Groupe ADP
Extime (II) – a new chapter begins in Paris
A price promise introduced with Extime is among the new elements aimed at building trust and loyalty among consumers. It marks a return to dual duty free and duty paid pricing at Paris airports, where previously ADP and JV partner Lagardère Travel Retail operated under a single price model.
Extime Duty Free Paris Executive President Guy Bodescot explained: “We made the decision to revert to both a duty free and duty paid price across the board that is visible to our shoppers.
“First, people already know what we sell and can order products through the e-retail platform (extime.com) that we launch in April, transparency on price is going to be obvious. As they fly internationally they expect from us a clear bargain, which is the exemption of taxes. So we cannot hide behind a single price policy. People will say, ‘well, if I fly to this destination, I should see the VAT exemption at least quite clearly compared to downtown pricing.”
Les Caves Particulières, the high-class Champagne and Cognac concept opened by Moët Hennessy initially at CDG 2E, Hall K, comes to Terminal 1 with an edited format
“Second, although we can sell at a single price and our receipts show the VAT we pay to the government, we have had Chinese customers for example who ask for the return of their VAT as they are flying say to Amsterdam but then to Shanghai, so don’t feel they should pay the VAT. When we refuse as we cannot do this with single priced items, they feel offended as if we are biased against them, which is of course not what we want.
“So we said that as we launch the Extime brand, it’s the right time to establish dual pricing. And we can offer those in our Extime Rewards club a special promotional price equivalent to the VAT exemption. We are reestablishing clear added value versus downtown and giving an advantage to our loyal customers who might have said before that they are getting nothing in return for that loyalty.”
Inside the T1 Extime Duty Free store: New sub-brand Candy Box and an eye-catching promotional zone for Champagnes
With loyalty, e-retail and the bespoke approach to each terminal, this should boost the stop ratios and drive people towards the stores, added Bodescot. “The majority of people still don’t go into our shops, so if we can encourage more of them to go in, we’ll build revenue. We need to find the next steps of our development. That means Extime through the e-retail, through the CRM, through the new pricing policy, alongside the human touch.”
The F&B and services offer complements the premium approach adopted across the new T1
Rolling out the concept
Beyond Paris, ADP will seek further international development for the Extime brand with priority given to group airports – around 30 worldwide. This will begin with specific pioneering locations, then deployment across the group, and later beyond group airports. Partnerships will be developed under a franchise model, said ADP.
Mathieu Daubert said: “Our ambition is to create a global synergy between the operators under Extime on one hand, where we can create offers across commercial functions, but also we have the flexibility to change partners from location to location. The duty free or F&B partner might be different in another country but it will still be Extime, part of the ADP portfolio.
“We will have different strategies for different parts of the business. For Extime Media we plan to have one global partner in JCDecaux. This begins in Paris but will extend to other locations such as Bodrum next year or Amman in 2024. Extime Lounge will be the hospitality partner everywhere too though TAV Operation Services. For duty free and F&B we have to decide on our ‘certified operators’.”
Further images from the high-ceilinged, open plan T1 beauty area (above and below)
Extime Travel Essentials will represent a new partnership in Paris from 2024. Currently managed by the ADP/Lagardère partnership Relay @ADP through to the start of next year, the essentials business will be the subject of a tender to be called shortly.
Daubert said: “We will go to the market as we are creating a new story. We had JVs for a long time, now we want to ensure we explore all opportunities and a competition is the best way. In this case, unlike Extime Duty Free, we will brand the stores according to the chosen partner as that is likely to be more recognisable for travellers.”
(continues on next page)
Partner's message
Partner's message
The Moodie Davitt eZine Issue 320 | 10 February 2023
The Moodie Davitt eZine is published 14 times per year by The Moodie Davitt Report (Moodie International Ltd). © All material is copyright and cannot be reproduced without the permission of the Publisher. To find out more visit www.moodiedavittreport.com and to subscribe, please e-mail kristyn@moodiedavittreport.com