Karl Grünewaldt, MD, FAR; Martin Korosec, MD, Media Frankfurt; TRBusiness’ Faye Bartle, Tobias Witte, Vice-President GTR, Mast-Jägermeister SE; and Manuel Schilling, Global Head of Category Spirits at Gebr. Heinemann.

ON LOCATION: Mast-Jägermeister SE cut the ribbon on a year-long, dual pop-up activation in the new Terminal 3 (T3) at Frankfurt Airport yesterday (7 July), in partnership with Gebr. Heinemann, Frankfurt Airport Retail (FAR) and Media Frankfurt.

TRBusiness was in attendance to discover the concept, located at the entrance of Pier J, which marks the brand’s first fully immersive airport activation.

It comes complete with plenty of storytelling and digital interaction supported by a media campaign that reaches travellers at various points throughout their airport journey.

“In terms of footfall, we know there’s up to five million passengers expected to walk through this terminal in the next 12 months – and 75% of those should pass our pop-up,” said Stephanie Cleary, GTR Marketing Director, Mast-Jägermeister SE.

“It’s a lot of eyeballs. And during the soft launch in the past two and a half weeks, we’ve sampled 10,000 shots.”

Delivering a standout experience for shoppers that encourages them to interact with the space and get liquid to lips are key KPIs, she explained: “That will be our target – to have five million people at least see Mast-Jägermeister and of a percentage of that to be engaged with us as a brand.”

Cleary also pointed out that there will also likely be a halo effect of travellers discovering the products at Frankfurt Airport before going on to purchase it in their ongoing destinations or home market.

The two spaces, situated opposite, reflect the duality of Jägermeister.

There’s lots to draw passing traffic into the stores with the two spaces, meant to reflect the duality of the brand, each offering different things.

‘Destination Jäger’ focuses on interaction, with its LED installation and an AI-powered photo experience that places visitors in customised Jägermeister worlds – these are fun for sharing (see our example below).

Opposite, ‘Destination Meister’ takes travellers on a tour of key brand moments, from its origins 90 years ago as a herbal liqueur to its role in global motorsports, music and lifestyle culture.

Product sampling and a curated retail offer, including travel retail exclusives, limited editions and branded merchandise – including the the brand’s famous golden chains – are available in both spaces.

Available products include Jägermeister Orange, Cold Brew Coffee, 9556, the Frankfurt City Label and selected gifting propositions.

Digital discovery

The concept has been about a year in the planning, timed to coincide with the opening of the new T3.

Tobias Witte, Vice-President GTR, Mast-Jägermeister SE, gave us an insight into the strategy: “Internally we were thinking – what is the next step for us as a brand in travel retail. We had been doing a lot of HPPs, promotions, interactions with consumers, so the question was ‘what’s next?’ And then this opportunity came along aside the building of T3 and we thought it was the perfect match.

Media and guests gather for the opening at FRA T3 on 7 July.

Together with its partners the pop-up has been created to be fitting for T3 and to showcase the best of Jägermeister to an international audience.

“Frankfurt feels a natural fit – it is our home market. But we have to remember that the audience that travels through here every day is an international audience and we are an international brand so we can talk to consumer who already knows us, but also consumers who may not have tried Jägermeister Orange or tried Jägermeister in a number of years,” said Cleary. “So we have the benefit of being a German home brand here but also recognise that it’s the ninth busiest airport globally [for international pax], so it’s a good balance.”

Left: The retail mix spans bottles and selected merchandise. Right: A glimpe of the media campaign. 

The media campaign with with Media Frankfurt guides passengers from the departures hall to the main shopping area and along Pier J.

There’s also geo-targeting with social platforms to drive awareness and influencer activities, while the Frankfurt design from the City Labels collection has a QR code to scan for information on how to discover the city like a local.

“We are going to learn from this,” said Cleary. “It’s our first time and we are working very closely with the trinity of FAR, Gebr. Heinemann and ourselves to learn from each other in terms of how we deliver this as a best-in-class experience for travellers.”

Added Witte: “It’s my vision that this becomes a blueprint of pop-up stores of Jägermeister all around the globe.”

Archival moments in the ‘Destination Meister’ space.

Travel retail momentum

Looking beyond Frankfurt, Witte says Jägermeister has strong travel retail momentum Latin America, Brazil, in APAC, India where the brand is “crushing it” domestically.

“The good thing is that there’s still territories where we are not saturated or as matured as we might be in Germany but this is exactly why we are targeting international travellers to where we want to go.”

Witte likened the current situation in the Middle East as akin to Covid times, though he says the a traffic recovery in Q4 is anticipated.

He also reported there had been no disruption to the supply chain to Asia – a key growth market for Jägermeister in the channel.

Bottles and merch available to buy at the T3 pop-up.

Looking at shopper demographics, the launch of Jägermeister Orange, around a year ago, has played a key role in recruiting new consumers, especially Gen Z.

“We listened to what the Gen Z consumer wanted – lower AVB, a little bit lighter in flavour, more sessionable – a fruity, more accessible flavour – and that’s why Jägermeister Orange was born,” said Cleary.

“So we will wait and listen to our consumers in terms of what they want – that will determine our future.”

Witte also made clear that, while Jägermeister Orange has been a success, the brand is not pursuing a ‘flavour’ strategy.

“It’s about cautiously moving forward for a new generation,” highlighted Cleary.

Toasting the launch and the future of Jägermeister in travel retail.

Ultimately, the FRA activation is a showcase of intent for Jägermeister in the channel.

“Travel retail is a strategically important touchpoint for building global brands,” said Michael Volke, CEO of Mast-Jägermeister SE.

“With our presence in Frankfurt’s new Terminal 3, we are creating an experience platform that connects Jägermeister with international audiences in a highly relevant moment of travel.

“As a family-owned company with German roots, it is particularly meaningful for us to bring this concept to life in our home market.”

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