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Celebrating interaction and innovation: (l-r) LS travel retail EMEA COO Vincent Romet, MITR General Manager Craig Sargeant and AdP Retail Director Mathieu Daubert officially open the new M&M’s concept store in Paris |
FRANCE. Mars International Travel Retail (MITR), LS travel retail and Aéroports de Paris (AdP) officially opened the “next generation” M&M’s concept store at Paris Charles de Gaulle Terminal 2A on Friday – and hailed the “˜Trinity’ partnership that drove the project.
The opening event was attended by around 80 guests from the three companies, plus industry media including The Moodie Report.
The 116sq m store represents “a unique interactive shopping experience” according to the three partners (LS and AdP collaborate in the airport’s retail activities through the SDA joint venture).
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M&M’s ‘Yellow’ greets guests to the opening event |
The store (which opened to passengers in April) brings the key M&M’s characters to life in an environment inspired by Paris landmarks such as the Arc de Triomphe (mirrored at the store entrance), Montmartre and the Eiffel Tower. The concept store is laid out in M&M’s colours: red, yellow, green, blue and orange.
As well as product, the store carries a full range of destination-themed accessories and souvenirs such as mugs, t-shirts and babywear. A colour wall – introduced here for the first time in travel retail – allows customers to create their own assortment of candies, with all items presented in a red, white and blue bag that is emblematic of France.
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M&M’s ‘Red’ provides a final photo opportunity of Paris for store visitors |
The partners said they aimed to increase engagement with existing shoppers as well as non-shoppers through the striking new store. Trading to date has been good, noted LS travel retail, with strong rates of conversion to purchase and healthy average transaction values (of around €15 per shopper -Ed). Footfall is expected to be boosted next January by the opening next door of the first Disneyland Paris merchandise store at an airport, as well as the unveiling of new F&B outlets in the vicinity.
This is the eighth M&M’s travel retail store but the first in Europe. MITR General Manager Craig Sargeant said: “This is the next generation concept for M&M’s and it’s the first time we have brought to life the city [the concept] is located in. It provides a window into Europe for M&M’s at the airport. We were able to leverage the knowledge of the M&M’s World team, and uniquely [beyond the M&M’s World stores] we are allowed to offer the M&M’s World merchandise ranges, so it has been a full collaboration. LS travel retail and AdP were very proactive partners, which we welcome. It’s a great platform for our business in European travel retail and we’re excited to be present here.”
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A new feature of the concept, the colour wall, houses dispensing machines that allow travellers to mix and match their M&M’s selections |
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The ‘I ‘M’ Paris’ notebook is the biggest selling SKU to date; overall sales are currently weighted towards chocolate though strong merchandise purchases are anticipated |
The next M&M’s concept store, he revealed, will open next January at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol Lounge 2, in partnership with Schiphol Airport Retail. The strategy is to open one concept store in travel retail per year, Sargeant added. “We could do more, but we know we can execute one per year very well, such as here.”
AdP Retail Director Mathieu Daubert said the airport company had been seeking to introduce more experiential concepts at CDG. “I saw the M&M’s World concept in London and it looked like the kind of concept that we desperately needed in Paris; it is global but with a local twist, and a great experience. We are very proud to be the first airport in Europe to open this new concept. It’s a recognition of what we have been trying to do, offering the passenger their final shopping experience in Paris as they depart, and creating what we hope is the ultimate shopping experience for them.”
LS travel retail EMEA COO Vincent Romet said: “With this opening we are celebrating Trinity. It was a partnership from the start between airport, retailer and brand. It’s only when we create these types of partnerships that we move the industry forward, and have done that with our long-term partners AdP and Mars.”
He added: “Today it’s more and more important to enable the passenger to have fun at the airport. This is also a great example of how to customise a global brand to the local environment, and the spirit of Mars allowed us to do that. Passengers love shopping in this environment, as the first results tell us. We look forward to developing more unique concepts with Mars in the future.”
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The cash till point epitomises the riot of colour that runs through the store |
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The store features some superb branded merchandising and is busy with sights and sounds; the image on the right of Parisian traffic also features the honking of cars as visitors pass by |
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Interaction and theatre are key principles underlying the store’s development. The M&M’s characters appear regularly at the store to meet travellers, while the imagery and sound inside the store also draw people inside. There is a wall depicting M&M’s “˜Red’ character beside the Seine, for example, that offers a photo opportunity, while a scene depicting Paris’ busy traffic is accompanied by the sound of cars honking their horns.
