Future Travel Experience (FTE) is taking its engagement with airport commercial leaders to the next level through the FTE World Airport Retailing Working Group. This initiative provides a platform – and is building a community – in which the brightest, most progressive minds in the commercial sector globally can network and share ideas, visions and learnings on how the industry can improve its commercial offerings, strategies and collaboration. As part of FTE’s commitment to the widest possible engagement, access to the Working Group is free to all relevant industry stakeholders, with over 230 organisations, including airports, airlines, and retailers, already signed up as members, reflecting our dedication to fostering broad engagement within the industry. Ahead of their participation in the free to attend virtual meeting of the FTE World Airport Retailing Working Group on 14 March 2024, Sammy Patel, Vice President Commercial, Vantage Airport Group; Fraser Brown, Retail Director, Heathrow Airport; Gerald Ong, Strategy and Commercial Development, Hamad International Airport; Isabel Zarza, CEO Southern Europe, Avolta; and Martijn Steur, Managing Director, Kinetic Consultancy, share their insights into innovation, experience and engagement in the airport commercial realm.
“A lively discussion focused on key and emerging themes in our industry”
The next virtual meeting of the FTE World Airport Retailing Working Group, taking place on 14 March 2024 at 10:30 EST, is themed “The Airport Commercial Strategy Revolution: Innovation, Experience, Engagement”. It will be co-moderated by Sammy Patel, Vice President Commercial, Vantage Airport Group, and FTE World Airport Retailing Working Group Captain, and Martijn Steur, Managing Director, Kinetic Consultancy. Both Sammy and Martijn are members of the FTE Ancillary & Retailing Advisory Board.
“I’m sure it will be a lively discussion with the representatives from Hamad, Heathrow, and Avolta, focused on key and emerging themes in our industry,” says Sammy Patel, Vice President Commercial, Vantage Airport Group, and FTE World Airport Retailing Working Group Captain. “On my radar from a future commercial retailing perspective are subjects like continued digitalisation, space planning and adjacencies, the future of brand activations, and of course the inclusion of local partners and concepts in retail programmes.”
From Vantage’s perspective, the Group is always thinking with a global view thanks to the network’s broad composition of airports and terminal projects. “We have just marked one year of commercial operation at Kansas City International’s new single terminal, where we are delivering a shopping and dining programme that features 80% local partners and brands, including a one-of-a-kind Kansas City BBQ experience restaurant – featuring local ‘pitmasters’ offering their award-winning BBQ menu in the terminal,” Patel explains. “Later this year, we are wrapping up the transformation of Chicago Midway Airport’s commercial programme, where we will be opening a lounge later this year. In New York, our commercial programme at LaGuardia Terminal B – awarded best new airport terminal in the world in 2023 – has been performing extremely well. And we are in the midst of planning and procurement for our next NYC-area terminal: JFK Terminal 6, which is set to open its first phase in 2026.”
With these developments in mind, Patel adds that the FTE World Airport Retailing Working Group is a highly valuable industry platform that helps drive significant change in the commercial space. “I look forward to collaborating with partners, sharing best practices, and offering my and Vantage’s perspectives on our industry.”
“By participating in the March meeting, stakeholders can actively contribute to shaping the future of airport commercial strategies”
Kinetic Consultancy focuses on every aspect of the high-traffic locations and commercial income business dynamics. In its essence, Kinetic looks at all parts of how its clients and their business partners make a positive impact and generate revenue. “Our support for the design team of the new Polish Transport Hub (Centralny Port Komunikacyjny), incorporated the dynamics of ground transportation, rail and of course airport terminal,” says Martijn Steur, Managing Director, Kinetic Consultancy. “Together with a multidisciplinary design team, we reimagined the commercial layout of the transport hub and reviewed the commercial potential of the plan. We recognise the importance of finding the right balance between customer satisfaction and the business side of things in the airport industry. But it’s important to remember that each airport is unique.”
Within the airport commercial industry, it’s evident that innovation in airport commercial strategy is paramount, underscoring the imperative to align with shifting consumer trends and preferences. “The crucial question lies in the approach: striking a balance between enhancing the customer experience and implementing a viable business model and solution,” Steur explains. “Fundamentally, airports operate as platforms, achieving success through optimal collaboration with partners and solution providers. Understanding that success isn’t a zero-sum game, but rather grows through a network effect, both the business and its influence on consumers can thrive. Once more, the approach is pivotal in achieving this.”
Steur comments that leaders in the airport industry should foster an innovation culture, encouraging entrepreneurship and piloting new ideas. “Airports and their collaborators stand to gain from prioritising the optimisation of their constrained resources including staff, space, and finances,” he shares. “It’s essential for them to actively synchronise operations within their premises to maintain efficiency. Just as in an orchestra, where each musician’s precision is crucial, even minor discrepancies can disrupt the customer experience. Simplifying aspects of operations can significantly enhance the performance of all involved parties, akin to the effect of streamlining an orchestra’s performance.”
The FTE World Airport Retailing Working Group serves as a catalyst for industry collaboration by bringing together a diverse range of stakeholders, including airports, airlines, retailers, and solution providers. Steur notes that it fosters knowledge-sharing for instance by best practices, but also provides great networking opportunities to drive positive change in airport industry retailing globally. “Joining the FTE World Airport Retailing Working Group provides an invaluable opportunity for industry stakeholders to collaborate, share insights, and drive innovation in airport retailing. By participating in the March meeting, stakeholders can actively contribute to shaping the future of airport commercial strategies and enhancing the passenger experience.”
