SWITZERLAND. Lagardère Travel Retail, in partnership with Geneva Airport, today opened the first ‘eco-responsible’ store in the Aelia Duty Free network. An inauguration ceremony was led by Geneva Airport CEO André Schneider, Frédéric Chevalier, COO of Lagardère Travel Retail for EMEA and Lagardère Travel Retail Switzerland CEO Pascal le Droff. The Moodie Davitt Report President Dermot Davitt was among the media partners on location for the event.
The pilot store is an evolution of the Aelia Duty Free concept and has been designed to embed high standards of sustainability, from store materials and furnishings to the product offer. It also features a pop-up developed in partnership with the United Nations’ Perception Change Project to raise passengers’ awareness of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Lagardère Travel Retail said it is “committed to playing a leading role in creating a more sustainable future, and we are working very closely with our partners to achieve our mutual CSR ambitions. We have turned theory into action in partnership with Geneva International Airport by converting the Aelia Duty Free concept to eco-responsibility across all aspects, from the materials we use in store up to the products we sell.”
The store is located in the airport’s new East Wing, which opened in December and has been developed to meet high standards of energy performance, using advanced technologies.
The retailer said it aims to achieve a -40% reduction in the carbon footprint of furniture and POS materials. To do this it has partnered with MEDIA 6, a specialised French manufacturer which developed the Eco-logic carbon calculator. This tool has been used to set tangible emissions targets for the pilot store.
A life-cycle assessment based on the 3Rs (Reduce/Re-Use/Recycle) approach to tackle resource efficiency and waste management has driven the eco-design of the store.
Lagardère Travel Retail said it has “significantly reduced” the number of raw materials used and focused on metal and certified wood materials, both being easier to recycle.
Lagardère Travel Retail Switzerland CEO Pascal le Droff said: “Lagardère Travel Retail Switzerland is proud to share this ambitious and innovative commercial project, carried out in perfect collaboration with the airport teams and Lagardère Travel Retail’s local and central teams. Our eco-responsible store and its environmental and ethical engagement create a lot of enthusiasm, which goes beyond just a new duty free store opening. Finally, I would like to thank all people who have contributed to this opening, which symbolises our commitment to sustainable development.”
Airport CEO André Schneider said: “We are happy to have found in Lagardère Travel Retail Switzerland like-minded partners who are equally committed to deliver a sense of responsibility and purpose to passengers at Geneva Airport. Our efforts to create the airport’s East Wing to become a high energy performance building sets high standards across the aviation industry and we are proud to see these translated into the commercial offer. Through close collaboration and shared values we have been able to develop a pioneering store which is the perfect example of how our industry can play its part in creating a more sustainable future.”
Schneider later told The Moodie Davitt Report that the East Wing was a radical project for the airport. He said: “We lacked the right infrastructure for intercontinental flights so the East Wing was our solution. This is a special building. We are very engaged in net zero targets and all the buildings we have opened in last eight or nine years create more energy than they consume.
“It’s the next level in what we do, showing how aviation can play its part in sustainability goals. All our partners are fully engaged in this objective. By opening this new duty free shop it shows an example of how you can do this. It’s a common effort from the airport, but also airlines and other partners.”
On the return of business, Schneider added: “We are the entry point for most ski region in Switzerland and France, so we have a full Winter season. Last week we had over 70% of passengers compared to 2019. We are seeing positive signs, though we know this can change. We are moderately optimistic. easyJet, our biggest partner, will fly with a full fleet this Summer so that is a positive sign.
“Later we will overhaul our main terminal. That will take a positive energy direction, and offer more facilities adapted to the new traveller.”
Frédéric Chevalier said: “We could not have hoped for a better setting to launch our eco-responsible store project than the East Wing of Geneva Airport, a benchmark in terms of responsibility and energy performance.
“This building and the ambitions that enabled it to be live are an example for airport infrastructure and I am very proud that Lagardère Travel Retail was able, on its own scale, to contribute to upholding the responsible values of the East Wing, right down to its commercial offer.
“I am delighted that this world first for our Aelia Duty Free brand has been able to be developed in Switzerland, a country which is also at the forefront of action against climate change, and the promotion of ‘better living’. For Lagardère Travel Retail, this day and this inauguration are an important step in the realisation of our CSR strategy.”
He added: “The return to growth will only be sustainable if it is more responsible and we are committed, with our partners, to playing a leading role in the transition of travel retail towards a more responsible model.
“We also want to exercise this role by meeting the expectations of travellers. We must offer them a range of products that allows them to make responsible consumption choices, which we are doing in particular through the introduction of ‘We Care’, which allows us to better guide our customers by relying on labels and recognised certification.”
Chevalier later told The Moodie Davitt Report: “We felt we had to support the building of this incredible East Wing. We work super well and cooperatively with Geneva Airport and we pushed to the maximum to make it effective. All in the spirit of the new wing, no ceiling, no walls in the store.
