| A wonder of the airport world This article forms part of a series on Abu Dhabi International Airport’s magnificent new Terminal A, which began operations on 1 November. The Moodie Davitt Report Founder & Chairman Martin Moodie visited the terminal in late November both on a guided basis and separately as an unencumbered passenger. His interviews with key stakeholders, including Abu Dhabi Airports leadership and management, concessionaires and designers, will be published over coming days and weeks. These will culminate in an exclusive eZine post the 9 February 2024 official inauguration, designed to capture the enthralling narrative of this extraordinary project. To contribute please email Martin@MoodieDavittReport.com |
UAE. Travel Retail Sales and Services (TRSS) CEO Adrian Bradshaw is in upbeat mood as he guides me on a whistlestop tour of the joint venture company’s expansive shopping offer at Abu Dhabi International Airport’s new Terminal A, writes Martin Moodie.
TRSS is an alliance between long-time regional powerhouse ARI Middle East and local partners, which won the rights back in December 2015 to operate the perfumes, cosmetics, skincare, jewellery and sunglasses categories at the new terminal.
That award was rightly celebrated at the time with ARI pledging a “tailor-made, niche, customer-led approach” to its newly won business.
The long delay until opening (Terminal A was originally expected to begin operations in July 2017) has posed its share of challenges for all the successful concessionaires, due both to changed market conditions since, largely driven by the COVID-19 pandemic.
But Bradshaw believes the end offer is a high-quality answer to the challenges laid down during those years. “We’ve got 2,068 square metres in total and obviously, this is the main baby here,” he says as we walk through the flagship beauty store.
It’s a big (and, one should say, beautiful) baby at that, which terminal-wide embraces 1,792sq m of retail space, more than 100 brands across skincare, cosmetics and perfumes (including an extensive niche fragrances offer – a sub-sector that would have barely figured back in 2015 thinking).
The pandemic hit the colour category hard but in its wake prompted a further spur for fragrances.
Brands such as Creed and Maison Francis Francis Kurkdjian, in particular, as well as an eclectic line-up including Penhaligon’s, Byredo, Diptyque and new introductions Parfum de Marly, Loewe, Thameen of London and Initio thus occupy prime space to a degree that could never have been foreseen before COVID struck.
“We made a number of revisions to the [colour] cosmetics category in light of changing trends, and it gave us the opportunity to introduce newness and brands more relevant to the market such as Huda Beauty, Charlotte Tilbury and Pat McGrath that will complement the pure players such as MAC, Benefit and NARS,” says Bradshaw.
Charlotte Tilbury, a last-minute addition to the mix – though you wouldn’t know it by its prime positioning and brilliant ‘Charlotte Tilbury Terminal’ digital signage – has been an “absolutely huge success”, Bradshaw says.
Similar evolutionary dynamics applied to skincare with multiple changes to the mix being made even since the terminal opening was announced internally in January. “We retain the hero brands such as La Prairie, Clinique and Clarins, and have secured new additions such as Aesop, Sol de Janeiro, Erborian, Elemis and the cult favourite Augustinus Bader,” Bradshaw notes.
“Overall, we have tailored the assortment to ensure we have a strong reflection of international brands as well as a curated assortment of Arabic brands which we showcase in our Essence of Arabia.
“Understanding gifting as a key occasion, we have curated our assortment to ensure passengers have multiple opportunities across our portfolio of brands. Gifting rituals are available across many of our brand partners, including Carolina Herrera, Molton Brown, Diptyque and Jo Malone, to name a few.”
Exclusive travel retail brands in the UAE include Charlotte Tilbury, Huda Beauty, Fenty, Pat McGrath, Aesop, Sol de Janeiro, Erborian, Wishful and Kayali.
“We will have 106 brands across 36 vendors with 11,500 skus and just over 180 Brand Ambassadors, which is great. Some brands are really wanting to invest even more than they initially anticipated, which is brilliant. They see the potential for this fantastic opportunity. So it’s a case of so far, so good.”
In fact, so far, so very good as the store has got off to a rip-roaring start. A key element of that success has been the astute way the offer has been set up to cater to the different flows (and needs) of originating and transit passengers.
“We’ve got the departing pax coming through here, so the main focus for us was to have a Sense of Place,” says Bradshaw as we stand at the front of the store as an originating passenger would see it.
We are looking ahead to the highly evocative, multi-sensory Essence of Arabia Oud fragrance installation and experience, designed to evoke the emirate and the region.
“So you’ve got the Essence of Arabia, which obviously is very nice for our Arab passengers and a really engaging entrance into the shop for people that are departing from Abu Dhabi. Ultimately, what we wanted to do is to create a journey, not just for the departing pax but also for the transit passengers.
“There’s a real wow factor here, for example when the departing passenger passes the decompression zone. We are here to serve our customers and offer them an experience.”
