UK/FRANCE. In one of the biggest blows to the UK ferry industry since the abolition of intra-EU duty-free in 1999, shipping firm Sea Containers has wound down the operation of Hoverspeed, its cross-Channel ferry company

CANADA. A law requiring all returning US citizens to carry a passport when crossing the country's northern frontier is the latest threat to the Canadian border duty-free industry

SOUTH AFRICA. Big Five Duty Free is poised to take advantage of an R53m ($7.9m) retail expansion at Johannesburg International airport planned by airport authority Airports Company South Africa (ACSA)

After initial interest from eight operators, including some of the biggest names in Asia/Pacific travel-retail, Wellington International airport has narrowed the field to three bidders in its search for a new duty-free tenant. Yet many in the industry are wondering why so many companies are lining up for what is hardly a huge business

As DFNI went to press the management board of state-owned Panamanian airport authority Tocumen was due to meet to discuss changes to the duty-free tender announced last month (DFNI November 1)

Life is looking up for the average Aer Rianta International (ARI) executive

Cannes may be over for another year, but the travel-retail event calendar for the rest of 2005 remains packed

Intra-EU duty-free abolition set the clock ticking for Europe's ferry operators. Now the existence of some of the proudest and most successful names in duty-free history is under threat

The Malaysian aviation industry has changed beyond recognition over the past 12 years. Its evolution is partly a result of the gradual emergence of Malaysia Airlines as a world-class carrier and partly due to the transfer of international operations from Kuala Lumpur Sepang airport to the new Kuala Lumpur International (KLIA) airport in 1998. But the commercial awareness of national airport authority Malaysia Airports has also played a big part

Clinique Travel Retail UK and Ireland area sales manager Isabelle Caprano is to join UK retailer World Duty Free (WDF) as senior fragrances and cosmetics buyer next January. She will report to WDF head of beauty Nigel Keal

Kraft Foods World Travel Retail marketing manager Victoria Navratil is to leave the division after several years helping to shape the confectionery supplier's travel-retail strategy

More people and company news

At the Tax Free World Association (TFWA) annual general meeting in Cannes earlier this month, Erik Juul-Mortensen was unanimously re-elected as president of the association, a role he has held since 1999

HMSHost president and CEO John "Jack" McCarthy died on November 4 from complications after he contracted pneumonia

As undisputed icons of luxury, Cuban cigars and Cannes go together like love and marriage, and this year Habanos celebrated its strong ties to travel-retail with the launch of its new Partagas Serie P No 2

Jaded Cannes visitors can be blasé about spectacular entertainment and fine cuisine. Yet rarely are the two combined as effectively as in this tale from a long-standing exhibitor and gastronomic connoisseur

Diners at the Parfums de Paris Jaguar Fresh launch held in the Restaurant Le Park Mougins were in party mood after a sumptuous meal and a generous serving of vino

Canada's long-suffering land border duty-free operators have faced a number of challenges this year including soaring petrol prices, a strengthening Canadian dollar and a potentially devastating new US passport law. Emily Pacey reports

Almost four years after a duty-free tender at Douglas was announced, a new permanent shop is set to open at the crossing between British Columbia and Washington next spring. If the new store maintains the current temporary outlet's growth, the results could be spectacular, writes Gavin Lipsith

This year's later-than-usual TFWA World Exhibition in Cannes coincided with Halloween, the season in which restless spirits abandon the underworld to roam on Earth, alarming the locals with their mournful wailing and ghastly appearance. More cynical readers might think the Cannes show and Halloween were made for each other

In his opening address on the state of the industry at the TFWA World Exhibition conference, association president Erik Juul-Mortensen argued that the trade had reached "a tipping point". Juul-Mortensen defined the tipping point as a "number of small steps taken which have begun to bear fruit"

Fur was well and truly flying at the Russ Berrie stand by the end of the show, when a last day free-for-all was spotted by DFNI passers-by

As a brand synonymous with style and innovation, Hugo Boss likes to make a splash in Cannes—but not, perhaps, in the way the German fashion brand did this year

With a membership comprising the most sophisticated marketers and communicators anywhere, Tax Free World Association is home to a host of product branding experts

If there was one thing in Cannes that left no-one in any doubt as to the changes under way in the liquor industry, it was the sight of Allied Domecq stalwart Frank Hunwick sporting a Pernod Ricard polo shirt

The violent disorder that has engulfed France spread to Cannes late on Friday November 4, after a senior travel retailer was shown his bill for a week's accommodation at one of the city's top Croisette hotels

Nestlé International Travel Retail's (NITR) second annual breakfast presentation again attracted a distinguished audience

