“What we have seen since the pandemic is a rapid rise of experiences ranked as the number one driver of travellers to visit duty-free shops and to purchase. At PMI GTR we are elevating that experience component of our initiatives.”
So says PMI Global Travel Retail Vice President Beste Ermaner, speaking in a video interview with The Moodie Davitt Report President Dermot Davitt, filmed recently at TFWA World Exhibition in Cannes.
In the conversation, Ermaner addresses the company’s transformation and its vision for what it terms a Smoke-Free Future. She also reinforces the vital role that travel retail plays in PMI’s strategy, 18 months on from taking over the role leading growth in the channel for PMI.
She says: “What is critical in travel retail is to place our Smoke-Free-Products multi-category portfolio at the centre of our retail execution. This generates awareness, trial and most importantly, provides education for those who choose not to quit using nicotine products.”
Offering points of difference and experiential touchpoints lie at the heart of the approach.
Ermaner says: “That covers the portfolio, including limited editions and travel retail exclusives, but it goes much further — focusing on executional excellence, how we position ourselves as a leader in the smoke-free category, and how we engage with legal-age nicotine users to deliver something valuable and educational.”
Click above to play the interview.
She also addresses PMI’s “bold ambition” for its Smoke-Free Future. “More than two-thirds of our net revenues should come from smoke-free products by 2030, compared to 41% today. We are moving successfully towards this ambition.”
Summing up the key message to the industry about PMI Global Travel Retail’s commitment, Ermaner says: “Putting the consumer (legal-age nicotine users) in the centre is critical. This is how travel retail can really be a key enabler of Philip Morris International’s bold ambition to become a smoke-free company. Also, we need to continue partnering with our key stakeholders across the whole value chain to achieve this bold ambition.”
*The full text of the interview will appear in our November Magazine edition, which appears soon to coincide with the annual MEADFA Conference in Dubai (9-11 November). ✈
