The Trinity Forum – Riyadh Airport
Transforming the offer at King Khalid International Airport
Riyadh Airports Company Chief Commercial Officer Abdulaziz Al-Asaker and Altavia Travel Retail Director Hugo Vanderschaegh discussed the remarkable transformation of retail and F&B at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, sharing insights about the scale of ambition in one of the world’s most exciting travel retail markets.
To place it in context, the vision for aviation is for the Saudi airports market to host 330 million travellers a year – of which 150 million will be tourists – by 2030, with Riyadh (projected to welcome 92 million passengers a year by then) among the key destinations.
Riyadh Airports Company Chief Commercial Officer Abdulaziz Al-Asaker (left) and Altavia Travel Retail Director Hugo Vanderschaegh (centre) discussed the remarkable tale of transformation at King Khalid International Airport and across the Kingdom generally with Martin Moodie
What helps King Khalid International Airport stand out is the scale of transformation as well as the pace at which change is coming, said Al-Asaker.
Addressing the retail opportunity, he noted that Riyadh Airports plans to examine new business models and partnership types, to place passenger experience led by sense of place at the centre of its planning and to drive close integration of the commercial design and offer with that of airport operations.
This will be aided by more than doubling space to ensure 1,033sq m of commercial floor area per one million passengers. This in turn will allow a larger environment for the nascent arrivals duty-free business, as well as encouraging the introduction of over 500 new brands in duty free overall.
Similar ambition in dining will see three new food halls emerge, featuring dozens of local and global concepts, while three new lounges and one renovated space will also drive new standards in hospitality.
Further pier and terminal developments will follow, each creating additional commercial space, until the opening later this decade of King Salman International Airport – a much-heralded project that will be a game-changer for Saudi Arabian aviation.
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The Moodie Davitt eZine
Issue 341 | 4 December 2024
The Moodie Davitt eZine is published 14 times per year by The Moodie Davitt Report (MA Travel Retail). © 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