SPAIN. Some 32 years after it opened its first duty free store at Barcelona El Prat Airport, Aldeasa yesterday took a giant step forward in its retail offer at the Catalan gateway.
As reported, El Prat’s new Terminal 1, built by Spanish airport authority Aeropuertos Españoles y Navegatión Aérea’s (AENA), was inaugurated on Monday by Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero. The next day it opened to the public, stage one of a phased opening that will eventually see the terminal able to handle some 25 million passengers at full capacity.
Click on the arrow to watch The Moodie View talking to Aldeasa’s Pedro Castro about the new terminal |
As the lead retail tenant, Aldeasa runs eight stores at T1, representing a €4 million investment and covering some 2,480sq m in AENA’s “˜Las Tiendas del Aeropuerto’ shopping complex in both the Arrivals and Departures areas.
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Open for business: Barcelona and Catalonia now have the world-class gateway they deserve |
The Aldeasa stores form the fulcrum of an impressively diverse commercial offer that includes 81 shops and food & beverage establishments, a total that eventually will be extended to 73 shops and 43 bars and restaurants.
Yesterday The Moodie Report was honoured to tour the new terminal with executives from Aldeasa, including Pedro Castro, National Operations Director; Eugenio Andrades, Commercial Director; Fernando Nadal, Technical Director; Angeles Montesdeoca, Deputy National Operations Director; Jordi Bret, Regional Director of Catalonia; and Marisa Guilarte, Corporate Communications Area Manager.
Their pride and satisfaction – mixed with some relief – was clear. Spain is Aldeasa’s corporate, commercial and spiritual homeland and it is fighting hard there to retain its airport retail portfolio in the face of a long-touted tender of the duty free operations at most AENA Airports.
Aldeasa was keen to lay down a quality marker here in Barcelona, presenting a retail offer that mirrored the excellence and elegance of the terminal. On first impressions, it appears to have done exactly that.
We’ll explore those aspirations – and present a more detailed analysis – in a special edition of The Moodie Report PLUS (in PDF format) out later this month.
First though, some impressions of the terminal.
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A sense of space: Note the striking black and white colours inside the main store and the way Aldeasa has managed to offset a very low ceiling to create an elegant and roomy in-store environment in keeping with the ambience of Terminal 1 |
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Aldeasa focuses on core categories in its mainstream offer, mixing international, national and regional brands |
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Spain has a tremendous wine-making heritage, which is nicely captured in the cellar area |
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Easy accessibility, both via the open-fronted shops and within the stores themselves is key to the Aldeasa approach |
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Promotional vehicle: Barcelona-based Puig’s distinctive Carolina Herrera promotion was a highlight of opening day |
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Minis are back in style: Puig Travel Retail General Manager Patrick Bouchard (left) was on hand in Aldeasa’s main travel retail and duty free store at the new Terminal 1 to view the impactful Carolina Herrera fragrance promotion – note the customised numberplate (below). He was joined by Puig Travel Retail Key Account Manager Rocio Elizalde; Marketing and Customer Development Director Lyndea Dew and Aldeasa Regional Director of Catalonia Jordi Bret. | |
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Aldeasa has used electronic media to showcase brand promotions and special offers | |
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Doña Jimena, the dynamic Spanish artisanal confectionery producer, enjoys an attractive presence in Terminal 1 | |
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‘I love Barcelona’ is the appropriate message from these specially customised Kinder Eggs from Ferrero | |
T1, designed by architectural firm Ricard Bofill, is an elegant, accessible and humanised facility. The long undulating roof contains long strips of glass skylights, which combined with glass panels all around the terminal, flood the building with natural light. The main passenger areas have excellent views of the airstrips while the Mediterranean and the nearby hills are also on view.
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Aldeasa’s Eugenio Andrades (left) and Pedro Castro in happy mood after a successful opening | |
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The Moodie Report Publisher Martin Moodie (second from right) tours the new terminal with Aldeasa executives (from left) Jordi Bret, Eugenio Andrades, Fernando Nadal, Pedro Castro and Angeles Montesdeoca |
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Terminal 1’s overarching shopping brand is themed “˜Las Tiendas del Aeropuerto’ |
It’s always exciting to view a new terminal for the first time and El Prat Terminal 1 doesn’t disappoint. Outside, a giant canopy reminiscent of a plane wing offers welcome shade as passengers arrive at the terminal.
Inside the first impressions are of light, modernism and space. The roof is not as high as some other recent new terminal developments, lending an accessible rather than austere ambience.
“The building itself is fantastic – as well as the commercial offer,” says Pedro Castro.
Eugenio Andrades is equally enthusiastic. “It’s modern, functional and easy,” he says of the terminal. “The human scale and dimension is very appropriate.”
Both praise the vision and contribution of AENA, which they say has played a crucial role in the successful outcome.
The terminal’s commercial offer, spread over two levels, benefits from a single, centralised security area. From the top level, where we have just cleared security, there are splendid panoramic views to the main commercial areas below. In the distance, behind the shops and restaurants, a one-kilometre stretch to the furthest gates beckons – all whiteness and natural light.
Through the glass we gaze down over the giant Sky Plaza area, a vast and elegant courtyard that includes most of the stores and food & beverage outlets. Interestingly, arrivals and departures flows merge, offering Aldeasa and the other retailers a significant arrivals opportunity. Recognising that opportunity, Aldeasa has a dedicated cashier for arriving travellers – allowing them to pay for their items quickly before exiting the terminal.
Aldeasa’s eight stores (seven at present) include The Shop (two outlets, of 1,055sq m and 526sq m respectively), which offers core duty free categories (perfumes & cosmetics, beverages, food and confectionery, tobacco and accessories).