“In the context of COVID, it was also motivational for our teams. And it fits perfectly well with a strategy we had been pushing pre-COVID, and are even more convinced this is something that needs to be even higher on the industry agenda. It meets new industry needs.
“It’s not a question of whether we pursue these projects or not; we simply have to contribute to a global air industry that moves towards protection of the planet. At our level, we won’t decarbonise the industry, but we are part of the eco-system and we see it as our responsibility to actively play a part.
“We have gained a lot of insights, around construction, the offer, the range. We have other projects where we believe leveraging what we have done here will be beneficial. We also need to adjust to local specificities. We do that everywhere, and here it matches the style and objective of the airport.
“The offer is fundamental. We talk to many brands about how they can support us and trust they will contribute to the industry effort in the future. Also, as a retailer we select the products we sell. We have always pushed strongly for local brands. It carries a big weight in what we do. Here you might say it’s easy as you can sell great Swiss chocolates, but we apply this principles everywhere. That has to be at the core of the operation; strong teams in the country sourcing from local producers and working with local communities.”
Lagardère Travel Retail EVP Concepts, Design & Construction Stéphanie Page said: “We wanted to address the carbon footprint of much of what we do here, much of which is around furniture and POS materials.
“We assessed what the carbon footprint of the store would have been previously. We worked with MEDIA 6 to help decrease this, with a target of -40%. We changed the way we assembled the materials, used local suppliers where possible, with certified raw materials.
“The lighting was assembled by a French company, which proposed to take back all materials once it closes and so have a circular system for this. It’s difficult to think of end of life with LED lighting but a solution is to work with players that have ideas around this circularity.”
‘We Care, We Do’
Responding to consumer expectations about the ethical and environmental credentials of the products they buy, Aelia Duty Free said it has committed to supporting responsible purchasing choices with the ‘We Care, We Do’ approach.
This supports a responsible, sustainable and transparent selection of products into the store, said the retailer. It added: “Lagardère Travel Retail is working with recognised and independent labels and certifications to achieve this. This is the first step in a long-term commitment to ensure the products we sell reflect our CSR commitments and respond to shoppers’ more conscious behaviours.”
Supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goals
The day was also notable for the inauguration of a pop-up related to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), with UN Director-General of the Geneva Office Tatiana Valovaya in attendance.
At the pop-up, which promotes the SDGs, travellers can write their ideas for how to achieve progress towards a healthier planet, which will be gathered at year end and presented to the UN to be added into a special publication.
Valovaya said: “We share your joy at opening this pop-up. We face many global challenges but we need global solutions, which is not easy, We have 17 SDGs, which is. roadmap to address many challenges from fighting poverty to gender discrimination to peace and security or to save the planet. What’s important is to let people know about these challenge, sands raise awareness of what actions we as citizens can take to address these challenges. Here, we can make people aware, and in an interactive way have people offer their own solutions and ideas.”
The new Aelia eco-responsible concept represents a key showcase for Lagardère Travel Retail’s CSR strategy, articulated around four pillars (Planet, Ethics, People, Social or PEPS).
As part of these commitments, Lagardère Travel Retail said it is “developing more consumer-facing initiatives to drive sustainability at the point of sale and further align to consumers’ heightened expectations for responsible consumption”.
Promotional punch
Lagardère Travel Retail’s concession contract at Geneva Airport runs to 2026; the company manages core category duty free as well as fashion & accessories stores under a separate contract. It will soon open a Ralph Lauren store in space close to the centre of the main departures zone (in space currently devoted to one of its Fashion Gallery concepts).
The lead Fashion Gallery store houses a mix of international and Swiss brands, with rotating promotional animations every two months. Smaller jewellery brands from Geneva and the wider region add local colour to the accessories range.
The main Aelia Duty Free store also features a strong promotional zone at the entrance, with key categories tobacco (close to 40% of sales) and beauty prominent. The Geneva store is the first in European duty free to feature the new PMI line IQOS Iluma. Tobacco features a strong price savings message, notably against the UK High Street price to target UK travellers.
Fragrances lead the P&C offer while make-up (which had declined in relative terms during the pandemic) is beginning to recover. P&C promotions also feature the ‘best seller for best price’ message to emphasise savings against downtown pricing.
In spirits, there is a current heavy focus on gin, with many UK visitors during the ski season. A neat selection of Swiss wines – 50% of wine sales – leads a strong local offer.
Confectionery from Switzerland is also prominent with regular promotions, digital campaigns and an area for tinned chocolates that appeal to collectors. Lindt remains the number one seller in the category, with Cailler and Villars among those also doing well.
More details about Lagardère Travel Retail’s CSR roadmap is available at this link.
Lagardère Travel Retail outlines its CSR ambitions in the short video above; click to view.
