IRELAND. ARI has opened its latest destination concept, The Irish Market, at Dublin Airport Terminal 2. The store in airside departures is home to 69 brands and 360 products – a number that will grow in coming weeks and months – spanning food & confectionery plus a small spirits selection, all from Irish artisans and producers.
The Moodie Davitt Report visited The Irish Market in recent days, and heard from ARI management how the company aims to showcase the best of Irish food in a contemporary way.
The concept was inspired partly by the success of the acclaimed Kypriaka concept in Cyprus, and more recently by the colourful, well-ranged Sabores de Portugal environment at Portugal Duty Free stores.
Further destination merchandise stores will become part of the portfolio as refurbishments take place across the network. Dublin Airport Terminal 1 will be home to another edition of The Irish Market once a major retail upgrade, encompassing all categories, is completed in 2027, while a planned overhaul of Montreal Duty Free will also introduce a concept tailored for Canada.
ARI Global Buying Manager Food, Confectionery & Souvenirs Deirdre O’Carroll said, “We know travellers want to see a strong sense of place offer. So when this space (previously allocated to the Avoca brand) came up, we decided to look at something that showed Irish brands with true provenance and with everything made in Ireland.”
ARI Ireland Retail Director Paul Neeson added, “Irish food has also come a long way in quality and reputation; what was very much a craft industry has become much more mainstream.
“Our long-time partner Wrights of Howth did a wonderful job championing Irish food, led by seafood, for over 38 years. The Irish Market takes this forward and adds variety and choice.”
The store design blends traditional heritage cues, with the use of Irish wood prominent, with contemporary flourishes including price and product displays created just for this outlet, as well as a striking LED screen that spans the store front and depicts landscape scenes from around Ireland.
A food-to-go counter features gourmet sandwiches with Wrights organic smoked salmon, with the range to be extended further.
Small artisanal food producers spanning sweet and savoury goods are well represented, alongside broad coffee and tea ranges, breads, cheeses, plus a wide variety of spreads. Many items fall under the ‘heritage’ sub-category that is already resonating with Irish shoppers, from Kerrygold butter to Tayto crisps.
Best-sellers to date include smoked salmon and breakfast packs featuring sausages, black & white pudding and bacon. The spirits offer is an edited version of the Irish whiskey and gin best-seller list from the main Dublin Airport Duty Free store.
An expansive chocolate selection mirrors ARI’s commitment to Irish products – Irish goods represent 60% of all that category’s sales – with best-seller brands such as Butlers and Lily O’Brien’s complemented by smaller regional labels.
A neat accessories range has been created just for this store, from bags to aprons, which sit alongside gifts from Tipperary crystal, speciality baker Una Leonard and other contemporary Irish brands.
O’Carroll said, “We are trying to spread the range across the country as much as we possibly can, so that there is something from every county.
“We are working with many small producers as well as some big distributors who can supply multiple products, and that helps us manage the process with so many partners. We are trialling all brands for at least three to six months so we can test their success and move fast to change things if needed.
“We can support those brand partners with tastings and campaigns as we grow the offer. We continue to work with Bord Bia (Irish Food Board) and Guaranteed Irish (a national symbol of trust in products and services), whose mark of approval holds so much value with consumers. We are committed to supporting local and providing a global platform for Irish producers.”
Neeson added, “With other stores from The Irish Whiskey Collection in the main duty-free store, to a new-look Irish Memories on the way, we have created a whole new space for Irish products here in T2.
“What this also does is reinforce our expertise in this category. We know that airports are increasingly seeking speciality shops with a destination flavour and this is an idea we can translate to a tender anywhere.” ✈
