Introduction: Following the launch of its landmark dual-store concept in the new Frankfurt Airport Terminal 3, Jägermeister is signalling a fresh phase in its travel retail strategy – one centred on immersive brand experiences, digital engagement and long-term consumer recruitment.
The year-long activation, developed with Frankfurt Airport Retail and Media Frankfurt, is the German spirits company’s first fully immersive airport concept, combining storytelling, retail and technology across two complementary spaces: Destination Jäger and Destination Meister. Located at the entrance to Pier J, the installation is expected to engage up to 5 million international travellers over the next 12 months while showcasing travel retail-exclusive (TREX) products, limited editions and cross-category branded merchandise
Speaking to The Moodie Davitt Report Brand Director Hannah Tan, Mast Jägermeister Vice-President Global Travel Retail Tobias Witte and Marketing Director Global Travel Retail Stephanie Cleary discuss the thinking behind the concept, why Frankfurt provided the ideal stage and how the project reflects the company’s mission for engaging a new generation of travellers.
Bringing Jägermeister’s duality to life
After several years of delivering vibrant and memorable airport activations around the world, Mast-Jägermeister wanted to push its experiential retail strategy further. That opportunity arrived when Frankfurt Airport Retail and Media Frankfurt offered the brand the opportunity to take over two opposing activation spaces in the hub’s new Terminal 3.
Rather than creating two separate pop-ups, the team developed a single connected experience built around the duality of the Jägermeister brand. “When the opportunity came to takeover the two spaces, we immediately saw the potential,” Mast Jägermeister Vice-President Global Travel Retail Tobias Witte explains.
“The green on one side and the orange on the other, our heritage alongside what we’re doing today – that’s how the idea evolved.”
The two spaces each tell a different part of the Jägermeister story. One celebrates almost 90 years of craftsmanship, quality and heritage through immersive storytelling, while the other showcases the brand’s contemporary personality through AI-powered digital experiences, exclusive merchandise and interactive technology.
Mast Jägermeister Marketing Director Global Travel Retail Stephanie Cleary says the objective was to create a journey rather than simply another airport pop-up. “The Meister side is dedicated to our quality, heritage and cultural story, while the Jäger side focuses on the here and now and how we stay front of mind for today’s and tomorrow’s consumers.
“It’s about allowing travellers to immerse themselves fully in both worlds,” she comments.
“The concept extends beyond the two retail spaces themselves. Illuminated ceiling features and floor graphics physically connect both locations, encouraging passengers to move naturally between them and experience our brand as a single destination,” Cleary adds.
Working with Media Frankfurt, Fraport and Frankfurt Airport Retail, Jägermeister created a connected journey using digital media across T3, introducing the campaign before security, reinforcing it throughout the terminal and continuing the conversation after travellers leave the activation.
Cleary says every touchpoint has been designed to encourage discovery. “We wanted to connect the entire traveller journey – from departures through to the boarding gate. Digital communications introduce the activation before passengers reach it, while the experience itself combines storytelling, sampling, interaction and product discovery. Even as travellers head to their gate, they’re reminded that the experience is there.”
Witte adds that geo-targeted digital activity further extends the campaign by making travellers aware of the activation before they even enter the retail environment.
For Cleary, what distinguishes the Frankfurt activation is its ability to blend storytelling, interaction and retail within a single immersive experience.
“We haven’t simply created another pop-up,” she explains. “We’ve created a destination that encourages travellers to stop, explore and engage. They can touch, taste, smell, learn something new, purchase products and leave with a genuine memory of the brand.”
She adds that the scale of the activation is unusual for a spirits brand in an airport environment, helping it stand out among traditional retail concepts.
Witte says the experience succeeds by balancing Jägermeister’s heritage with its contemporary appeal. “For travellers from markets where Jägermeister may not be as well known, we’re able to provide context around our heritage, craftsmanship and quality.
“At the same time, they experience the energy, creativity and fun side of the brand. Bringing those two worlds together is what makes this activation special.”
Frankfurt as a stage for experiential retail
As Germany’s largest international gateway and the ninth-busiest airport in the world, Frankfurt Airport offers access to the diverse international audience Jägermeister wants to reach.
“Frankfurt is in our home market, and Terminal 3 gave us the opportunity to create something entirely new,” Cleary explains. “Throughout the process there was a genuine willingness from everyone involved to try new ideas and bring the concept to life.
“We all shared the same objective: creating memorable experiences for travellers.”
For Witte, T3 also provides the ideal platform to recruit new consumers. “Many travellers already know Jägermeister, particularly in Germany and Europe, but this terminal serves long-haul international traffic. It allows us to introduce the brand to consumers who may have little awareness of our history or what we stand for.”
Experience first
The Frankfurt project also reflects a broader shift in how Jägermeister approaches experiential retail.
For Witte, that starts with understanding how younger travellers engage with brands. “Experiential retail is extremely important,” he says. “Within a few years, Gen Z will account for a significant proportion of international travellers. If we don’t understand and engage them now, we’ll miss the opportunity completely.
“They’re looking for interaction, discovery and memorable experiences once they’ve passed through security. Those insights have shaped this activation, and they continue to influence how we develop both products and experiences.”
Those learnings have also informed the roll-out of Jägermeister Orange, developed specifically with younger legal-drinking-age consumers in mind.
The Frankfurt concept, he says, is another example of applying those consumer insights in a travel retail environment.
“We want to continue pushing boundaries,” Witte says. “It’s about creating experiences that consumers genuinely want, rather than repeating what we’ve done for the past 20 years.
“This project demonstrates what can happen when brands, airports and retailers share the same ambition.”
Against a challenging backdrop for the global spirits industry, the scale of the investment underlines Jägermeister’s continued confidence in the channel.
“For us, travel retail remains one of the best places to present Jägermeister at its very best,” Cleary says. “We’re reaching consumers from all over the world in an environment where they’re open to discovery. That gives us an incredible opportunity to build awareness, recruit new consumers and demonstrate everything the brand stands for.”
“That’s why we’ll continue investing in experiences that create memorable moments and build long-term brand awareness,” she adds.
Looking ahead, Witte says Mast-Jägermeister’s immediate priorities include continuing the global roll-out of Jägermeister Orange and delivering further standout activations across the channel. According to Witte, one principle will continue to underpin every investment the company makes.
“The biggest priority, and the one that will remain constant, is consumer centricity,” Witte explains. “It may sound like a buzzword, but it genuinely drives everything we do.
“Every activation, every investment and every experience go through the same filter: are we speaking to the right consumer, at the right time, in the right place? And are we offering something they actually want?
“If we can continue answering those questions positively, then we’re heading in the right direction.” ✈