“We wanted to give people the opportunity to interact with the brand,” said Sargeant. “It’s about creating lasting memories, and the number of photos we see being taken suggests that is working.”
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The ‘Allez les bleus’ M&M’s display carried a strong resonance for French travellers as their team took on Germany at the World Cup on the day of the opening (they ultimately lost the game in Brazil 1-0) |
Evolving purchasing patterns
To date, the single biggest selling SKU has been a notepad with “˜I M Paris’ on the cover. “It’s an easy gift to grab off the shelf or at the till,” noted Sargeant. “We will be watching closely how purchasing trends evolve. At M&M’s World stores, the weighting is around 60% merchandise and 40% product. So far here, it’s mostly chocolate being purchased, but that might change over time.”
Romet added: “It’s important that we learn how different passengers purchase here, whether they’re from the Middle East or America. In general for us, spend per passenger is the critical metric for any concept, but we know that varies from one nationality to another, and not all passengers have the same appetite for the same brands. But this store is performing well in those terms.”
Sargeant said the investment was a long-term one for the brand owner. “This is not a concept that delivers an immediate return on investment, but we wouldn’t be doing it if it didn’t make money over time. Creating impressions and engagement are key but it also has to perform, and the early signs are that it will.”
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Mathieu Daubert: “We are offering the passenger their final shopping experience in Paris” |
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Craig Sargeant: “This is the next generation concept for M&M’s and it’s the first time we have brought to life the city we’re located in” |
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Vincent Romet: Hailed the ‘Trinity’ partnership behind the project |
Both Romet and Daubert noted the growing role of confectionery within the broader “˜gastronomy’ category at Paris.
Daubert said: “Alongside fashion & accessories and beauty, gastronomy is key for us. Previously our food & confectionery offer was mainly at the luxury end, based around French brands. That remains important but we are diversifying our activities too, adding new brands in this segment, but with a Parisian flavour. M&M’s fits that approach well and complements our luxury focus.” [He noted the planned opening in September of a new “luxury shopping concept” at Paris CDG T2E, with a leading French name making its debut with a boutique at the airport.]
Romet said that the focus on the category is changing at LS travel retail, as its new Aelia Duty Free store concept [to be rolled out later this year, initially at Marseille Airport] will show.
“Confectionery is a growing category and it gives the opportunity to push penetration up. It speaks to all passenger segments and profiles. We used to focus very much on gastronomy at the high end – gourmet food is part of our DNA as a French company so it is expected – but now we are developing the global confectionery brands more and we see the benefits. Some of these brands are delivering real innovation to our business. M&M’s is one of these. It makes sense for us to collaborate with category leaders and use their expertise.”
“We want to merchandise the category at the entrance to the stores, triggering people to enter, while doing more at the cash till point to encourage impulse sales. Our new Aelia Duty Free concept at Marseille will bring this to life.”
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The Mars ITR team celebrate the official opening on Friday |
On the broader opportunities in the channel, Sargeant said: “These concept stores provide an experience and visibility, but there is also a big opportunity to drive sales in the main travel retail outlets. There, we can do more with product using dedicated merchandising and shop-in-shops. We are trying to get better at using that opportunity, leaning on the fact that this is an impulse category.”
On innovation in the business, he added: “I have a clear view about this: it should be more about the experience than it is about the product. Let’s not fall for the trick of talking up the “˜churn’ of innovation around packaging as true innovation. It’s about high quality display, differentiation and a focus on the experience. The only way we can make this work is through partnership – partnership that works for everyone.”
And speaking about the role of confectionery in travel retail, Sargeant concluded: “I feel strongly that it is our role as a category to get people into the stores. Confectionery isn’t used everywhere to that effect, but we in confectionery have to be better at competing with other categories for that share of voice, and we also have to understand the total store better, so we can help retailers understand the role that confectionery can play.”
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A dance parade through the terminal began the event |
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Vincent Romet, Mathieu Daubert and Craig Sargeant against the backdrop of one of the Paris-themed walls that are dotted around the store |
