Summit breaks new ground

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The second Global Travel Retail Summit delivered fresh insights into the motivations of travelling consumers

The second Global Travel Retail Summit, organised by Raven Fox and held in Amsterdam earlier this week, attracted a strong, eclectic line-up of speakers to discuss the changing nature of the travelling consumer. Delegates heard from companies that are helping shape the future of travel, such as Airbus, bmibaby and P&O Cruises, and others that are setting new standards in travel-retail, including Schiphol Group, Vancouver International Airport Authority, Nestlé International Travel Retail (NITR), Aelia and Kappé International.

Keynote speaker on day one was Dr Don Norman, an expert in the field of product design and the role of emotion in purchasing decisions. "The emotional state of the traveller is crappy," Norman told delegates, explaining how stress levels during travel must be combated if retailers are to maximise spend. "Security is an anxious time but there is a wave of relief afterwards. Can retailers exploit this? They need to tell travellers: "come in, relax and take it easy"."

Norman's address was followed by a strong section on two of the world's most progressive airport retail locations, Amsterdam Schiphol and Vancouver. Schiphol manager restaurants and accommodation consumer products division Manfred Funke talked delegates through the airport's ambitious extension of its Schengen lounge, while Vancouver manager retail sales and service programs Chris Gilliland gave a detailed and entertaining presentation showing how the airport authority used customer research to adapt its retail offer. The findings prompted Vancouver to introduce dental and medical services that are now among its most successful initiatives, with passengers even able to request botox injections during their passage through the airport.

Among the highlights on day one was a presentation by NITR general manager Stewart Dryburgh, who explained how his company is looking to category management projects to achieve his stated aim of helping travel retailers double worldwide confectionery sales within five years. Also well-received was a session on the growing cruiseship market, with contributions from Roy Palmer from consultant Pragma, P&O Cruises revenue manager Kirk Long and Harding Brothers director Harold Gittelmon, who talked delegates through his company's handling of the duty-free operation onboard Cunard's newly-launched liner Queen Mary II.

Day two was marked by an in-depth discussion on budget travellers and the implications for travel-retail. Tony Davis, managing director at low-cost UK airline bmibaby, gave a fascinating insight into how his airline operates and its methods of targeting customers, while Aelia vice-president organisation and development Ambroise Fondeur showed how the retailer is reaping the benefits of growing low-cost traffic to its airport locations in France. Continuing with the aviation theme, Airbus director technical marketing John Blanchfield showed how the aircraft designer's new wide-body aeroplane the A380 could help airports solve the problem of increasing traffic without adding to congestion. As Blanchfield showed, the design could even offer inflight retailers the opportunity to introduce duty-free outlets onboard.

The Summit finished on a high note with an ebullient address from Kappé International owner Jacques Parson, who called for improvements in communication to travellers, especially on price. "Consumers are becoming more critical, and there has to be added value for them to consider purchasing," he argued. "In particular they are looking for "pamper products" that are easy to use, save time and promote individuality."

A full report on the Summit will appear in DFNI May 1, out next week. Delegates to the Summit will soon be able to access speakers' presentations through travelretailworld.com. Keep an eye on the website for updates.