Images of the Year II

Best of Britain

Mondelez World Travel Retail married Sense of Place with product and design innovation in one of its smartest campaigns of the past year. It partnered with Dufry company World Duty Free to launch a permanent Cadbury installation at Heathrow Airport Terminal 3.

The installation underlines Cadbury’s British heritage and brings some of the UK’s most famous landmarks to life. These include the Big Ben, the London Eye and the London black cab. It replaces Cadbury’s previous teapot installation in the same location.

Introducing a new jewel at Istanbul Airport

A dazzling 130sq m Cartier boutique – the brand’s largest in travel retail – opened in August, offering watches, jewellery and leathergoods lines, alongside a selection of perfumes and sunglasses. A highlight of the design is the a striking 12-metre tall façade, created with three-dimensional illuminated elements that shimmer like gold and is likened to a ‘precious piece of jewellery’ by the brand owner, alongside its partners Gebr. Heinemann, ATÜ Duty Free and Unifree.

Vibrant multimedia installations dazzle at Hong Kong Airport

It’s an understatement to say that Hong Kong International Airport and all connected with it have had a pretty miserable time of it during the COVID-19 era, in the face of a devastating and sustained slump in business. But here was something to cheer up passengers – and the dedicated people that work there – as we finally saw some notable momentum in traffic recovery towards the end of the year. Airport Authority Hong Kong continued to invest in the consumer experience, despite passenger numbers remaining at a fraction of 2019 levels. And there was no better evidence of that than the enthralling giant digital installations in Terminal 1 (below).

Blending the worlds of whisky and fashion

In September Royal Salute unveiled a world-first pop-up boutique at Singapore Changi Airport, in celebration of The House of Quinn by Richard Quinn expression.

The luxury limited edition was created as a tribute to couture fashion, with only 200 hand-blown black crystal decanters created; each is individually numbered and hand-painted with a Richard Quinn bespoke design.

The 55sqm pop-up, which runs to 15 March 2023, is a partnership with Changi Airport Group and Lotte Duty Free. It features a changing array of shopper experiences, covering the themes of fashion, art, and gifting – and offers a memorable experience for the traveller.

‘Dopamine Dream’ – Valentino Beauty’s themed pop-up in Hainan

In October, Valentino Beauty Travel Retail Asia Pacific launched a wonderfully colourful pop-up – titled ‘Dopamine Dream’ – at the Sanya International Duty Free Shopping Complex in Haitang Bay, in partnership with China Duty Free Group.

The vibrant installation aims to transport customers through a multi-sensory and digitalisation journey that resembles ‘a dopamine-like experience’, featuring radiant yellows, bold pinks and audacious coral colours. It’s a dazzling travel retail rhapsody, inspired by Rome.

Hermès dazzles at Hamad International Airport

A new jewel landed at Hamad International Airport as luxury house Hermès officially opened its doors on 27 October, for an event attended by The Moodie Davitt Report. Hannah Tan-Gillies’ vibrant images captured the excitement of the moment, as the duplex outlet embellished the already impressive luxury environment in the South Plaza.

Aiming high in Haikou: A landmark moment for travel retail

On 28 October the waiting was finally over. At 9am local time, the magnificent cdf Haikou International Duty Free Shopping Complex in Hainan opened to the world. The development features the world’s biggest duty free shopping complex. More coverage elsewhere in these pages.

Jo Malone London goes (beautifully) pear-shaped in Taipei

Using oversized faux fruit and flowers to create a striking visual impact is nothing new for Jo Malone London, a fragrance house synonymous with rewriting the rules of perfumery by mixing unexpected combinations of ingredients. But for an event in Q4 this year the brand took the approach literally to new heights with its English Pear and Freesia event in Taipei.

Unveiling the ‘terminal in a garden’

0A2 pays homage to the city of Bengaluru, and was designed around four pillars: the ‘terminal in a garden’, sustainability, technology, and art & culture. It houses around 110 retail and dining outlets managed by a range of partners.

Our image shows The Honourable Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, walking the terminal as he inaugurated the outstanding new facility.

A new wonder of the airport world

The inauguration of the extraordinary Hamad International Airport Expansion was a landmark day for the Qatar Airways Group and Qatar Duty Free as well as for the wider travel retail industry. Fittingly, that opening features in several sections within this year in review.

The magnificent Expansion brings together more than 90 brands in one vast shopping area, complemented by a world-class art collection, and a 10,000sq m indoor tropical garden called The Orchard with a 268sq m water feature – designed to be a focal point for all travellers. This tribute to Qatar Airways Group’s investment philosophy and its belief in the future of the travel industry looks set to stand as a reference point for our industry for many years to come.

Penhaligon’s goes brilliantly British at Heathrow

Puig-owned British fragrance house Penhaligon’s partnered with World Duty Free (Dufry) in November to open a striking new standalone boutique at Heathrow Airport Terminal 5. The multi-sensory environment offers an immersion in the Penhaligon’s brand universe through interactive and quirky merchandising elements.

A spectacular shopping offer at The Londoner Macao

Luxury travel retailer DFS Group celebrated the opening of Shoppes at Londoner retail area of The Londoner Macao in November. The British-styled integrated resort in the heart of Macau’s Cotai Strip takes inspiration from London’s Oxford Street, one of Europe’s busiest and best-known shopping destinations.

Trinity spirit

This memorable image, taken at the Trinity Forum Gala Dinner at Jewel Changi Airport, captures the spirit of collaboration and fraternity at the world’s most influential airport commercial revenues conference on 1-2 November. It also marked a special celebration: the return of Trinity after a three-year COVID-driven absence. As we said when introducing the event on day one, the Trinity flame, one based on the warmth and spark of partnership and of challenging the status quo, may have been dimmed during the crisis but it never went out.

Click here or on the image for our special review of the event.

Sydney Airport deepens luxury portfolio

Sydney Airport’s new luxury precinct gained further lustre earlier in December with the opening of French luxury house Louis Vuitton’s first retail travel store in the southern hemisphere, and Korean eyewear brand Gentle Monster’s debut store in the region.

Celine, Dior, Gucci and Valentino have also opened new stores at the T1 International terminal, marking the second phase of openings, following the arrival of Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta, Burberry, Bvlgari, Hermès, Loewe, Moncler, Prada, Rolex and Saint Laurent earlier this year.