Destination merchandise, always an Aldeasa strength, both at home and abroad, finds its expression in Thinking Barcelona (dedicated to Catalan produce).
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(Above and below) A Sense of Place: Aldeasa has championed destination merchandise in style with ‘Thinking Barcelona’; (Right) Fernando Nadal, Aldeasa’s Technical Director, shows off the unique gondolas | |
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Men’s Fashion is a stand-alone store selling five popular brands (Lacoste, Hugo Boss, Calvin Klein Jeans, Gant and Timberland); while the Gifts & Jewellery outlet offers a top trio comprising Swarovski, Folli Follie and Majorica.
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Men’s Fashion (above and below) focuses on five brands – Lacoste, Hugo Boss, Calvin Klein Jeans, Gant and Timberland |
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Jewellery & Gifts features a powerful trio of brands – Swarovski, Folli Follie and Majorica |
The Express Shop is a last-minute concept (two stores); while the soon-to-be-opened Tous & Watches outlet will feature powerful Catalan brand Tous and upscale watches from the likes of Longines, Tag Heuer, Baume & Mercier, Ck and Tissot.
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The Express Shop offers a compact range of core products for last-minute purchases | |
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Aldeasa has focused heavily on core categories in the main stores, supported by a carefully honed specialist range in the others, plus an outstanding destination merchandise execution.
The main stores represent a departure from tradition for Aldeasa in terms of design, colour and style. Given Barcelona’s avant-garde reputation as a world design capital, the retailer has opted to use simple, monochrome colours (mainly black and white), and given considerable emphasis to digital promotion (plasma and LED screens).
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Changing times: Aldeasa’s Terminal 2 offer is a vivid contrast to the elegant modernism at T1 |
We’ll bring you our impressions of the offer and more images soon.
AENA SUPPORTS CORE RANGE WITH DIVERSE SPECIALIST RETAIL AND FOOD & BEVERAGE OFFER
While Aldeasa enjoys a powerful presence at T1, there is plenty of other retail to choose from – as well as a vibrant food & beverage offer. As reported, leading Spanish retail and food & beverage services provider Ãreas opened 15 new outlets, including a number of concepts making their airport debut.
AENA’s retail offer includes a major emphasis on local and international brands, including Adolfo Domínguez, Zara, Desigual, Gonzalo Comella, Massimo Dutti, Tascón, Ferrari, Cottet, Etam Lingerie, La Perla, adidas, La Sabatería, Accesorize, Tous, Aïta, Tuc Tuc, Custo, Items D’Ho and Piquadro.
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A nice image as a family uses the stunning Desigual shop window as the backdrop for a photo opportunity |
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Local flavour: Farga, operated here by Ãreas, is a great local delicacy brand. Again, note the striking window display. |
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Ãreas is also in charge of the attractive Ferrari store, a sure hit with Formula 1-crazy Spaniards |
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Well-being is a key contemporary travel retail concept, nicely catered for by Natura at Terminal 1 |
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Barcelona, home to Europe’s greatest football team in 2009, is to the fore in the adidas store |
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Spanish fashion favourite Zara showcases its wares via this brilliant window display |
The food & beverage offer includes El Gaig, Cantina, Mariachi, McDonald’s, Jamaica, Café di Roma, Dehesa de Santa María, Lizarrán, Pans & Company, Café di Fiori, Gambrinus, Pasta Fiore, Mussol, Fresh & Ready, Moncho’s, Semon, Medas, La Pausa and Quasi Queviures.
COMMENT: It’s a brave retailer that arranges a media tour on the first day of trading, as inevitably there are numerous “˜fixes’ that need to be made in terms of fittings, fixtures, signage and so on.
Such was the case with Aldeasa’s stores (much of the anticipated brand personalisation in perfumes & cosmetics, for example, is due to be finalised soon).
But the retailer is rightly confident in its own story. It’s the big picture that matters here. Aldeasa knows it has raised its game in Barcelona and is keen to showcase the fact.
It’s impossible not to be wowed by the magnificent terminal building, from the soft, curvaceous expanse of its super structure to the quite lovely central Sky Plaza where much of the commercial activity takes place. The copious natural light just adds to the overall impression that this is indeed a very Mediterranean gateway – and an important one at that.
Barcelona is not only a beautiful city, it is also a great cultural one. The city is synonymous with modernism, largely thanks to the prodigious output of one of its favourite sons, Antoni Gaudi. The great master of architecture produced nearly all of his work in the capital of Catalonia and due homage has been paid to his influence here – not just in the majesty of the terminal but even within the retail offer (Thinking Barcelona).
AENA has done a magnificent job and the terminal has already won rave reviews from many diverse sources. Think of your favourite terminals worldwide and this commentator, at least, is confident that Barcelona El Prat T1 would sit comfortably in almost any roll-call.
Our visit was a whistle-stop one so it’s hard to give more than first impressions. But we like the mix and the often spectacularly colourful presentation of the speciality retail offer; the space and light that characterises the food & beverage areas; and the clear, uncluttered focus that Aldeasa has given to a honed number of categories in its main stores – rather than trying to be all things to all men.
Aldeasa has also done well in managing difficult physical constraints (the main duty free and travel store has ceilings an averagely tall basketball player could probably touch) and the whole approach to design represents a vibrant evolution from anything the company has done before. The contrast between the T1 and T2 stores tells its own story of one retailer’s progress.
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(Left) Casual dining in the wide open spaces of the Sky Plaza; (Right) Fast food favourite McDonald’s | |
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(Left) An aerial view over one of the restaurants; (Right) Cervecería Gambrinus offers attractive external views | |
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