Knowing that those journeys differ, TRSS features a smaller representation of Chanel and Dior, for example, at the post-central security front of the store, complemented by a much bigger 60sq m representation at the back – the first zone encountered by transit passengers entering from right and left in the terminal.
“It’s really great to see customers take pictures in the shop, which is fabulous,” says Bradshaw of the visual impact of a store whose flow encourages shoppers to meander on a journey of discovery while retaining a walk-through element.
That fluid navigation encourages passengers to re-enter the shop, he says, rather than offering a ‘one-hit’ proposition. TRSS has also invested heavily in digital to boost visibility, impact and engagement, an approach that is paying off strongly, Bradshaw notes.
He compliments the work of design partner The Design Solution (see our recent report) in creating an authentic Sense of Place, highlighting several surprise touches. A beautiful chandelier can be adapted to any occasion, for example being lit up recently with the colours of the UAE flag on National Day (2 December).
The openness of the shop and its changes of height combine to offer excellent accessibility, visibility and make it easily shoppable, Bradshaw notes. “There’s a sense of self-discovery as you meander through the island spaces and we’re trying to have some key touch points here in the walkway to stop the passengers with HPPs and so on.
“It’s quite a relaxed experience. It really is self-discovery. Because of the sightlines and the arches, you can see well beyond the store and I think that’s a really key part of the design.
“It’s so shoppable – that’s the key for us. Obviously, we have to make sure that we provide a great level of service and that is very much part of our ethos around training development, which is huge at ARI.”
Throw in an eclectic product mix including hot properties such as Fenty Beauty (set to be in place by the end of Q1) and Pat McGrath (exclusive to UAE travel retail) and the store has “some really good USPs”, says Bradshaw. “That’s something we really want to shout about as a business working with our partners to make sure that the customer understands what’s on offer here.”
As in all customers. A more mass-focused, accessibly priced offer is also proving integral to success, strategically placed nearest the terminal wing housing the gates for sub-continent flights. “We have something for everyone – covering price points from less than AED100 (US$27) to over AED20,000 (US$5,450),” he comments.
‘Joy on your Way’
The Abu Dhabi leadership and team are deeply committed to ARI’s corporate and consumer-facing brand identity ‘Joy On Your Way’, unveiled in February, Bradshaw points out. And the joy doesn’t just apply to customers, he emphasises. The company expects to have a team of 325 in place within the next six months as the business grows. “We’ve currently got 28 nationalities, which is brilliant because diversity and inclusion are key to us,” he comments.
“We have to deliver our new prime mandate of ‘Joy On Your Way’ and ensure we do everything possible to enhance the customer experience and make sure their needs are met. And obviously we want to invest in our people – after all, we are a people business – to make sure they are happy because that translates into happy customers.”
Asked how it feels to have driven such a long-awaited project to completion, Bradshaw responds, “It’s a proud moment to be part of this. There’s been a huge amount of support from ARI both within the region and globally to get this delivered.
“It’s completely rewarding, just an amazing project. I think what we’ve got here is an amazing offering to our consumer. Hopefully, that translates in terms of sales, which already have been great.”
Our tour is almost over so, alas, we cannot walk the entire TRSS footprint. But we still have time to take in the visually striking Spectrum sunglasses store. This offers a mix of four categories:
- Entry level (for example, Vogue, Privé Revaux, Polaroid)
- Lifestyle brands (Ray-Ban, Porsche Design, Carrera)
- Premium fashion (Michel Kors and Versace)
- Luxury (Dior, Gucci and Cartier)
An exclusive avant-première for Etro and a special localised project with Carrera also reflect brand and retailer commitment to the location.
Smart technology is a notable in-store feature, highlighted by a digital magic mirror quiz that scans customers’ faces and suggests the most suitable pair of sunglasses.
“In terms of shop fit, it’s great,” says Bradshaw, “and we have enough capacity for 2,000 pairs of sunglasses. Our four segments in terms of price start with a value offering from Polaroid, for example, then you get into your lifestyle and premium sectors with the likes of Ray-Ban and Michael Kors and then you get into your luxury pieces.
“In terms of choice across our pax profile there’s plenty on offer and a really good range of prices, all the way up to AED20,000 (US$5,450) for a pair of Cartier sunglasses. So we have everything that we need to offer.”
The offer doesn’t stop there. The bright, open and inviting Gem&I boutique, led off in typically sparkling fashion by anchor brand Swarovski, features 16 different brands covering a wide range of products, price-points and customer targets.
“We have tailored the assortment to ensure we have a strong reflection of international brands to suit our varied customer mix,” Bradshaw concludes. “Sales have been really good, very encouraging.”
It’s a nice, upbeat note to close on before I move straight to the next of my many interviews with fellow concessionaires.
The message I get from Bradshaw echoes that of his peers. The wait may have been long, it may have been challenging, but now the focus is entirely on the positive. With traffic growing strongly and high-class stores housed within an extraordinary architectural setting awaiting the airport’s resurgent consumer base, the future looks bright. ✈
