Chris Sanderson, Co-founder, The Future Laboratory, delivered an inspirational keynote address, in which he stressed the importance of engaging and connecting with the consumer.
The 21st ACI EUROPE Airport Trading Conference & Exhibition, hosted by Oslo Airport, took place from 23 to 25 April. The event was attended by more than 350 delegates, highlighting the importance of commercial revenues to airports of all sizes. Airport retail is performing strongly, with global travel retail sales totalling US$46 billion (€37bn) in 2011 – up +17.9% on the previous year. Looking ahead, a further rise to annual sales of US$64 billion (€51bn) is expected in 2015. Indeed, retail remains the biggest source of non-aeronautical revenues for airports.
TFWA President Erik Juul-Mortensen expanded on harnessing the power of brands to increase passenger spending in his keynote address on Day 2 of the conference.
ACI EUROPE figures show that commercial revenues have been resilient amid the global financial crisis, growing by +15% (€2.5 billion) in 2010.
The 6 conference sessions covered the myriad issues affecting airport commercial activities, including how to convert passengers into consumers, innovating to increase spend per passenger, harnessing the power of brands, developing new partnerships with industry stakeholders, engaging with the passenger to create an individual experience, and future
ETRC President Frank O’Connell expanded on a range of issues impacting on travel retail, the most important of which is the one-bag rule being implemented by some low-cost carriers. He explained that revenues are down by as much as 50% at some airports as a result of the one-bag rule.
proofing airport revenue streams.
The event also saw the return of the popular Unconference session, in which the conference room broke out into three separate working areas focusing on Pricing, Technology and Creating an Experience before reconvening to share their conclusions. The format provided an effective forum for strong interaction between participants.
In a commercial sense, the fortunes of airports, retailers and brands are all inextricably entwined; therefore, constructive collaboration is vital. The consensus across the conference was that well-executed airport retail presents huge growth opportunities. However, there are still challenges – the one-bag rule perhaps the most damaging of these at present; it is an issue that highlights the importance of a coordinated collaborative approach.
The 22nd ACI EUROPE Airport Trading Conference & Exhibition, hosted by Berlin Airports, will take place in Berlin, 22-24 April 2013.
Muriel Zingraff-Shariff, Retail Concessions Director, BAA, explained that travel retail exclusive products and limited editions provide opportunities to convert the unconverted.
Patrick Graf, Senior Vice President Commercial, Zurich Airport and incoming Chairman of the ACI EUROPE Commercial Forum, emphasised the need for innovation and to offer the passenger new experiences.
Nic Nilsen, Managing Director, Oslo Airport, explained that the airport’s terminal extension – known as Terminal 2 – will include an additional 12,000sqm dedicated to retail. The project is scheduled for completion in 2017.
