman International Airport in Riyadh, which was launched in 2022 and will be among the largest airports in the world. Upon completion of its development work, the airport will have a capacity of 120 million passengers annually and will contain many retail stores and restaurants.

The PIF also launched Riyadh Air, Saudi Arabia’s new national carrier, which aims to make Riyadh a global gateway for travel.

The PIF’s investments also include the Grand Projects Group, along with Jeddah-based Cruise Saudi, which is working to make the Kingdom’s Red Sea coast a major global destination, as well as retail investments including the Saudi Coffee Company, Turath Al Madinah, which focuses on producing high-quality dates, and Sawani, which specializes in camel milk products.