FRANCE. Lagardère Travel Retail is marking an historic milestone this year with its 170th anniversary. The company began with a small bookstore opened in 1852 by Louis Hachette at Paris Gare de Lyon. The group now operates nearly 5,000 retail, convenience and F&B outlets in over 40 markets.
This video celebrates 170 years of history at Lagardère Travel Retail
Chairman & CEO Dag Rasmussen said: “I feel very privileged to be celebrating this historic milestone with our 20,000 colleagues globally. Our incredibly rich and diverse history is difficult to sum up but I believe our sense of purpose and the passion we have to serve our customers have been immutable forces all along.
“Lagardère Travel Retail’s journey has been one of change, and improvement. Every challenge we have faced, every market shift we have responded to, has been an opportunity for us to learn and grow. I hope all our people and partners can join us in celebrating quite a unique moment and share this sense of excitement to continue this journey with us.”
Lagardère Travel Retail’s 170-year journey in key dates:
- 1852: Opening of a first bookstore at Paris Gare de Lyon railway station
- 1958: Opening of the first duty free store at Brussels Airport
- 1984: Invention of the ‘Red shop’, a modern convenience concept and the ancestor of Relay
- 1985: Opening of the first food & beverage operations in French hospitals
- 2000: Roll-out of Relay as a global travel essentials brand
- 2001: Launch of the Aelia Duty Free international brand
- 2014: Acquisition of retail and F&B player Airest
- 2015: Acquisition of Paradies, followed three years later by HBF and Vino Volo in North America
- 2022: Opening of the first Aelia Duty Free eco-responsible store at Geneva Airport, and acquisition of HWH F&B operations in the Middle East
The company said in a statement: “Our 20,000 colleagues are dedicated to designing bespoke partnerships and holistic passenger experiences. We have thrived on our very unique culture of empowering local teams. This organisational model gives us access to an in-depth understanding of local markets and great levels of proximity and flexibility. This is also how we are now able to convey the best of local cultures and know-hows into the stores and support the local communities we serve.”
The company also highlighted how it changed over the years and overcome challenges., alongside its focus on blending the local and the global.
“Lagardère Travel Retail is proud to rely on strong foundations and its long-standing strategic focus to succeed in today’s environment. The most local of global players, we create bespoke partnerships to adapt to individual needs, we capture the vibrant cultures of the communities we serve to make each travel location unique, we have organised ourselves to maximise our growth potential and we have an ambition to lead the industry in sustainability.
“At a time when travel and travellers are changing, and market dynamics are shifting, we look forward to building on our vast experience to respond to emerging challenges and opportunities and to serving the needs of partners and travellers for many more years. We are also on a journey to contribute to making travel more responsible, and to deliver world-class customer experiences.”
