China Tourism Group Duty Free Corp Ltd (CTG Duty-Free) says it will acquire travel-focused luxury retailer DFS Group’s businesses in Macau and Hong Kong, as well as intangible assets encompassing the DFS brand, for exclusive use in the Greater China region.
CTG Duty-Free is a Chinese state-owned travel retailing business listed in Shanghai and Hong Kong. The seven Macau DFS outlets involved in the deal are all within Macau casino resorts.
The acquisition price for the deal – funded by “internal resources” of CTG Duty-Free and to be settled in cash – will “not exceed US$395 million”, according to a Tuesday filing in Hong Kong by the suitor. The deal is due to close in around two months’ time.
DFS Group is privately held, and majority owned by luxury conglomerate LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH), alongside DFS co-founder and shareholder Robert Miller.
The value of the seven DFS Macau stores was appraised at nearly CNY2.64 billion, or US$371.23 million, as of September 30, 2025, said CTG Duty-Free in its Tuesday filing in Hong Kong. It cited a valuation report done by Jones Lang LaSalle Corporate Appraisal and Advisory Ltd.
The seven Macau outlets are located respectively at leased spaces at: The Shoppes at Londoner Macao; Galaxy Macau; MGM Cotai; MGM Macau; Wynn Palace; The Shoppes at Four Seasons; and Studio City.
The appraisal value of the two DFS Hong Kong stores in the deal was put at CNY495.98 million or US$69.80 million, the filing noted.
The Hong Kong filing outlined the decline in profit seen in DFS’ Macau and Hong Kong retail businesses in 2024 relative to 2023, though there was some year-on-year recovery in 2025 in the nine months to September 30.
The Macau and Hong Kong operations’ 2023 net profit after tax reached CNY965.15 million, before dwindling to CNY127.56 million in 2024. Such profit for the first nine months of 2025 had been CNY133.40 million.
Ed Brennan, DFS’ chairman and chief executive was cited as saying the disposal marked “an important step” for his group.
He added: “DFS’ well-established presence and operational excellence in Hong Kong and Macau is an achievement we take great pride in.
“The DFS shopping experience will be carried forward and enhanced by the new skills and perspectives that CTG Duty-Free will bring.”
Luke Chang, CTG Duty-Free’s executive director and president, was quoted saying: “This move will further expand CTG Duty-Free’s service network across the [Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau] Greater Bay Area.”
He added the deal aimed to “build a platform for promoting China-chic brands globally and establish an international business mid-platform”.
In a complementary move, LVMH and the Miller Family are to participate in a capital injection for CTG Duty Free by subscribing to its newly-issued H-shares listed in Hong Kong, the announcement also mentioned.
“This subscription amount represents only a small part of their proceeds from the acquisitions and will, upon completion of the subscription, result in LVMH and the Miller Family collectively holding approximately 0.57 percent of the company’s total share capital,” stated CTG Duty-Free in its Tuesday filing.
In addition, CTG Duty-Free and LVMH have also reached a memorandum of understanding to collaborate in areas including product sales, store establishment, and brand promotion in Greater China.
That agreement would come into effect upon the conclusion of the acquistion deal, the Tuesday filing from CTF Duty-Free stated.
