UK. London Luton Airport will issue a major tender for its duty-free concession – currently operated by Aelia Duty Free (Lagardère Travel Retail) – in early 2025.
The opportunity is expected to attract strong interest among leading travel retailers in Europe and beyond at London’s fourth-largest airport, which served over 16.2 million passengers in 2023.
The tender will cover a main walkthrough store in airside departures, a further shop on the way to gates plus an arrivals (duty-paid) outlet.
The footprint of these three stores spans 2,300sq m, with the proposed space available under the new concession at around 3,000sq m (subject to confirmation and contract).
London Luton Airport said it plans to launch “an open but forensic” six-month tender process in January, with a view to making an award by July next year.
The contract will begin in November 2026 following the expiry of the current agreement.
London Luton Airport Chief Commercial Officer Jonathan Rayner said: “We are continuing to see growth in spend per passenger and average transaction value (ATV) across multiple categories, and duty free remains a crucial component of this success.
“Our aim with this tender is to identify a partner that brings a strong understanding of market, brand and consumer trends and with the capacity to evolve in line with our own ambitions for sustainable growth, while enhancing and complementing our expanding retail mix.
“The ideal partner will share our focus on sustainability and go above and beyond in delivering innovation, operational excellence and a simple and friendly customer service, setting the bar for all other airports.
“This is not simply a commercial contract – it’s about developing a partnership that will lead the way in the duty-free sector, allowing us to continue our journey as innovators in airport retail.”
Total retail space at the airport spans 11,500sq m, with 18 new or upgraded shops and restaurants in 2023 and 2024 within a total of 47 retail and F&B outlets.
Of recent commercial growth, Rayner said: “It has been another strong commercial year for LLA, largely achieved through a programme of continuous improvement and diversification of our food & beverage offering, with 18 new or upgraded shops and restaurants and two renewed lounges opening over the past 18 months.
“Our approach is to grow through offering even greater choice, and this approach has been bolstered through an ongoing £30 million programme of investment across the terminal that underpins the simple, friendly passenger experience that we look to deliver.
“Across the airport, we continually look to raise the bar and set new industry benchmarks. Driving exceptional category performance across the terminal is just one of the ways in which we do this. Our ambitious plans for sustainable growth underline our focus on breaking the mould in a way that sets the standard for all aspirational airports.
“The LLA commercial offer is now a completely reimagined space, offering a passenger experience far beyond legacy opinion and expectation. The terminal has seen a diverse range of new and exciting shops and restaurants opening over the last 18 months, including Chaiiwala, Black Sheep Coffee, Chopstix and Benito’s.
“We’ve also unveiled some exciting independent restaurants and cafes that have proved equally popular including an Italian diner, Nolito’s and a craft coffee house, Avalon. This layered approach is designed to deliver a simple and friendly passenger experience and underlines our commitment to offering even greater choice and value to a diverse demographic.”
Addressing the next phase of development, Head of Retail & Surface Access Mark Jennings said: “Next year will see the opening of Sanfords, a new American diner and loft bar with a 500-cover capacity. Sanfords will become the UK’s largest airport restaurant, and feature a striking mezzanine overlooking the departure lounge.
“It is set to be a landmark addition to the terminal, enhancing our passenger experience and supporting our commitment to deliver a simple and friendly experience through choice, value and quality.”
Retailer anticipation is also expected to be heightened by the planned expansion of London Luton Airport’s potential audience in coming years.
Approval has been granted to increase annual passenger capacity from 18 million to 19 million. Beyond this, airport owner Luton Rising has applied to increase passenger capacity to 32 million by the early 2040s, alongside far-reaching commitments to minimise its environmental impacts.
The catchment area stretches from North London to the east Midlands, with regular rail and bus connections enhancing accessibility.
Rayner noted how London Luton’s commercial programme had been recognised for its performance and excellence.
“Our evolving food & beverage offer is designed to cater for all tastes and budgets and was a key component within a programme of wider investment in terminal facilities.”
London Luton was recognised at The Moodie Davitt Report-organised Airport Food & Beverage + Hospitality Awards 2024 as European regional winner in the prestigious Airport F&B Offer of the Year category.
Rayner noted: “The award was presented in recognition of the LLA investment, ambition, quality, service, transformation and performance across an extensive range of dining options, underlining the success of our strategy. The recognition was a great achievement for the airport, but we see this as just the beginning.”
This year, London Luton was also crowned Best European Airport (10-25 million passengers) by ACI Europe, and was named as the best UK airport by readers of Condé Nast Traveller magazine in 2023.
London Luton Airport is operated by a consortium, of which the majority shareholder is AENA, the world’s largest airport operator, and InfraBridge, a leading infrastructure investment manager.
Key airline partners include easyJet, Wizz Air, Ryanair, Tui, FlyOne, SunExpress, Dan Air and El Al.
The London Luton Airport team will be attending TFWA World Exhibition in Cannes next week.
For more information, please contact:
Business Development Manager Stuart Wightman stuart.wightman@ltn.aero
Business Development Executive Afsara Mukith Afsara.mukith@ltn.aero
Head of Retail and Surface Access Mark Jennings mark.jennings@ltn.aero
*Click here for our on-location report from London Luton from earlier this year. ✈
TENDER ALERTThe Moodie Davitt Report is the industry’s most popular channel for launching commercial proposals and for publishing the results. If you wish to promote an Expression of Interest, Request for Proposals or full tender process for any sector of airport or other travel-related infrastructure revenues, simply email Martin Moodie at Martin@MoodieDavittReport.com. We have a variety of options that will ensure you reach the widest, most high-quality concessionaire/retailer/operator base in the industry – globally and immediately. The Moodie Davitt Report is the only international business media to cover all airport or other travel-related consumer services, revenue-generating and otherwise. Our reporting includes duty-free and other retail, food & beverage, property, passenger lounges, art and culture, hotels, car parking, medical facilities, the internet, advertising and related revenue streams. Please send relevant material, including images, to Martin Moodie at Martin@MoodieDavittReport.com for instant, quality global coverage. |
