ARGENTINA. Interbaires’ sales at Buenos Aires Ezeiza Airport are far outstripping passenger growth after the opening of its new-look shop in the Terminal A Departures area in mid-January.
Some 1,000sq m of space has been added, creating a total of 3,250sq m. This was driven by opening up the entrance to the store so that passengers queuing at immigration can see the shop and then are automatically flowed into it.
The biggest difference in the revamped store is the expansion of the fashion and accessories category, says InterBaires CEO Enrique Urioste. “We were able to enlarge the whole fashion category by dividing the offer very neatly,” he explains.
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| All new in Argentina (clockwise from top left): The simply stunning Emporio Armani boutique; travellers can be pampered in the Sebastian professional hair salon – surely a first for a duty free retailer?; a real ‘Sense of Place’ (and sense of price-point) in the ‘Made in Argentina’ area; the world’s greatest cigars – from Cuba – are showcased to perfection in a superb execution of the La Casa del Habano, the extraordinary retail concept from Habanos | |
“On one side of the shop you find all the high-end brands, including newcomers like Emporio Armani, the Bvlgari full concept shop, Tumi, Montblanc, TAG, Hermès, Ferragamo and Zegna. And on the right side of the store you have the mid-priced brands – such as Lacoste, Tommy Hilfiger and Colombia. These are the more casual brands. We were also able to allocate almost 100sq m to develop the toy sector, where we incorporated kid’s clothing and ready-to-wear.”
Importantly, InterBaires has also doubled the space dedicated to one of its boom categories, confectionery. “Confectionery is probably the category where we are doing the most fine-tuned category management,” says Urioste.
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The entrance to the main Terminal A Departures store has been opened up to create a dramatic panorama – and, via the latest Porsche, some in-store theatre – while the check-out area is both well-staffed and hi-tech | |
“We created three areas – for kids, premium gifting and self-consumption. I had a personal bet with Stewart Dryburgh (former General Manager of Nestlé International Travel Retail) that I would be able to double the category in four years – and everything looks like I will. We’ve presented the category in a very high-end way.”
What Urioste describes as “service areas” occupy 600sq m of additional space. But these are no ordinary services. A highlight for the airport and the region is the new La Casa del Habano, only the fifth airport execution of the famed Cuban cigar concept in the world. “It’s stunning,” he says. “We offer free pouring of Cognac and coffee and of course a huge area for smokers to smoke cigars. We also offer special editions that only can be bought in La Casa del Habano. The customer is treated like a king.”
“Across the company to February inclusive we were +31.3% up year-on-year compared with an increase in passengers of just +12%“ |
ENRIQUE URIOSTE, CEO, InterBaires |
Also new is a hair saloon run by P&G professional brand Sebastian. And by the middle of this month a La Prairie spa outlet will open – only the Swiss luxury house’s third such outlet in travel retail, after the openings in Zurich and Hong Kong International airports. “It’s going to look beautiful, absolutely beautiful,” he says.
“Then we will also open a very big area for one of the most emblematic clothing brands in Argentina, which is highly identified with the country, called Caradon.”
Another key category, destination merchandise, is also being sub-divided into two. A high-end section called Made in Argentina features five brands with ticket prices starting at US$80. “They are really upscale goods that sell in the likes of Niemann Marcus and Barneys in New York,” notes Urioste. A separate, more conventional destination merchandise offer is nearby.
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The look of luxury: Whether it’s high-end eyewear or world-famous watches, InterBaires is creating what Enrique Urioste describes as “the space and the quality of space that each category and each brand deserves” | |
The new store looks impressive and so do the numbers. “Overall the results have been astonishing,” says Urioste. “Across the company to the end of February we were +31.3% up year-on-year compared with an increase in passengers of just +12%. Ezeiza – and this store – represents 80% of that growth.”
Sales in March up until the 30th rose +22% year-on-year despite horrendous delays caused by a major thunderstorm on 1 March. This broke the airport’s main radar and has lead to air traffic control having to be done manually since.
Despite such problems, the average ticket spend is running at an impressive US$82 and spend per passenger is also rocketing, Urioste says. Penetration has rocketed from 18% to 34%.
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| Ezeiza’s engine room – the fragrances & cosmetics department, which accounts for around 36% of the mix; there’s a real emphasis on space, high profile promotions, and some innovative new lighting techniques | |
How would this latest development rank among the retailer’s several ambitious refurbishments and developments on recent years? “The most important one by far,” Urioste says, “because with this new shop and the new area we have been able to go really deep into the walk-through concept. We’ve been able to create the space and the quality of space that each category and each brand deserves.”
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Family values: InterBaires is targeting the ‘guilt purchase’ with almost 100sq m dedicated to the new children’s area | |
FOOTNOTE: For a more extensive report on the new store, see The Moodie Report Print Edition, out later this month. The issue will be accompanied by a DVD produced by Peter Marshall’s Marshall Arts International, which includes a special report on InterBaires and a walk-through of the impressively revamped duty free offer.
MORE STORIES ON INTERBAIRES
Website of the week: InterBaires – 27/09/06
InterBaires rewards customer loyalty – 12/09/06
Interbaires forced to introduce gate delivery for duty free on US flights – 14/08/06
