Philippe Margueritte makes his inaugural President’s address at the 2025 TFWA World Conference. 

TFWA President Philippe Margueritte delivered an inspiring state of the industry address at the 2025 TFWA World Conference in Cannes this morning, Monday 29 September.

He took the audience on a journey of shifting consumer expectations and evolving market dynamics, offering his perspective on the industry’s current position and its strategic priorities, as well as the outlook for duty free and travel retail, and the opportunities taking shape on the horizon.

“We are as an industry are facing strong tensions, geopolitical, economic and trade issues,” he said.

“This uncertainty is the worst poison for all of us. It delays investments, affects our teams and more importantly, consumer spending.

“While it’s still early to know who is going to benefit from the tariffs and changes, and how long it will last, what is undeniable is that we are all affected, and we must adapt strategically.

“Many of you know me well. I am not a blind optimist. But if I had to choose an industry today I would definitely choose travel retail again. Why? Because our fundamentals are very strong. The human instinct to travel and explore is deep and rooted – even today that urge to explore drives billions of people spending trillions of dollars on the way.”

Margueritte shared a glimpse of airport traffic forecasts.

Drawing on an ACI World Traffic forecast for 2024-2035, he highlighted how international passenger growth is expected to rise by 3-4% over the period from 9.5 billion to 18 billion.

Further, he pointed to how the cruise sector is booming with 42 million passengers forecast to set sail in 2028 (CLIA).

The statistics show a booming cruise sector.

“Let’s pause for a moment to reflect on the past, in order to better understand what’s coming for us,” he continued.

“After all, what have been the key pillars of our growth during the past 50 years: airspace deregulation, airport investment, retail revolution, incredible brand creativity and demographic explosion.”

Margueritte urged delegates to prepare now for the impact of declining birth rates.

Regarding the last point, however, he heeded a warning of declining birth rates around the world.

“We must prepare for a decline in travellers,” he said. “We can debate whether it will happen in 25 years, 35 years or longer, but we can count that it will definitely happen.

“This means that one of our key growth drivers will soon diminish and possibly within 25 years. It might seem like a long way off to some of us, but I’ve been 30 years in this industry and I hardly feel the time has passed.”

Softening SPP remains a challenge.

Margueritte also stressed the need for reliable market data to build the strategy to secure future growth as well as need to strengthen the commercial rate by delivering exciting propositions that consumers want to shop.

“In the end we are blind. We make decisions based on estimates,” he said. “We might be one of the best industry’s but we are one of the poorest when it comes to data and business intelligence.

“At TFWA we take this issue seriously and we have already stated working on this project. Early next year we will be discussing with all of you to sketch out the framework of what can become our next step.”

There was a packed audience  for Margueritte’s address.

On commercial rates, he delved into the decorrelation between passenger growth and spend per traveller, referencing Kearney research which shows that spend by traveller declined by 4% year on year between 2019-2024 to $15.5 in 2024.

“Of course, business intelligence will help us to put good strategies and drive growth but at the end we believe we need a retail revolution.”

He continued: “A great deal of effort is now being made to create a stronger sense of place, more excitement – especially with emerging services like and food beverage with products. However it remains a challenge to move the needle when it comes to commercial rates.”

Introducing Ameca the human shaped robot.

In terms of innovation, Margueritte explained how exploring new horizons is not just a travel invitation but a journey that must collectively embraced if the DF&TR industry wants to succeed.

“Pushing boundaries, sharing knowledge of best practices, and showcasing new developments are exactly how to move forward in travel retail. It’s time to surprise our audience and reimagine what the new travel experience could be: more agile, more dynamic, more connected and overall, more inspiring than ever. Cannes is an invitation to seize the opportunity and lead with imagination.”

As a final touch, Margueritte highlighted the need for the DF&TR industry to seize the extraordinary opportunity of AI, posing the question: “Are you ready for the breakthrough?”

At the point, he welcomed Ameca the AI robot to share the stage to discuss the dynamics facing the DF&TR industry.

When asked how she would transform the shopping experience in airports, she replied: ‘Humanoid airports could enhance the airport shopping experience by inviting personalised recommendations and real-time assistance; they can streamline the checkout processes and offer multi-level support making shopping more accessible. Additionally, they can engage travellers with interactive experience, adding a layer of entertainment to the retail environment.’

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