Stanisław Wojtera, Chairman of V4+ Airports Association.

The Central and Eastern European Travel Retail Association (CEETRA) Travel Retail Forum 2025, which took place on 12 June at Prague Airport as part of V4+ Airports Association’s Airport Innovation Roundtable 2025, drilled down on travel retail dynamics in the region, highlighting opportunities and threats for the industry.

The event, supported by Prague Airport, provided a platform for leading voices to discuss the rapid recovery and growth of air traffic in the region, the evolving profile and expectations of passengers, regulatory challenges and the transformative power of experiential retail.

Invited speakers highlighted the resilience and adaptability of the travel retail sector, agreeing that future growth will depend on embracing innovation – both in retail experience and regulatory engagement – while staying attuned to the evolving needs of travellers.

Stanisław Wojtera, Chairman of V4+ Airports Association, opened the conference by emphasising the V4+ Airports Association’s mission to foster collaboration, share best practices and strengthen the region’s position in the broader European aviation landscape.

Andrzej Miłaszewicz, Chairman of CEETRA, followed by underlining CEETRA’s advocacy role for the duty free and travel retail (DF&TR) industry, stressing that “our goal is to protect, promote, and facilitate the region’s duty-free and travel retail channel by providing the means to obtain the most favourable trading environment for travel-related commerce”.

Andrzej Miłaszewicz, Chairman of CEETRA. The CEETRA Travel Retail Forum, a bi-annual event, was this year integrated into the programme for V4+ Airports Association’s Airport Innovation Roundtable 2025.

During the opening ceremony, Jiří Pos, Chairman of the Board at Prague Airport, outlined ongoing development plans aimed at making Václav Havel Airport Prague a model for modern, passenger-centric airports in Europe.

Furthermore, Amanda Khuong-Duc, Head of Strategic Foresight and Innovation, Gharage, delivered a keynote drawing on research from Gharage, Gebr. Heinemann’s innovation hub.

She revealed that 64% of travellers want to spend less time at airports, and consequently average dwell time has already shrunk by 15 minutes.

Khuong-Duc went on to showcase Gharage’s future-focused concepts, including Roki, a robotic kitchen delivering fresh, healthy meals at scale, and Gate Zero, a retail concept designed to engage non-shoppers and introduce new brands through social media-driven experiences.

Additionally, she shared her current exploration on AI Agents in the airport environment and how their application can help to bring more ease and convenience to the traveller journey.

“We need to ask ourselves how can we create spaces, services and products that lower stress, increase satisfaction and actively encourage travellers to arrive early at the airport,” she relayed in her closing thoughts.

The speech was followed by a panel discussion with airport experts on how AI is being used today to improve airport operations.

Anna Marchesini, Head of Business Development at m1nd-set.

Next, Anna Marchesini, Head of Business Development at m1nd-set, presented the latest research on passenger behaviour and travel retail shopping trends in Central and Eastern Europe.

She highlighted that air traffic in the region has surpassed pre-pandemic levels, with airports in CEE expected to host 1.1 times more guests than in 2019.

The data also showed that duty free stores are attracting above-average footfall but lagging in conversion and spend compared to Western Europe.

Alcohol, perfumes, and confectionery remain the top categories, and basket size is maximised (both in terms of number of items bought and total spending) when key categories are purchased combined – a currently underexploited opportunity, according to the m1nd-set research.

Gifters are bouncing back remaining more relevant in CEE versus Western Europe. However, Marchesini noted: “CEE travellers are especially responsive to in-the-moment triggers – making visibility, engagement, and on-site conversion tactics critical to success.”

In a second session, Marchesini explored how experiential retail can drive footfall and conversion.

She explained that as price advantage loses importance, travellers – especially Millennials and Gen Z – are increasingly motivated by unique, interactive and memorable experiences as well as how integrating local culture, technology and personalised service is key to engaging today’s airport shoppers.

“Experience in-store becomes the number one driver to purchase: travellers want more than products – they want memorable moments,” she said.

The Airport Innovation Roundtable 2025 and integrated CEETRA Travel Retail Forum 2025 served as a platform for industry leaders, policymakers and innovators to gather together to discuss the future of aviation, airport operations and travel retail in Central and Eastern Europe.

More highlights included Richard Prochazka, CEO of Lagardère Travel Retail Czech Republic, showcasing the transformation of Prague Airport’s commercial and F&B offer, including a complete redesign of retail and dining spaces to cater to evolving passenger profiles.

He spotlighted the emphasis on local brands, healthy food options, and interactive store layouts.

“We have completely redesigned our commercial offer in response to evolving passenger profiles – [the] future is local, healthy and experience-driven,” he explained.

Julie Lassaigne, Secretary General of ETRC, also took to the stage to provide an overview of European policy developments affecting travel retail, including sustainability legislation.

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