Is it really duty free?

In my line of work in the motoring beat, I have travelled a lot. On top of work-related travel, we have the regular family trips abroad and it all adds up to quite a lot.  We have always said that while one can still go around on foot with no worries about the joints and limbs, go the extra mile.  We don’t subscribe to the idea that we should save and penny-pinch until old age when we can finally afford to splurge and then travel with a cane?  No way.

Anyway, what I wanted to point out, like most Filipinos, whenever we travel, thinking of ‘pasalubongs’ is always top of mind.  Mostly, it is the bags of chocolates for the office staff which is still the safest.  With two or three bags of those packaged chocolates, even the wife and kids will certainly enjoy, so you can imagine that we often find ourselves in the main Duty Free Shop in Sucat after a foreign trip. This is also where I get my stock of Scotch whiskeys for my regular big events because, like most people, I believe that duty-free liquor will save me quite a few pesos. Liquor, too, is a favorite pasalubong for most balikbayans, which is probably why they have a pretty good stock of this, from the very popular single malts to all the new variants of whiskey.  It also saves them the problem of lugging those heavy bottles all the way from those far-away countries.  It is most convenient to just drop by the Duty Free Shop before facing the families at home.

A brother-in-law who just arrived from the US was surprised to find out that the Johnnie Walker Black is cheaper in the Duty Free store than in the US itself. Intrigued, he found the time to check on this very same item in different outlets to check the prices.  Like him, we were surprised to find that this very same item, which costs around P1,500 per bottle (converted from the dollar price) at the Duty Free Shop costs round P1,050 in the SM store and P956 at S&R. I cannot find a good enough reason for this and when we had occasion to go back to the Duty Free Shop again, my brother-in-law pointedly asked the salesman at the liquor section about it.  He was obviously uncomfortable about the question, but recovered quickly enough to retort back, “At least here you can be sure that our stocks are always fresh.”  And we’re talking about liquor here. Even the nuts (walnuts, macadamia, pistachio) which abound here are imprudently priced for a duty free store, even considering shipping and handling costs.

The Duty Free Shop used to be patronized by so many Filipino families and it was always a family treat to go there on weekends whenever somebody arrives from a foreign trip.  In recent years, because this patronage has dwindled to really dangerous levels, this government-owned entity has resorted to all sorts of promos to lure the Filipino families back.  Before, one could enjoy the Duty Free privileges only within 48 hours upon arrival.  Now, one can enjoy the same privilege within one year after arrival and even accumulate the unused shopping privileges.

The Duty Free Shop, which occupies such a huge space, used to be a highly profitable venture for the government. I remember enjoying those family bonding trips to the store several decades ago. Now, it saddens me to find the store like a ghost town every time I go there for my usual chocolates and liquor though it is kept very clean at all times. When you get to the ground floor to get a shopping card, there is no queuing and as soon as you get your number, it is immediately called which just goes to show us how many people come here on a daily basis. The staff is very cordial, helpful and professional though.

As you get to the second level to go shopping, an empty big space awaits you.  Very few shoppers walk around with push carts – in fact, it seems like there are more sales people than customers. The sales staff, though courteous enough, pitch hard for their merchandise, short of pulling you physically to buy their stuff. There is always a free gadget or gift for every bag of chocolates. The scenario is more pathetic than irritating, actually, because it is obvious the staff are very concerned about keeping their jobs.

Having a duty free store in every major airport in the world is vital and I know we cannot afford to scrap this major outlet. But let us keep it at least only a little profitable and, well, decently enticing.  In all of the major airports in the world, their duty free stores are world-class and teeming with travellers. Here, one doesn’t see any foreigner – just our kababayans, mostly OFW families to be more accurate. With so much personnel manning the outlets, is the store still running at a profit, no matter how small?  And there is the pricing as well.  I am specifically referring to the Scotch whisky I mentioned earlier.  How can this happen? 

I don’t know what remedial measures can be adopted here and I won’t even venture any constructive suggestions at the moment because I don’t have any.  As a Filipino who cares for this country, I just know that we need to do something drastic and quick so as not to let this valuable piece of government asset that we are maintaining at a steep price to go to waste. We need to maintain it as a decent-enough duty free shop with world-class merchandize at competitive prices.

Mabuhay!!!  Be proud to be a Filipino.

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