Images of the Year IV

DFS pledges new world-class destination in Hainan

On 1 October DFS Group revealed plans to open what it called the first world-class, seven-star luxury retail and entertainment destination in Yalong Bay, Sanya on Hainan island by 2026.

DFS Yalong Bay involves an “unprecedented” investment into a 128,000sq m site, attracting over 1,000 luxury brands including “iconic” maisons from the retailer’s majority owner LVMH Group once fully operational.

DFS Yalong Bay will become Sanya’s premier destination for luxury shopping, world-class accommodation, dining, and entertainment, serving international and domestic tourists with innovative, renowned luxury brands and experiences, the company pledged. Full story here.

Gebr. Heinemann focuses on experience in Copenhagen

Gebr. Heinemann unveiled a spectacular first of its kind ‘Experience Space’ within its main duty free store at Copenhagen Airport, in October.

Centring around the overarching theme of ‘fluid perspectives’, the space allows visitors to engage with ‘lift and learn’ technology, interactive digital screens and a digital floor as well as immersive visual and sound elements.

Click here for the full story.

‘Easy, frictionless and almost invisible’

SSP Group took the latest steps in its digitalisation journey by opening frictionless, checkout-free stores at Oslo Airport and Dublin Airport in November. The units allow customers to choose and pay for their items quickly and conveniently.

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Double animation for Day of the Dead

Bacardi Global Travel Retail recently partnered with Lotte Duty Free to celebrate el Día De los Muertos (an important date in the Mexican cultural calendar when families pay tribute to their ancestors on 1 and 2 November –Ed) with a Patrón El Cielo takeover at Melbourne Airport. It launched on 4 October and ran until 30 November.

The Patrón El Cielo campaign took over two mega event spaces in the retailer’s departures duty free store. A Día de Muertos Bar at the centre of the store was the standout element of the first pop-up.

It offered a selection of fun and vibrant Día de los Muertos-themed cocktails and an animated digital screen, which presented different brand visuals and campaigns

Click here for the full story.

Jägermeister makes super-premium leap

Family-owned Mast-Jägermeister, which produces the world’s best-selling herbal liqueur, hosted a memorable launch in early November to celebrate its new super-premium expression, 9556 Nights of Exploration, at company headquarters in Wolfenbüttel, Germany.

From 11 November, 9556 Nights of Exploration became available at selected airports, including Singapore, Incheon, Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Frankfurt, Oslo, Copenhagen, Berlin, Amsterdam, Istanbul, Sydney and Johannesburg among others. The new line is also available in 15 domestic markets.

Click here for the full story.

Avolta’s hybrid experience in Milan

Autogrill and Dufry, now combined under the name Avolta, unveiled Hudson Café Milano, a first-of-its-kind hybrid concept in Italy at Milan Malpensa Airport’s Terminal 2 in November. The venture combines a café, food retail and a bookstore.

The café provides a range of Autogrill’s bestselling beverages and food – both Italian and international. Avolta described it as a location that offers “a complete experience, a place not only for shopping but also relaxation and the enjoyment of good food”.

Click here for the full story.

Jo Malone’s Gingerbread Land

Jo Malone London, owned by The Estée Lauder Companies, partnered with The Shilla Duty Free and Changi Airport Group to unveil the Gingerbread Land activation at Changi Airport T3, which ran to 30 November.

The festive animation featured a forest of candy cane stripes, complete with cologne-decked trees and premium presents.

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Rolling out a new look for Rabanne

Paco Rabanne became Rabanne during a spectacular travel retail pre-launch at Heathrow Terminal 2. Puig teamed up with Avolta, Heathrow and JCDecaux for a glittering Quaternity activation to debut the rebrand, which sees the fashion and beauty houses entering a new chapter under one umbrella. It also marked the first time that Rabanne’s fashion and beauty products have been showcased in the same animation space, underlying the potential of cross-category activations in the channel, particularly for brands that have strong heritage and equity in both.

Click here for the full story.

WHSmith Travel goes big in Birmingham

WHSmith Travel officially opened its largest flagship one-stop shop for travel essentials in 6,000sq ft at Birmingham Airport in late November. The Moodie Davitt Report was there to capture the story in words, images and audio.

The space, which has been reconfigured as part of a transformation of the departures lounge, features zones for food & drinks, books & magazines, plus health & beauty, tech products, locally themed gifts and a Costa Coffee kiosk.

Click here for the full story.

‘Ignite the Moment’

DFS Group’s 14th edition of its flagship Masters of Time event brought together an unprecedented collection of rare and luxury timepieces and fine jewellery from late November.

Themed ‘Ignite The Moment’, the event is being hosted in partnership with Shoppes at Four Seasons and Express Company, American Express’s joint venture in China. It runs from 24 November 2023 to 29 February 2024 at T Galleria by DFS, Macau, Shoppes at Four Seasons.

The annual event sets a new benchmark for curating the most exclusive and largest portfolio of timepieces and fine jewellery to date ever displayed in Macau in a single location. It features over 300 masterpieces including limited-edition items from more than 45 prestigious houses, and nine new partners.

Click here for the full story.

Capturing Kansai Airport’s new commercial look

It’s not often we get to bring you live shots from an opening day at a major airport retail and food beverage location. But 5 December is different as Martin Moodie was on location to witness the historic unveiling of Kansai International Airport Terminal 1’s impressive and beautifully atmospheric new airside departures area, with full highlights at this link.

The expansive commercial offer is anchored by a 2,500sq m KIX Duty Free walk-through store, which opened on the same day alongside KIX Duty Free’s renewed pre-order service.