How does the RED by Dufry duty free loyalty scheme work?

This is our review of the RED by Dufry duty free loyalty scheme.

You might not know the name Dufry, but it is the dominant global duty free retailer.  As well as owning World Duty Free in the UK, it also owns:

• Dufry (various locations)
• World Duty Free (outside the UK, it is in Western Europe, Americas, Middle East, Asia)
• Nuance (Europe, Asia, North America)
• Hellenic Duty Free (Greece)
• Colombian Emerald (Carribean, Central America, Norwegian Cruise Line vessels)
• Duty Free Uruguay (Uruguay)
• Hudson (US & Canada)
• Duty Free Shop Argentina (Argentina)
• RegStaer (Russia)

Basically, you can’t avoid them.

Dufry has its own app-based loyalty programme called RED By Dufry.  The key benefit of downloading this app is that you get a 5% discount on purchases at selected Dufry stores.  You can join here.

It has continued to add new benefits, and there is now a link with DragonPass (the airport lounge access card) which is very interesting.

Here are the UK airports when you can save at the World Duty Free or Dufry store:

• Aberdeen
• Belfast City
• Birmingham
• Bournemouth
• Bristol
• Cardiff
• Doncaster
• East Midlands
• Edinburgh
• Exeter
• Glasgow
• Glasgow Prestwick
• Humberside
• Leeds Bradford
• Liverpool John Lennon
• London Gatwick
• London Heathrow
• London Luton
• London Southend
• London Stansted
• Manchester
• Newcastle
• Norwich
• Southampton

…. plus Eurostar at London St Pancras and Eurotunnel at Calais and Folkestone.

If you buy at World Duty Free or Dufry on a regular basis, you could make decent savings by signing up for RED By Dufry.

What do I save?

At Heathrow, the discount for Silver level members – which is what you get when you sign up – is 5%.  Tobacco purchases are excluded, as are airport arrivals stores.

This makes it a no-brainer to sign up if you ever make purchases at World Duty Free stores in UK airports or from other Dufry businesses abroad.

With $400 of spend you reach Gold level, where your discount rises to 7%.  At $1000 of spend, over a two year period, you reach Platinum.

At Heathrow, I imagine that you will continue to receive Heathrow Rewards points on top of your RED discount.

How it works

Register for RED by Dufry via this link.  That’s it!  Once you have an account you can download the app and log in.

The app displays a QR code which can be scanned in-store to ensure you get your discount and your points.

You can add your Iberia Plus or Vueling Club Avios number during the sign up process or later.  It is under the ‘More’ tab on the sign-up page.

How do I earn Avios?

Iberia Plus and Vueling Club are partners with RED By Dufry.

If you link your Iberia Plus or Vueling Club account with the RED By Dufry app, you will earn:

• 3 Avios per €1 as a Silver RED member
• 6 Avios per €1 as a Gold RED member
• 9 Avios per €1 as a Platinum RED member

Avios earning now appears to be available globally – it was originally just offered at Spanish airports.  Participating brands are World Duty Free, Canariensis, Michael Kors, Hudson, Victoria’s Secret, Superdry, Express Duty Free, Gap, Collection and Boutique.

(EDIT: there is debate about whether this is correct. The Iberia website no longer mentions a restriction but it appears that it is in the RED rules. You may still be restricted to Spain.)

Once the Avios appear in your Iberia Plus or Vueling Club account you can move them to your British Airways Executive Club account, immediately and for free, via ‘Combine My Avios’.

Full details are on this page of the Iberia website.

How do I get airport lounge access?

Dufry has a partnership with DragonPass which is a competitor to Priority Pass / Lounge Club / LoungeKey, all of which are owned by Collinson.

As a Silver member of RED by Dufry – which is what you get just for signing up – you can pay for access to any DragonPass lounge for $25.  Virtually every lounge in Priority Pass is in DragonPass PLUS some others.  In particular, the Plaza Premium lounge in Heathrow Terminal 5 is in DragonPass.

I don’t think there is any cheaper way to get into the Plaza Premium lounge in Terminal 5 – which is NOT accessible with Priority Pass – than by paying $25 via RED by Dufry.

Gold and Platinum members of RED by Dufry get reduced cost lounge access at DragonPass sites. Gold is $20 and Platinum just $10.

Conclusion

Year after year, RED by Dufry gets more interesting.

Initially it didn’t cover the UK … now it does

Initially there was no option to buy cheap lounge access …. now it has the DragonPass tie-up

If you are an occasional buyer of duty free at UK airports then it worth signing up purely for the 5% cash discount at World Duty Free stores, plus a handful of Avios on top.  The link to register is here.