This week’s ACI Europe Commercial & Retail Conference and Exhibition in Milan – now in its 24th year – attracted the highest number of delegates in almost a decade according to the Brussels-based airports association.

“We achieved 400 delegates, as we had a number of ‘walk- up’ registrations,” Paul Sweeney, General Manager Association Business, at the UK organiser PPS Publications tells TRBusiness. That number is the highest since the event took place in London in April 2006 when there were 423 participants according to Danielle Michel, ACI Europe’s Director of Membership Services & Events.

This year, the two-day conference, which was hosted by SEA, the Milan airports operator, had a breakdown as follows: airports (40%), retailers (20%), suppliers (21%), brands (11%), and other attendees including press (8%). “One notable change this year is the participation of a high number of brands, a trend that we wish to build on for future events,” says Michel. Brands were prominent in the conference agenda this year with both the main keynote and first session devoted to them – perhaps an indicator of future formats.

BRAND STRATEGY VS RETAIL STRATEGY

The conference took the ambitious theme: ‘Challenging the Traditional Business Model‘ and split the two days into five sessions. It was kicked off on day one by ACI Europe’s General Manager Olivier Jankovec’s state of the industry address, an ETRC update on threats to the industry, and a keynote from Hugo Boss CEO and Chairman Claus-Dietrich Lahrs who revealed details of the brand’s strategy in DF&TR including seeing it as a route to elevating the core Boss brand. On day two the keynote was from Autogrill’s Chief Marketing Officer Ezio Balarini focused on the F&B operator’s two-pronged approach: solid concepts based on functional need and ‘game-changers’ offering passengers new experiences.

The three themed sessions on day one were: A Brands’ New Terminal – seeing the retail space from the brand’s eye view; The Competition for Space – whether airport’s were doing enough to really bring their commercial offers alive or simply remaining unimaginative; and More than Half of Passengers Still Don’t Buy – with research and analysis on why, and how the situation could be improved.

Day two included: The Best Ideas You’ve Never Had – which looked at some examples of innovation in the non-shopping elements of commercial revenue such as car parking and bureaux de change; and finally The Utopian Airport Journey – tackling the hot and controversial topic of tracking technology and push promotion to boost shopping.

[A full review on the conference will appear in a forthcoming issue of TRBusiness magazine.]