No, your eyes weren't deceiving you. Amid the stretch limos, Porsches and BMWs crawling along the Croisette, there really was a rickety caravan being towed around the streets of Cannes during the show

Finding a niche in the Cannes calendar for a new event is never easy, but the Alpha Retail team has made Monday evening its own with one of the most relaxed and friendly dinners of the week

Cannes authorities are being pressed to remove "no smoking" signs from public places after receiving complaints from several angry travel-retail executives

TFWA president Erik Juul-Mortensen is a man accustomed to the presence of the great and the good

Once again, this was a show to remember for the sportsmen in the industry, with worthy charities among the biggest winners

ITALY. Airport authority Sagat has revealed further details of its development plans for Florence and Turin airports

MEXICO. Disruption continues at airport and port locations throughout Mexico in the wake of last month's Hurricane Wilma

FRANCE. This year's TFWA World Exhibition welcomed 4% more visitors than in 2004, with 5,289 attendees from 2,638 companies - a record, said TFWA

UK. Charter airline BMI and its low-cost division BMI Baby have launched tenders for their onboard retail contracts.

CROATIA. Duty-free sales in the first nine months of 2005 at Dubrovnik airport have increased by nearly 30% to E6.02m ($7.08m) as tourism to the Croatian resort recovers

LIBYA. Sabratha Duty Free Shops, a venture including Air Malta, Gebr Heinemann and Salvo Grima, is to open two border duty-free stores in Libya in the coming months. The partnership already operates at Tripoli airport and supplies another local duty-free shop

MIDDLE EAST. The Middle East Duty Free Association (MEDFA) has launched a training programme for its members, aimed at raising retail standards across the Middle Eastern duty-free market

EUROPE. The first edition of the European Travel Retail Council's (ETRC) index of EU duty-free and travel-retail sales has confirmed a disappointing performance in the region during the past two years, with total sales growth consistently behind the increase in passenger traffic.

NETHERLANDS. Enhanced data is helping KLM Tax Free Services to improve yield from its promotions at Amsterdam Schiphol airport's new Schengen megastore, which it runs jointly with beauty concessionaire Kappé Schiphol

IRELAND. Aer Rianta Retail is continuing its retail expansion drive at Dublin airport despite continuing uncertainty about the future ownership of Dublin, Cork and Shannon airports. Government proposals provide for the eventual creation of three separate airport authorities, which at present come under the control of Dublin Airport Authority, formerly Aer Rianta

NEW ZEALAND. Wellington International airport has shortlisted The Nuance Group subsidiary Regency Duty Free and King Power Group (Hong Kong) for the airport's duty-free tender, along with a third bidder, DFNI understands

ST MAARTEN. Princess Juliana International Airport has announced the first winners in its multiple tender to run retail in its new terminal

PANAMA. The board of Panama City International airport authority Tocumen was scheduled to meet as DFNI went to press to discuss changes to the tender for the duty-free concession at the airport (DFNI November 1). The meeting follows pressure from local duty-free operators and incumbent concessionaires

UK. Airports group BAA has proposed a plan to demolish London Heathrow terminal two in order to make way for a new facility, Heathrow East, in time for the 2012 Olympic Games in London

BARBADOS. The long-delayed result of the duty-free tender at Grantley Adams International airport in Barbados will be decided shortly, with Aer Rianta International (ARI) and Duty Free Caribbean expected to be the main winners

JAPAN. Osaka Kansai airport authority Kansai International Airport Co (KIAC) is to increase concession fees for operators of the location's ten brand boutiques

GERMANY. Berlin Schönefeld airport opens its new terminal D on November 28, with Gebr Heinemann set to operate a "new-look" Travel Value and duty-free shop

UK. Inflight sales on British Airways' (BA) short-haul flights are expected to resume before the beginning of the Christmas holiday season, the carrier has told DFNI

INTERNATIONAL. Bahrain Duty Free was the big winner at this year's Frontier Awards, scooping the main prize for Airport/ Land-based Retailer of the Year alongside the honour for Best Marketing Campaign of the Year by a Retailer. Bacardi's Bombay Sapphire gin brand also picked up two awards—for Best Marketing Campaign of the Year by a Supplier and Best Partnership of the Year for its work with Virgin Atlantic Airways

RUSSIA. Hotelier and travel retailer Rus Hotel has reported strong sales at its new VIP lounge and showroom at Moscow Sheremetyevo airport

Miguel Torres unveiled a new limited-edition Chilean wine at Cannes earlier this month and claimed its balanced New and Old World wine portfolio was helping to drive sales

