Frankfurt Airport passengers are now trialling a brand new QR service to order DF&TR goods from Heinemann via their smart phones.

 

 

While product code walls are nothing new, they are the exception rather than the rule in the DF&TR environment and this technology is now being trialled for six months at Frankfurt Airport’s Schengen gate B5-9.

 

Passengers simply point their smartphones at the giant virtual shopping billboard and choose from some 60 different perfumes, cosmetic items, spirits and confectionery products. Both Frankfurt and Heinemann believe passengers have time to spare to do this, so offering them a spontaneous purchasing opportunity while they are bored and waiting for the boarding announcement.

 

Heinemann’s product prices are already audited by the independent TÜV Rheinland technical inspection authority, which confirms that 90% of featured products offer savings of up to 30% on both High Street and online prices.

 

Meanwhile, alongside each product is a QR code which travellers can scan using the Heinemann Express Shopping app or a standard QR code reader. These codes offer shoppers more information about products and offer the facility to place the selected items into a virtual shopping basket. The ordered products are then delivered to a pick-up point right next to the QR code wall in less than 15 minutes.

 

 

NO DANGER OF MISSED COLLECTIONS…

Only when the customer actually picks up their purchases do they make a simple card payment, so removing concerns that technically a purchase could be made and not collected when a boarding announcement is made. If the passenger boards the flight before collecting and paying for the goods, then the whole transaction is simply cancelled.

 

Markus Ettlin, Head of Central Marketing at Gebr. Heinemann said: “The main point of it is not to make a lot of sales. We are more interested in finding out how the new virtual shop is used and which nationalities it appeals to most. At the same time, of course, we want to make shopping even easier and more relaxing for our customers.”

 

A delighted Ute Pohl, Head of Retail at Fraport AG said he hopes the cooperation between the two partners will help raise customer satisfaction levels: “We are excited to see how passengers will respond to the new virtual shopping range. And we’re proud to be the first German airport to offer travellers this totally new shopping experience.”

 

The Heinemann company said: “Travellers can also choose from the full range of Duty Free products in the big Heinemann Duty Free shops, which are located in all terminal areas of Frankfurt Airport. During 2012, Gebr. Heinemann invested a total of 13 million euros in four new shops for the A-Plus terminal expansion pier.

 

“The two largest Heinemann Duty Free stores in this zone – both of which span more than 2,000sq m – will set new standards in the Schengen and non-Schengen zones; another two 500sq m duty free shops have also opened along with a Hermès fashion outlet. Besides employing 880 staff, the company now operates 34 shops at Frankfurt and a large warehouse in Kelsterbach.