Swiss research agency m1nd-set is to be a major insights partner for the Duty Free World Council (DFWC) Academy and its resource centre.

TRBusiness was present in Dublin last month at a networking event to celebrate the creation of the Academy and the enrolment of the initial student cohort. The event was attended by Ireland’s Minister of State for Higher Education, Mary Mitchell O’Connor, recently elected DFWC President Sarah Branquinho, TFWA Managing Director John Rimmer, m1nd-set Travel Retail Research Director Clara Susset and Institute for International Retail (IIR) Managing Director Derek Hughes among others.

M1nd-set said that the travel retail specific research programme and Business 1intelligence Service traffic data tool (B1S) had enriched the consumer insights and behaviour modules of the Professional Certificate course and informed on the behaviour of travel retail versus domestic shoppers through its bespoke segmentation model.

ACCESS TO REPORTS

Additionally, students will have access to individual reports and regular updates from the online resource library. These reports will deepen their knowledge in terms of how marketing, merchandising, digital communications and customer experience and positively influence shopping behaviour.

Amid the changing profile of passengers, m1nd-set has furnished insights on the Middle East and Africa region, Chinese travellers’ shopper behaviour and a focus on the millennials and older age-groups, as well as first-time-buyers in travel retail and the importance of the gifting occasion.

m1nd-set Owner and CEO Peter Mohn said: “Educating the industry is fundamental to our business and inherent to our values at m1nd-set. We see how shopper behaviour changes considerably across multiple variables, not just regions and demographics but also over time. This is especially true in today’s society with population increases affecting the dynamics of international travel and the traveller profile.”

Susset added: “We believe it’s vital to provide DFWC Academy students with a solid understanding of the current trends, how shopper behaviour can change across these variables and how vital a role staff play in delivering the best experience for shoppers. We are delighted to contribute to this training programme and to help students understand the unique context of the international travel retail sector.”

IIR’s Hughes, whose company is the e-learning partner for the DFWC Academy commented: “Our partnership with m1nd-set and shared vision of equipping students with the best information on travel retail customer trends, profiles and tools to convert passengers to shoppers has greatly supported the DFWC Academy and the Professional Certificate course. We look forward to continuing our partnership as we develop further learning programmes for the Academy.”