FRANCE. Lagardère Travel Retail today (25 September) revealed details of a strategic reorganisation of its commercial team. The move was announced at the company’s annual Duty Free Partner e-Forum.
This new structure, said the travel retailer, is designed to “reinforce the company’s organisation to better address its growing scope of activities, empower local markets and strengthen central expertise to drive performance and growth across all geographies”.
Lagardère Travel Retail Chief Commercial & Digital Officer Lylian Vignau said: “Our ambition is to combine the strength of local insights with global expertise. We want our teams on the ground to act quickly and adapt to each market, while our central structure drives strategic initiatives, shares best practices and leverages synergies between our three business lines [duty free & fashion, travel essentials and dining].
“This balance between local responsiveness and global coordination is essential to deliver exceptional value to our partners and create innovative offers for our customers. We are also developing regional capabilities wherever they can bring value to our activities.”
Key structural changes include the appointment of Alexandre Pardo as VP Global Supply Chain, overseeing logistics, demand planning, forecasting and procurement. A new Asia Pacific regional office will be established in Singapore under Annabelle Chung Chai Man, responsible for regional negotiations and offer adaptation, while Munif Mohammed continues to lead the Middle East office in Dubai.
The Central Core Merchant Division has been restructured into three complementary departments:
- Merchant Core Duty Free, under Guillaume Robert’s leadership, will manage centrally coordinated duty-free core categories, such as perfumes & cosmetics, beverages & confectionery,
- Merchant Support, led by Stéphane Cathelain, will focus on delivering the tools, data and methods to enable cross-functional commercial excellence as well as managing categories such as tobacco, electronics and toys. It will also reinforce international negotiations and strategic partnerships. Stéphane Cathelain is also Deputy CEO at Extime Duty Free Paris.
- The Commercial Coordination department, led by Fabio Castiglioni, supports country operations, international openings and refits, and coordinates the commercial aspects of new projects.
By empowering teams to anticipate market trends and tailor offers to local demand, Lagardère Travel Retail said it can strengthen commercial decision-making and drive innovation in products and services. The new structure also enhances the company’s flexibility to serve as a hub for new ideas and lower barriers to entry for potential new brands while taking advantage of its scale and global reach.
Lagardère Travel Retail said the reorganisation is also designed to advance several key ambitions: delivering excellence from strategy to customer satisfaction; achieving a 25% absolute reduction in Scope 3 carbon emissions by 2030; and sustaining like-for-like growth in sales per passenger above inflation year-on-year.
“This new organisation is about being smarter, faster and more connected,” concluded Vignau. “It positions us to seize growth opportunities, support our teams and deliver value to our partners and customers worldwide.” ✈
