SWITZERLAND. The Weitnauer Group of Companies today announced the change of its name to DUFRY Group.
Weitnauer Holding Ltd and all its travel retail companies using the name Weitnauer will change to DUFRY. The news was unveiled to a gathering of the company’s worldwide management in Switzerland over the past two days. The company’s subsidiary dedicated to the vending machine business will continue to trade as Restomat.
Chief executive officer Frédéric Gauchet said: “Changing our name from Weitnauer to DUFRY marks the accomplishment of a larger strategic reorganization we have undertaken over the last year. After having divested our distribution business and restructured our contract portfolio, our new corporate identity aims to highlight our retail know-how, our dedication to the Travel Retail and the Vending Machine businesses. Our change of name strongly underlines our ambition to be a key player in the global travel retail industry.”
The company has also introduced a striking new logo featuring a stylized “D” in red on a black background above the world DUFRY.
Gauchet told The Moodie Report that the company was 100% committed to its new future as a dedicated travel retailer. By divesting its distribution arm and getting out of loss-making businesses, DUFRY is well positioned to go forward as a profitable and consumer-focused retailer, he said.
In a message to the company’s business partners, Gauchet commented: “DUFRY will be recognized as the flag of our multi-cultural group as much as it underlines our global presence and it paves the way to innovative retailing. It is our continued ambition to ensure exciting shopping for our customers and create retail contexts that allow suppliers to fully explore inventive merchandising opportunities for their luxury brands.”
Comment: As evidenced by the company’s recent first-half results, Gauchet’s formula of exiting loss-making businesses or contracts and investing in those with promise, is paying off. With the new name, logo and identity, the transition from trader to retailer is complete. Its four regional operations – Italy & Brands (under chief operating officer Dante Marro); Eurasia & Asia (coo René Riedi); Western Europe & Africa (coo Antoine d’Oiron) and Americas (coo José González) – are now firmly focused on profitable, consumer-focused retail growth and appear well placed to deliver it.
DUFRY has beefed up its management further with June’s appointment of Liz Woodland as chief procurement officer, working with the regions to create and deliver global merchandise and buying strategy, another sign of a company serious in its intent to become a world-class retailer. Gauchet told The Moodie Report that DUFRY wanted to be seen as a pioneering and innovative retailer that is customer, service and value orientated. The structure and identity is in place. Now it must deliver. Look out for the Cannes special print edition of The Moodie Report for an in-depth profile on the travel retail channel’s new force.
