The panel addressed the polarisation of travelling consumers.

Lunch on Day 1 of the TR Consumer Forum was followed by a panel session examining a challenging theme:  Premiumisation versus Value-Seeking: The Polarisation of the Travel Retail Consumer.

Data presented by m1nd-set suggests that two key consumer types are emerging in travel retail: affluent spenders unfazed by uncertainty and price-sensitive middle-income shoppers.

On the heavyweight panel putting their heads together on this were: Thomas Pedrucci, Consultant, m1nd-set, Rory Ford, Head of Space and Strategy, Heathrow Airport; Lucio Rossetto, Regional COO Europe & North America, Lagardère Travel Retail; Julia Waldschmidt, Senior Trade Marketing Manager – Partner Markets & Duty Free EMEA / Americas, Oettinger Davidoff AG; Nicola Wells, Commercial & Marketing Strategist USP; and moderator Andrew Machin, Managing Director, Kounter.

Pedrucci opened the afternoon with an emphasis that, although travel retail is seeing fewer promotion-led purchases (down from 68% in 2022 to 48% in 2025), the issue of value remains a huge factor: “59% of all shoppers prioritise value.” A blend of experience and value remains important: “Value goes way beyond pricing… premiumisation is increasingly driven by exclusivity and experience… and that is where travel retail should be heading.”

Pedrucci said the issue of value remains a huge factor in the channel.

Ford outlined Heathrow’s ‘blended essentials’ strategy, particularly Heathrow’s Relay stores, addressing passenger demand for increased convenience but also creating advantages for the airport in its more focused use of space and the added benefit of increasing passenger time available to visit other categories.

Ford also pointed out the significant differences seen between Heathrow’s terminals; they are not homogeneous terminals, with variations in emphasis on retail elements, such as levels of premiumisation, the value focus, etc., and the shared input from partners is crucial.

Sharing inputs for better outputs

Lastly, Machin raised the issue of ‘trinity,’ and Ford candidly stated that, while it is by definition a shared strategy, he thought airports could “do more”. He later added that it must not be forgotten that if a traveller has a poor experience in other areas of the airport journey, such as washrooms or lack of seating, their likelihood of shopping is significantly impacted – suggesting that airport operators committed to maintaining high standards across the airport journey clearly have an impact on the propensity to shop.

Rossetto explained Lagardère’s strategy and planning at Heathrow, accumulating input from across the company’s global operations to enhance understanding of passenger needs. He emphasised the need for a stronger, faster approach to drive innovation and keep pace with the fast-moving trends that excite the customer: “We need (the industry) to be extremely fast-forward” – the industry needs to move faster and use contracts that enable operators to take risks and “the brands are often too slow.”

Waldschmidt cited how store staff were excited to take up the challenge of selling high-value premium offerings and cigar shoppers offer a notable opportunity: The highest percentage of single category transactions (23% vs. 75%); the highest level of cross-category transactions (63% higher than other profiles; the highest cross-category value (38% higher); and, most critically,  77% of these shoppers purchase in at least one other duty free category.

Machin asked the panel whether the travel retail industry has lost the trust of the traveller.

The trust factor

Wells added that trust and transparency are vitally important, particularly to the Chinese traveller and, on how to respond to the fast-shifting needs of Gen Z, cited her own Gen Z family members’ comment to her that “shops are for old people!” She closed by pointing out that the industry’s definition of ‘value’ is about much more than price; issues such as trust and sense of place also reflect the personal values of the shopper.

Machin, as moderator, linked to those comments by raising the question of whether the travel retail industry has lost the trust of the traveller. Ford responded with the suggestion that perhaps the industry could “take more risks”. Rossetto insisted that it is the industry’s staff who drive trust in the offer, a point echoed by Wells. She illustrated with the point that “first-time travellers are scared”, as she found with many travellers in India, for example, and they can be reassured by skilled staff.

Machin closed the main discussion with a question for the panel (and the Forum room): ‘Is the airport assortment customer-led?” While ‘the room’ was reluctant to admit that it might not be, Pedrucci (a Gen Z member) thought that, apart from a number of brand examples, the offer was often not creating enough relevance for his generation.