INTERNATIONAL. The Moodie Davitt Report is pleased to announce a pioneering cross-category travel retail-exclusive awards programme, TREX.
TREX recognises the world’s best travel retail-exclusive products. The programme is designed to champion differentiation and recognise innovation in the channel. It will cover multiple categories plus retailer/brand collaborations and more.
The inaugural TREX Awards will be revealed at a virtual ceremony in March 2025. Category and submission details will be revealed next week on the eve of the TFWA World Exhibition in Cannes.
Entries will be assessed by a diverse panel of experts, including veteran drinks and travel retail sector executive Tim Young, UK-based Founder & Managing Director of Young Spirit Consulting. Tim has enjoyed a stellar career across more than three decades in senior management roles with two of the world’s largest beverage alcohol companies: Seagram and Brown-Forman.
He will be joined by Hong Kong-based Canny Kwok, one of the most highly regarded figures in the Asian beauty and travel retail world.
Canny has more than 30 years of business development and market growth experience across Asia, Mid Pacific, Hawaii and mainland USA, specialising in luxury travel retail across the jewellery, watches, accessories, and perfume & cosmetics categories.
She spent more than 22 years with Bulgari and before that nearly 12 years with The Estée Lauder Companies. As reported, Canny recently assumed a new role as Director for Search and Consulting at Exquisitz Asia, a renowned executive search and consulting firm partnering clients in sustainable business across the region.
Tim and Canny will be joined by The Moodie Davitt Report Founder & Chairman Martin Moodie, a long-time champion of the travel retail-exclusive concept, plus a further judge from the retail sector to be named soon.
Moodie said: “We’re excited to launch TREX, a channel-specific awards programme that recognises innovation and excellence in – and commitment to – the travel retail sector.
“Differentiation is vital to travel retail’s future prosperity in the face of intense online and downtown competition. By definition, travel retail-exclusive products offer something that such competitors cannot, bringing a critical element of surprise and discovery to the travel shopping experience.
“In an industry that is swamped with awards of varying degrees of merit, it is surprising that one of travel retail’s most elemental points of difference has never been recognised. TREX changes that. The programme will not only recognise excellence and innovation but also champion the development of the travel retail-exclusive concept.”
Full details of the TREX categories, nomination procedure and timeline will be revealed in coming days. ✈
