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The new 550sq m store benefits from wide aisles and natural light |
DENMARK. Aalborg Airport has opened a new 550sq m walk-through duty free store as part of a major expansion. Specialist airport commercial design and planning company The Design Solution was a key player in the commercial development.
The devlopment comes as the airport caters for an increase in passenger numbers. Aalborg looks set to handle 700,000 departing passengers this year, increasing to over 1 million in the next five years.
Aalborg Airport CEO Soren Svendsen said: “We have experienced a huge growth in traffic in the past years, particularly in charter and international traffic. Now, the next step is to focus on non-aviation to increase revenue in the commercial field.”
The Design Solution was appointed by the airport in 2012 to plan and design a store for the directly operated retail offer.
TDS Project Director Nick Taylor explained: “The reconfiguration of the airport gave us the perfect opportunity for a walk-through format for all international passengers. In terms of footprint, this is the most compact one we have ever designed.”
With the changes, Aalborg Airport now presents a comprehensive core category offer of beauty and liquor as well as sunglasses, jewellery, small leather goods and watches, said the partners.
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There are dedicated zones for malts, wines and beauty (above and below) |
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The Design Solution said the large amount of natural light offered an open and accessible feel to the commercial areas
Taylor continued: “We wanted this store to feel utterly integrated into the terminal language and took materials such as the granite flooring into the pathway. The pine, which makes up the building’s roof beams forms the “˜glue’ which frames the wall bays.
“The space has been designed with the flexibility to take future personalised installations from the brands, and has generic concept features such as the wine & Champagne area at the front of the store, single malts, white spirits and the speciality zone.
“Highlighting newness and offers is key to attracting customers, so we designed multi-level podiums which have more height than the gondolas and sit just on the edge of the main walkway. This punctuates the volume with generic communications, landscaping the environment and giving a pace and rhythm to the store.”
Svendsen concluded: “The final result is amazing. The store is perfectly integrated into our airport and the passenger flow. Already, we have seen very satisfying turnover and a return on investment.”
The Design Solution is a specialist in retail planning and design for airport terminals, as well as a leading designer for the tax and duty free industry.
