Introduction: The latest edition of our regular series on ambitious Turkish travel retailer Setur Duty Free features Arzu Bozkurt Atalay, Setur Vice President for Duty Free Operations. She speaks candidly about the vital role that good employee relations and teamwork have played throughout the pandemic. And, citing parent company Koç Holding’s financial strength, she says that Setur Duty Free is more committed than ever to investment, both in physical stores and its digital development.
“As a pioneer in Turkey’s duty free market, we have a skillful and experienced team. We have direct and strong agreements with the world’s leading brands. We have powerful digital and analytical expertise. Finally, we are ready for future projects with a solid financial foundation.”
The words of Setur Vice President for Duty Free Operations Arzu Bozkurt Atalay leave no room for doubt about the strength of the company’s ambitions and its readiness to take on new projects.
“With the support of [our parent] Koç Group, the only Turkish company listed in the Fortune Global 500, we will continue our sustainable growth strategy on a global scale,” she says.
The relationship with Koç Holding, which has been a ceaseless pioneer for innovation during its nearly 100-year journey from 1926, is critical to Setur Duty Free’s global aspirations. The powerful parent company has led many breakthroughs along Turkey’s journey from industrialisation to globalisation, one of them being the creation of Setur as the country’s first duty free retailing brand, and today its oldest and most widespread.
But it’s not just about economic power. By focusing on employee experience and centering the company’s human resources approach on the notion that customer satisfaction can only be achieved through contented employees, Setur won the 2020 ‘Best Workplace Award’ within Kincentric Turkey’s Best Employers Survey.
The global pandemic was a particular test of employee relations – and morale – worldwide. The practices developed by Setur in 2020 to minimize the negative impacts of the pandemic made employees feel that they were not alone both materially and morally, Atalay says.
The company strove assiduously to create positive interaction with employees in multiple different locations across Turkey through digital tools and applications. These played a critical role in preserving staff psychological and physical health, in the process creating value through both short-term and long-term benefits.
Remarkably, Setur has maintained its employment levels despite the negative developments experienced all over the world during the pandemic. The Kincentric Award demonstrated the significance of maintaining team spirit even during the difficult times the group was going through, Atalay comments.
And here’s another telling statistic. Of the 24 companies granted the Kincentric Best Employers Workplace Award last year, no fewer than 20 were Koç Community businesses, a powerful affirmation of the group’s dedication to employee relations countrywide.
“In order to protect the health of our employees and guests during the pandemic, we took many measures in line with the guidelines provided by the Ministry of Health,” Atalay says. She points out that such health & safety protocols were implemented at 90% of the land border crossings and over 70% of the seaports across Turkey.
“Through these measures, we took steps to protect the health of every individual across the entire shopping process, from the product storage areas to the checkouts,” she recalls proudly.
“Setur Duty Free currently provides the highest-quality shopping experience to its guests with over 600 brands, eight different product categories, more than 40,000 product types and experienced sales personnel in 46 stores spread over an area of approximately 15,000 square meters in 20 different locations across Turkey. Being able to protect everyone’s health without compromising this quality remains one of our most important priorities.”
Additionally, Koç Holding was singled out for praise by the World Economic Forum (WEF) for its concerted steps towards boosting economic and social recovery during the pandemic. Moving forward and bolstered by these achievements, Setur Duty Free has continued its investment programme, both locally and globally, without pause.
Technology and in-store investments
In line with global trends, which have seen ecommerce usage accelerate during the pandemic, Atalay says guests’ demand for online and digital solutions has risen amid the crisis.
However, Setur Duty Free is also continuing to invest in its bricks & mortar stores, she insists, marrying the best of physical and digital.
Outlining some of the key investments designed to meet the expectations of management, employees and guests, Atalay says: “We are aware of the need to make the shopping experience in our stores ‘safe and fast’ through the utilisation of digital and online solutions in order to meet the changing needs of our guests and we continue our work in this direction.
“Reducing the checkout times with contactless and mobile payment pre-order are some of the digital solution examples we have adopted to facilitate fast and secure shopping. We also continue our work to provide innovative and creative online solutions, such as door-to-door delivery, within the framework of existing Turkish regulations.”
During this process, Setur Duty Free has also implemented various projects to increase productivity, customer satisfaction and employee motivation. The ‘Warehouse Management System’ project, for example, aimed to make supply chain processes faster and more efficient, thereby increasing operational efficiency.
Similarly, the ‘Shift Planning System’, which ensures that the number of employees in a store is compatible with customer traffic on an hourly basis, played an important role in increasing customer satisfaction. With the improvements made in the ‘Smart Premium System – which allows the company to set and monitor shifts and individual targets on a daily and monthly basis via mobile phones – an increase in employee motivation was also targeted.
“In this ever-changing period, one that is subject to many unforeseen developments, Setur Duty Free has created and will continue to create projects that enable adaptation to the changes,” Atalay concludes. “They also contribute to our transformation and create new dynamics based on our energetic team and experience in the sector.”
That experience has enabled the company not only to survive the crisis but to be able to look forward to a bold new chapter in a proud 57-year journey.
