World Duty Free Group brings cricket fever to BIA

World Duty Free Group (WDFG), the leading duty free operator at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) along with the reputed beverage supplier, Brown Forman Worldwide, commenced another exciting mega promotion, ‘Cricket Fever 2012’ on 1 September to coincide with the ICC T20 Cricket World Cup, which will be held in Sri Lanka this September and October.

The cricket mega promotion campaign was inaugurated under the patronage of Prasanna Wickramasuriya, the Chairman of Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) Limited.

Customers who purchase selected products at the arrival and departure ‘World Duty Free’ shops will stand a chance to win exciting daily and weekly prizes.

As the promotion continues for eight weeks, eight winners will be selected though scratch cards on a weekly basis. The first five weekly winners who will be selected prior to the cricket world cup finals will enjoy either the ‘Champions Prize Package’ or ‘First Runner-up Prize Package’.

Each weekly prize package winner and their chosen travel partner will enjoy a thrilling Air Senok helicopter ride either from Colombo to Trincomalee or vice versa, with a delightful stay in a Beach Chalet at the Hotel Chaaya Blu in Trincomalee with fine dining and an opportunity to catch the excitement of T20 Cricket World Cup Finals on giant screen.

Adding more excitement to the prize packages, all weekly winners and their companions will be given the opportunity to cruise in the Indian Ocean on a luxury yacht owned by Ceysail Cruises (Pvt) Ltd. to watch dolphins and whales. Having enjoyed the once-in-a-lifetime experience package, part of the winners will get back to Colombo the next day evening on the Air Senok helicopter while the others will fly back in a MA 60 aero plane.

The three weekly winners, who will be selected after the Cricket World Cup, will enjoy the ‘Second Runner-up Prize Package’. The winners and their travel partners will enjoy a unique air taxi (sea plane) ride from Colombo to Koggala on 10 November, followed by the luxury yacht excursion to watch dolphins and whales. The winners will be pampered in the Hotel Chaaya Tranz – Hikkaduwa with one night full board stay for two before they head back to Colombo the next day.

Further to selecting weekly winners, over 1,800 daily winners will also walk away with Sri Lanka Cricket T-shirts, caps and other branded merchandise as part of the promotion.  

Commenting on the mega promotion at the inauguration, Abraham Alexander, Head of Operations of WDFG in Sri Lanka, said: “Our duty free stores will add cricket excitement and inculcate a sense of patriotism among Sri Lankan passengers during the next few weeks. The wider audience of tourists visiting from cricketing nations will also relate to the ‘Cricket Fever’ campaign. This promotion offers the customer a chance to win novel cricketing gifts and the grand weekly prize… a chance to watch the finals in style with this once-in-a-lifetime experience – a helicopter ride and yacht excursion.”

‘World Duty Free’ shops at the island nation’s first entry and last exit points, have been decorated with national flags, player cut-outs and other related cricketing memorabilia giving passengers their first feel for the buzzing cricketing atmosphere that awaits them.  The Cricket Fever will start the moment you step into BIA.

Chaminda Weerathunga, Head of Marketing of WDFG in Sri Lanka, added: “We have been offering great product offers and unique world-standard mega promotions to our customers continuously.  The ‘Cricket Fever 2011,’ mega promotion which we conducted last year alongside ICC Cricket World Cup, even got nominated and was one of the last five nominees of ‘The Best Partnership Initiative of the Year Award’ at the 27th Frontier Awards – 2011.  This is believed to be the Oscars in the global duty free travel retail industry and is held in Cannes, France annually. We are happy to present another great opportunity for our customers to win this once-in-a-lifetime experience with Cricket Fever 2012.”

World Duty Free Group, one of the world’s leading airport retailers, has grown out of Autogrill Group’s acquisition and integration of the Aldeasa, World Duty Free and Alpha Airport Shopping businesses. Today the company operates 325 stores in 21 countries.

It has developed its own commercial concepts, tailored to match the purchasing preferences of travelers passing through the 72 airports in which it operates. World Duty Free Group has become one of the world’s benchmark retail operators because of its depth of understanding of the needs of passengers. The Group is the market leader in the UK, Spain and Sri Lanka and has a significant presence in the Americas and Middle East.