INTERNATIONAL. The Moodie Davitt Report is delighted to unveil the judging panel for the Travel Retail Superstars Awards 2025.
Now in its fifth year, the awards celebrate the dedication of thousands of industry heroes, from those on the frontline to those working behind the scenes.
The Travel Retail Superstars Awards spotlight the achievements and best practices of travel retail employees across the airport, airline, downtown and cruise sectors, showcasing the strength of the human spirit, resourcefulness and ingenuity they contribute.
Hosted by The Moodie Davitt Report, this event is run in partnership with an advisory committee of human resource and training specialists who help shape and judge the awards.
Winners will be announced in January 2026.
A panel of esteemed industry leaders joins The Moodie Davitt Report Founder & Chairman Martin Moodie in judging this year’s entries.
Among the returning judges is acclaimed business leader and entrepreneur Sally Alington, Founder and CEO of Ethos Farm Group of Companies.
Alington brings over 20 years of hands-on experience spanning airports, airlines, retailers, travel retail and the hospitality and leisure sectors.
This frontline and hands-on experience has helped reinforce the philosophy at Ethos Farm – ‘Your employees are your biggest asset, they are the ambassadors of your brand and should be at the front and centre of organisational culture and CX strategies.’
Alington has led Ethos Farm to remarkable growth, establishing operations in both the UK and USA, and earning multiple accolades, including 12th place in The Sunday Times 100 Fastest-Growing Private Companies, and recognition among the UK’s Top 100 for Women, Wellbeing and Great Place to Work.
Alington was a finalist in the EY Entrepreneur of the Year, is an everywoman Ambassador and was the UK everywoman 2023 Next Level Entrepreneur of the Year. She is also a long-standing member of Women in Travel Retail (WiTR+).
Another influential industry leader joining the panel is Recruit GTR Founder Jilly Brocklebank.
She built her travel retail expertise over 11 years at World Duty Free in human resources and operations roles, strengthening her passion for the channel and talent development.
Brocklebank then joined The Estée Lauder Companies, managing large teams and strengthening her focus on talent sourcing and recruitment strategy.
Since founding Recruit GTR in 2018, she has become a trusted advisor for travel retail brands and professionals seeking recruitment guidance and career growth.
Also back on the panel is SPARK Group Founder and President Heidi Van Roon, a visionary travel retail leader renowned for her innovative collaborations and people-focused leadership.
Her work has earned recognition from global beauty companies, with her team cited as a benchmark for professionalism and high standards at Canadian and US airports.
She led SPARK to win Frontier/DFNI Airport Team of the Year – Americas (2021) and her white paper Elevating Travel Retail Careers was a finalist in The Trinity Challenge (2022) and Frontier People and Planet Awards (2023).
Van Roon is focused on making airports employers of choice, aligning talent strategy with traveller experience.
The Travel Retail Superstars Awards 2025 categories
Star Team – An award that celebrates those teams who have pulled together, working seamlessly, enthusiastically and effectively, while inspiring each other and those around them. It recognises teams who have gone beyond the call of duty, together, to make a difference and to get the job done to the highest standard.
Star Individual – This award recognises those people who everyone loves to work alongside and encounter in the workplace. For those individuals who always show up both for work and for others, who strive to walk the extra mile, who display integrity and passion, and who communicate with sincerity, friendliness and conviction.
Innovation: Team or Individual – This award is for those who have provided a difference to the business through offering innovative ideas that have been adopted (especially company-wide), and have led to increased efficiency, improvements, profitability or enhanced customer service.
Humanity, Leadership & Inspiration: Team or Individual – An award that celebrates those who have shown that leadership is an action, not just a position, and who encourage good citizenship through compassion and empathy and responsibility.
Women in Travel Retail Superstars – An award that honours a female professional in travel retail – whether on the shop floor, in marketing, IT, procurement, logistics, or other roles – who has made a transformative impact. This could include driving innovation, leading with empathy, fostering inclusivity, or delivering measurable results that elevate their team, company, or the broader travel retail landscape. The award recognises not only individual excellence but also the power of women to inspire and shape the industry’s future.
* For each of the categories, there are awards for four separate regions: Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe, and Middle East & Africa. That offers 16 award opportunities.
If your team member, or team, deserves star treatment, please help to highlight and give due recognition to them by nominating here. Submissions are open until 30 November.
The written summary component of entries should not exceed 800 words in total and should cover events that have taken place between 1 August 2024 and 31 July 2025.
More details on Travel Retail Superstars entry requirements are available on the website. An administration fee of £39 + VAT per submission is payable via the portal. ✈
