Left-right: Francesco D’Amico, Marketing and Commercial Director, SAC; Karl Niendorf, Managing Director Travel Retail Italiana; Nico Torresi, CEO, SAC; Rino Sardo, Business Development Manager, Non-Aviation, SAC; and Cettina Cambareri, Institutional Affairs Manager, SAC, celebrate the opening of the new store.

Gebr. Heinemann subsidiary, Travel Retail Italiana, officially opened a 200sq m shop in the new and second terminal building (Terminal C) at Catania-Fontanarossa Airport in Sicily on Friday (5 April).

The new shop is Heinemann’s fifth duty free and travel value shop at the airport. The four shops located in Terminal A (liquor, tobacco and cosmetics, perfumes and cosmetics — Schengen, Gate shop — Non-Schengen and accessories shop — Schengen) cover an area of 245sq m. The stores have been operated by Travel Retail Italiana since 2014.

Karl Niendorf, Managing Director at Travel Retail Italiana said: “Catania-Fontanarossa Airport is an extremely committed and professional partner with a very long-term focus.

“For this reason, we are a great match and have been working for five years on continuously designing a tailor-made shopping experience for our passengers at Catania-Fontanarossa Airport. The new shop is a great confirmation of our long-term and trusted partnership.”

LARGE BEAUTY AREA

In the new outlet, customers will find a range of perfumes and cosmetics, confectionery and spirits, accessories and convenience products.

The outlet also boasts the largest beauty area at the airport. This caters to the demand for new and trendy products among domestic travellers in particular, according to the retailer.

There is also a strong emphasis on price-offer zones to capitalise on the fact the terminal only handles EasyJet flights.

Local brands and typical Italian product are given significant space in the new 200sq m shop.

Additionally, there is a large selection of local brands with around 70sq m of retail space dedicated exclusively to regional products.

Alongside souvenirs, typical Italian products range from accessories to specialties from the food and liquor categories. These are offered within the ‘Sicilian market concept’, which provides a local flavour.

While waiting for flights, travellers can discover the flavours and tastes of Italy. These include real Italian parmesan, original Italian salami,  limoncello, Sicilian wines and almond and pistachio pastries typical of the region.

Regional back-wall drawings comprising typical Sicilian features were created by a Sicilian artist over a four-day period. The final elements were completed during the shop’s opening ceremony.

The new Heinemann outlet boasts the largest beauty area of any store at the airport.

Nico Torrisi, CEO, Catania-Fontanarossa Airport said:  “The opening of the new Heinemann shop in Terminal C is a further quality building block for Catania Airport. Once more, this international brand has chosen our city to invest and open a new retail shop at this airport.

“This confirms the attractiveness of our airport which is a reference point and hub for all tourist activities in eastern Sicily, with almost 1om passengers passing by.”

He added: “Furthermore, the opening of the shop corroborates our choice to return Terminal C to passenger use, thus recovering an essential space. From today, this space becomes further enriched and confirms the big potential of a structure which becomes more and more of an experience, in addition to being a place devoted to mobility.

“We must thank Heinemann for being at our side again and making Catania Airport more and more international and attractive for big brands.”

The new shop is Heinemann’s fifth duty free and travel value shop at the airport.

GROWTH POTENTIAL

Catania is a strategically important market for Gebr. Heinemann. It is the main gateway to Sicily and gateway to tourist destinations of south Italian islands such as Taormina, the Aeolian Islands, Etna, Siracusa, Ragusa and Agrigento.

With almost 10m passengers, Catania-Fontanarossa Airport is enjoying rapid growth. In addition to domestic travellers from Italy, passengers from Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the UK and France are among the strongest customer groups in the Heinemann Duty Free & Travel Value Shops.

Niendorf concluded:  “Catania is one of our key Italian outlets. We see a big potential to further encourage growth, especially due to the added passenger capacity with Terminal C. We are, therefore, keen on further investing in increased commercial offers and shop concepts at this airport.”

Customers will find a range of perfumes and cosmetics, confectionery and spirits, accessories and convenience products in-store.