Prologue: In January, Moët Hennessy Travel Retail partnered with Lotte Duty Free to unveil Hennessy’s Lunar New Year pop-up in Singapore Changi Airport Terminal 1.
The striking activation took its inspiration from the Year of the Fire Horse, featuring a sculptural visual identity centred on ‘movement, energy and forward momentum’.
The multi-sensory space allowed travellers to experience Hennessy through a cultural moment focused on gifting and product discovery.
The pop-up offered an exclusive cocktail menu, featuring drinks such as Hennessy V.S.O.P Ginger on tap and a Hennessy X.O Espresso Martini.
An interactive reaction game offered visitors the chance to win a 5cl Hennessy X.O miniature. A selection of festive gifts with purchase were also available, including Hennessy red packets and a Horse-themed stopper and glass set.
At the heart of the animation was the Hennessy Year of the Fire Horse Limited Editions collection, which brings together Hennessy V.S.O.P, Hennessy X.O and Hennessy Paradis.
Following the opening, Moët Hennessy Managing Director, Global Travel Retail Nicolas Gilardenghi spoke to The Moodie Davitt Report Founder & Chairman Martin Moodie about the principles and ambitions underpinning the project.
For Nicolas Gilardenghi, the spectacular Hennessy Lunar New Year pop-up in collaboration with Lotte Duty Free at Changi Airport Terminal 1 is precisely the kind of activation he believes airport retail does best.
“Thrilled” after an eight-year hiatus to be back in the travel retail channel he first entered in June 2011, the Moët Hennessy Managing Director, Global Travel Retail comments: “My conviction in travel retail remains as strong as ever; it is a unique global stage connecting travellers with our brands – a sophisticated setting where luxury meets retail and experiential excellence.
“This evolving landscape offers an unparalleled platform to showcase exquisite products and connect with consumers seeking discovery, genuine connection and cultural enrichment.”
That platform has to be imbued, however, with experiential qualities as well as great products, Gilardenghi emphasises. “To really stand out we need to elevate our business, refine how we distribute, and foster innovation in travel retail, which will solidify our distinctive positioning.
“Our core strengths – savoir-faire, heritage, craftsmanship and commitment to quality – are more relevant than ever. The LVMH and Formula 1 partnership perfectly shows how these principles create impact and truly resonate globally.”
{Click on the YouTube icon to view LVMH’s At The Speed of Dreams, the signature of the maison’s status as Global Luxury Partner of Formula 1}
While this interview was conducted before the joint US/Israel attack on Iran, travel retail was already facing an array of challenges ranging from softening Chinese spend to ever-intensifying competition from other channels.
Those challenges should be embraced, Gilardenghi says, by focusing on innate brand and channel virtues.
“Despite recent challenges, I feel we have emerged stronger, consistently engaging consumers and upholding our values,” he observes. “Our path forward blends tradition and innovation: staying connected to consumer trends, leveraging digital and enriching human interaction on the shop floor.”
The Asia Pacific region – “an undisputed powerhouse commanding 40% of the market” – is pivotal to recovery, Gilardenghi reckons, with surging passenger traffic [pre the Middle East conflict] reflecting unleashed demand and dynamic intra-regional travel.
All those positives come together in Hennessy’s third-year collaboration with Lotte Duty Free and Changi, a partnership that meticulously crafts culturally authentic, immersive and festive Lunar New Year experiences, Gilardenghi notes.
“Together, we have created a multi-sensory journey for global travellers, seamlessly integrating engaging tastings, localised rituals, sculptural narratives, interactive photo opportunities and exclusive limited editions into the airport experience.”
And not just as a one-off, he insists. “This Changi activation is a scalable, experiential blueprint, designed to resonate across Asia Pacific’s diverse cultures, forging unforgettable connections and inspiring discovery for every traveller,” Gilardenghi comments, adding that the brand plans to continue the journey into 2027, the Year of the Goat.
As the market reshapes, brand agility and responsiveness will be key to success, he adds. For example, China’s evolving consumer landscape, marked by conscious, selective spending and a growing prioritisation of health, family and career drives Moët Hennessy Travel Retail to sharpen its portfolio and engage new generations, especially Gen Z.
“We leverage global travel retail to sustain momentum and recruit these consumers through accessible formats, versatile occasions and immersive activations,” Gilardenghi explains.
“Culturally anchored” travel retail-exclusive offers are integral to the brand’s innovation agenda. Examples include the hugely successful Hennessy Paradis Zodiac Collection, the annual X.O Spirit of Travel sense of place capsule, and the new Hennessy Crystal Cocktails.
The last-named, being launched this month, repesents an experience designed to reinvent the art of tasting. “It will underscore our power to captivate discerning gifters and connoisseurs with uniqueness and craftsmanship,” says Gilardenghi.
Hennessy is balancing its strength in mature markets by pro-actively cultivating a broader shopper profile, observing robust growth from Southeast Asian, Korean, Japanese, and increasingly, Indian travellers, he adds.
The brand is strategically adapting its activations and product mix accordingly to resonate with these audiences, shaping Cognac’s future with what he calls a strong recruitment mindset.
Defining a successful Trinity partnership
The term ‘Trinity’, in travel retail parlance, was launched by what was then The Moodie Report at the inaugural Trinity Forum in 2003. Nearly a quarter of a century on, how do Moët Hennessy and Nicolas Gilardenghi view a successful execution of the concept?
“Moët Hennessy, our operators and consumers all thrive when we collaborate effectively,” he replies. “We aim to be a valuable partner, fostering deep, long-term relationships that build lasting brand impressions and exceptional traveller experiences.”
The concept requires brand, retailer and airport operator to be united by shared objectives and a long-term vision for brand equity and financial performance, Gilardenghi contends.
“This means joint planning, co-investment and integrated online and F&B activations. Seamless teamwork unlocks differentiated experiences, driving desirability and commercial success, always with the consumer at its heart.
“The Changi Airport and Lotte Duty Free collaboration perfectly exemplifies our vision for APAC experiential retail. Changi, a strategic flagship, sets the regional benchmark for execution and shopper engagement, with diverse international traffic ideal for brand discovery.
“Partnering with Lotte leverages their profound understanding of Asian shopper behaviour, amplifying our activations. Together they illustrate Moët Hennessy’s blueprint for evolving premium experiential retail across Asia Pacific.”
The Changi Airport Lunar New Year campaign at Changi exemplified this strategy, he explains, converting engagement into purchase through retail excellence and “shoppable storytelling”.
It’s about blending cultural resonance, premium aesthetics and flawless execution, Gilardenghi concludes, to foster emotional connection and confident purchase decisions.
The end result? An indelible brand experience for the traveller and a win/win for brand and retailer alike. ✈
