IRELAND. Leading travel retailer ARI is building up to National Day of Joy on 24 June, with the company celebrating the occasion with a global campaign and a colourful makeover of The Moodie Davitt Report website.
Our coverage, which runs through this week, today features an interview with ARI CEO Ray Hernan.
He talks about why National Day of Joy matters, the role of front-line teams in delivering memorable experiences and how the ‘Joy On Your Way’ brand platform continues to resonate three years after its creation.
ARI CEO Ray Hernan introduces a week of celebrations to mark National Day of Joy; click on the video above
The Moodie Davitt Report: At a time when businesses are under pressure to do more with less, why does it remain important to protect and invest in Joy Day?
ARI CEO Ray Hernan: Because it goes to the heart of who we are as a business. Travel retail is often measured through sales, footfall and commercial performance, but behind all of that are people. The experiences travellers remember are usually created by colleagues. Joy Day gives us an opportunity to recognise and celebrate that. It reinforces the importance of connection, appreciation and belonging across our business.
At a time when retail is becoming increasingly transactional, Joy Day reminds us that people remain our greatest differentiator. Technology has an important role to play, but people still value human interaction. They want advice, reassurance, engagement and memorable experiences. That’s where our colleagues make the difference.
Those things aren’t separate from performance. In my experience, when colleagues feel valued and connected, it shows in the experience they create for travellers. Joy Day is one of the ways we bring that culture to life.
Looking back three years to the launch of ‘Joy On Your Way’, what have you learned about building a business around a concept as ambitious as joy?
One of the biggest lessons is that joy is much more powerful than it might first appear.
When we developed the new brand platform, we spent a lot of time trying to understand what truly differentiated ARI. Through conversations with colleagues, partners and customers, we kept coming back to the same idea: human connection. Joy was the word that best captured it.
Three years later, what has struck me most is how naturally colleagues have embraced it. It doesn’t feel like a marketing slogan. It has become part of how we think about the business and how we make decisions. In many ways, it has become a ‘North Star’ that helps keep us focused on the experiences we are creating for travellers, partners and each other.
Another thing that has struck me is how universal the idea has been. Whether you’re in Ireland, Canada, Portugal, Cyprus or the Middle East, the message resonates. It is simple, authentic and relevant across cultures and markets. That simplicity has been one of its greatest strengths.
In developing ARI’s brand platform, the business ultimately chose ‘joy’ as its defining idea. Why was that the right choice for a global travel retailer?
We didn’t start the process looking for the word ‘joy’. We started by asking what makes ARI different.
The answer that consistently emerged was the quality of our relationships – our relationships with travellers, with brand partners, with airport partners and with each other. We realised that what people valued most about ARI wasn’t just the transaction. It was the relationship.
Travel itself is an emotional experience. Airports are places of anticipation, excitement, reunions, discovery and new beginnings. They are also often among the first and last experiences travellers have of a country.
We take that responsibility seriously because the way we engage with passengers reflects not only ARI, but also the destinations we operate in.
Joy is universal. It transcends cultures and borders. It felt true to who we are as a business and where we want to go.
Technology is an enabler, but our colleagues remain at the heart of what we do. Joy reflects our belief that relationships still matter and that they remain one of the most powerful ways to create positive experiences for travellers, colleagues and partners alike.
In your time spent at ARI locations across the world, is there a moment involving a colleague, a partner or a traveller that captures what ‘Joy On Your Way’ looks like in practice?
What stands out to me isn’t one big moment. It’s the consistency of small ones.
I have seen colleagues go out of their way to help a traveller who was stressed, unsure where they needed to be or looking for advice before a flight. I have seen teams rally together to solve a challenge for a partner. I have seen colleagues take genuine pride in helping someone find the perfect gift or recommending an alternative when what they were looking for wasn’t available.
Those moments rarely make headlines, but they matter. They remind me that people remember far more than the purchase itself. They remember how they were treated and how they felt.
The products matter and the stores matter. They help bring people in. But very often it’s our colleagues who make the difference. They’re the ones who offer advice, solve problems, build trust and create a positive interaction. Long after a purchase has been made, that’s often what people remember.
That’s where ‘Joy On Your Way’ comes to life.
The world feels more uncertain today than it did when ARI launched ‘Joy On Your Way’ in 2023. Has that made the message more relevant or more challenging to live up to?
I would say it is more relevant. The last few years have reminded us how important connection is. Travel has always been about bringing people together, whether for business, family, adventure or opportunity. In uncertain times, those connections matter even more.
At the same time, we are living in a world that is becoming more automated and, in many cases, more transactional. That makes genuine interactions even more valuable. People still want to feel welcomed, understood and appreciated.
That doesn’t mean joy is always easy. There are challenges in every business and every market. But for me, that’s precisely why it matters. ‘Joy On Your Way’ was never intended to ignore reality. It was intended to remind us of the positive role we can play in people’s journeys.
If we can make someone’s day a little better, strengthen a relationship or leave them with a positive impression of their journey, then we’re delivering on what the brand stands for. ✈
*Click here for details of ARI’s performance and profitability in 2025.