Heathrow: “We have to collaborate across the quaternity of retailers, airports, brands and Out of Home (OOH) media partners”
During the FTE World Airport Retailing Working Group meeting on 14 March 2024, Fraser Brown, Retail Director, Heathrow, will share a key message: “We have to collaborate across the quaternity of retailers, airports, brands and Out of Home (OOH) media partners.”
Heathrow continues to evolve its retail and F&B offer in pursuit of its vision to deliver “the best airport service in the world”. The pace of this change has increased significantly since Covid. In 2019 Heathrow had 23 new or refreshed units – in 2023 it was 36.
Sharing his thoughts on ways in which the industry can enhance innovation, experience and engagement in the airport commercial realm, Brown explains that one big area is digital. “We are very focused on the dwell in the International Departure Lounges, but there is a great opportunity to engage and increase dwell through digital engagement. Airports are typically good at this through their own parking business – having learned about SEO and PPC through that. What we all need to do is translate that experience and knowledge to retail.”
Brown is looking forward to participating in the March meeting of the FTE World Airport Retailing Working Group and the opportunity to network and share ideas, visions and learnings. “It’s always good to talk! Whilst each airport is very different, the themes we are all grappling with tend to be the same.”
Hamad International Airport envisions a seamless and personalised airport commercial experience
Continuous engagement and collaboration within the industry is essential in promoting and providing a seamless passenger experience across the travel journey. Hamad International Airport envisions a seamless and personalised airport experience beyond the terminal, for example starting at home. “This is initiated through digital transformation initiatives, as well as working hand-in-hand with our airline partners,” explains Gerald Ong, Strategy and Commercial Development, Hamad International Airport. “Mapping out the travel journey with digital innovation will enable passengers to purchase services in advance, such as e-commerce/retail promotions, and pre-booking car parking. This will be a holistic view of integrating and providing an end-to-end service proposition to passengers right from the moment of arriving at the airport terminal, shopping and right to boarding the aircraft.”
Additional commercial space has been created as part of the two-phase terminal expansion at Hamad International Airport. Phase A, which was most recently completed in November 2022, involved development of a central concourse that interlinks concourses D and E. The additional 11,720sqm of retail space and F&B features over 65 outlets with prominent brands such as Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Dior, Fendi, and Bvglari.
Ong will share a key message in the March meeting of the FTE World Airport Retailing Working Group about “how we in the industry continue to find the balance or right mix in maintaining diverse, high standards of terminal facilities, as well as quality of services and offerings, for a better passenger experience”. He adds: “I welcome the opportunity to have a wider spectrum of stakeholders getting together, it will certainly drive better opportunities to collaborate on enhancing the industry as a whole with new technology and services.”
Avolta’s focus on a customised offering for travellers, including elements of experience, new categories, and exclusive products
Global travel retail powerhouse Avolta (the brand identity of the combined Dufry and Autogrill) believes that to build the future airport commercial experience it is important to have a good foundation with the following pillars:
- Put the customer at the centre of the commercial activities, providing exactly the services needed at any specific location to cover the needs of the specific airport’s traveller profile.
- Permanently assess the needs of the travellers and adapt the assortment and services accordingly. Include both physical commercial areas as well as online services.
- Increase customer engagement touch-points through use of digital platforms.
- Focus on providing experiential shopping and F&B environments.
“I would like to share how excited I am to be participating in the next FTE World Airport Retailing Working Group meeting, to focus on driving positive change and innovation, collaborating with other airports, airlines, retailers, and brands from around the world, and sharing global perspectives and experiences,” says Isabel Zarza, CEO Southern Europe, Avolta. “We are all committed to taking our engagement within the airport industry to the next level.”
One of the pillars of the new Avolta strategy is based on a customised offering for travellers, including elements of experience, new categories, and exclusive products. “This experience will be delivered both in physical ‘smart’ stores, with a modular concept that allows us to customise the offering to different passengers, routes and nationalities, as well as through digital channels, with extensive digital engagement before and after travel, to drive consideration and loyalty,” Zarza explains. “Pushing beyond the boundaries of retail, the travel experience revolution brings together travel retail and food & beverage, with the transformative business combination with Autogrill, which will allow us to engage consumers with a broader set of products and a wider range of experiences, providing a platform to ‘make travellers happier during travel’.”
Recent developments in the EMEA region include a new project at Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport, which encompasses 10 duty free stores and will include hybrid elements with food & beverage. The stores occupy more than 3,500sqm of space. In Italy, at Milan Malpensa Airport, Avolta recently launched Hudson Café Milano, a hybrid concept combining both F&B and retail businesses. Meanwhile, in Spain Avolta is in the middle of a big transformation – by the end of the year, it will have all major airports including Madrid, Barcelona, Malaga, Alicante, Valencia, and Palma with its new ‘SMART shops’. “You are all invited to come and experience the revolution,” says Zarza. “Alongside this, we have several other exciting projects and initiatives in North America, Latin America and Asia Pacific as well.”
Zarza adds that the FTE World Airport Retailing Working Group represents a unique platform to build a community in which all the stakeholders in the industry globally can network and share ideas, visions and learnings on how the industry can really improve its commercial offerings, strategies and collaboration. “We need to share and be brave and ready to try new things, and for that we need to be flexible in the way we build our contractual relations to have the opportunity to win.”
Looking ahead, the FTE World Airport Retailing Working Group will meet in-person in Dublin on 11 June 2024 ahead of the co-located FTE EMEA and FTE Ancillary & Retailing events. Register your interest to play your part in this landmark industry project using the button below.