Inver House Distillers has launched two rare Scotch malt whiskies in duty-free, targeted at whisky connoisseurs

Glenfiddich owner William Grant & Sons presented its new Icelandic vodka brand Reyka at Cannes earlier this month (DFNI Nov 1)

Irish low-cast carrier Ryanair has launched an online wine club in partnership with UK domestic retailer Majestic Wine Warehouses

The beauty industry has inspired V&S Global Duty Free's latest promotion for Absolut Apeach, which is particularly suited to travel-retail locations where straightforward tasting promotions are forbidden

Drinks group CL World Brands introduced two new duty-free exclusive Hine cognacs in Cannes

Cognac house Camus exhibited a new XO gift pack aimed at mainland Chinese travellers at TFWA World Exhibition. XO Elegance is a new blend of eaux-de-vie that is lighter than other older XOs on the market. It replaces Supérieur, the company's previous XO reference, which has now been discontinued

Brown-Forman Wines plans to introduce its premium Californian wine brand Sonoma-Cutrer into selected duty-free and travel-retail markets later this year

UK start-up company The Loch Ness Whisky Company wants to put some humour back into the duty-free whisky category with a single malt named after Scotland's most famous mystery

Luxury goods and cigar supplier ST Dupont has produced 1,500 limited-edition boxes of Honduran cigars to target duty-free markets worldwide

JC Newman has added the Luis Martinez Silver Selection range to its growing portfolio of value cigars

French leather company Fallon exhibited its range of humidors, lighters and cutters at TFWA World Exhibition in Cannes for the first time earlier this month, focusing on its range of pocket humidors

Representatives from regional travel-retail associations urged delegates at a tobacco workshop at TFWA World Exhibition to take local action to ensure that governments do not make further restrictions on duty-free sales of tobacco products

Airport retailer World Duty Free (WDF) launched fragrance website worlddutyfree.com earlier this month to encourage consumers to browse its selection before reaching the airport

Lancaster Group has revealed plans for its newly-incorporated Unilever Cosmetics International (UCI) portfolio, which it acquired in May for $800m

Prestige skincare brand La Prairie aims to capture a new type of consumer with the launch of Anti-Aging Complex—"A Cellular Intervention Cream"

L'Oréal Luxury Products Division plans to strengthen its men's skincare portfolio by launching ranges under its Giorgio Armani and Ralph Lauren brands

L'Occitane travel-retail director Yves Politi has pledged to expand the brand's duty-free business in the US, where it already has a presence at Philadelphia International and New York JFK airports

Swiss Delice has officially launched a new assortment of individually-wrapped pralines following successful introductions in parts of Europe and Asia

Foie gras specialist Rougie introduced new packaging in Cannes. The cardboard sleeves around its trays now have a dappled leather appearance, in red for goose liver and brown for duck liver

French gourmet food company Fauchon is conducting shop-in-shop experiments at DFS stores, running corners in the tourist resorts of Waikiki, Hawaii and Okinawa in Japan

Italian agent Multi Duty Free Dept (MDFD) has been awarded the worldwide rights to represent upmarket coffee and machines specialist Illy Caffe in duty-free

Masterfoods International Travel Retail (MITR) is targeting pet owners as part of a new strategy to introduce a broader range of products to travel-retail

UK-based writing instruments supplier Conway Stewart celebrated the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar last month with a limited-edition fountain pen set

UK-based supplier and distributor The Wandering Monkey is to open a shop at the UK's Liverpool John Lennon airport at the end of this month

Netherlands-based electronics travel retailer Take Off Multitronics has signed a deal with mobile phone network operator O2. Under the agreement O2 will supply the retailer with computer terminals to enable sales of mobile phones and contracts in the airport environment

US-based watch supplier Fossil is to open a new store at Dallas Fort Worth airport terminal C

Greek jewellery, watches and accessories supplier Folli Follie has closed its only UK travel-retail outlet

Callanen International has gained a 10-year extension to its worldwide timepiece licence with fashion brand Guess until January 1 2017

US leather outerwear retailer Wilsons has announced a licensing agreement with Bravado International Group

UK airline Virgin Atlantic Airways has teamed up with new menswear brand ML | Material London and Macy's Merchandising Group, a division of Federated Department Stores in the US. The partnership is centred on a marketing programme targeting consumers inflight, in-store and at home

Italian luggage and accessories brand Bric's has begun a rapid airport expansion programme with a third airport store in Italy set to open before the end of the year. Other units are planned for 2006

High-end luggage brand Tumi is expected to develop between six and eight stand-alone airport stores in Europe within the next three years