TURKEY. Leading Turkish travel retailer Unifree Duty Free has created a new executive structure effective from this month, to lead its anticipated sales growth and expansion.
It is led by CEO Ali Şenher, alongside recently appointed Chief Commercial Officer Ian Foster, Chief Operations Officer Vural Ulus and Chief Financial Officer Erdinç Güzel.
As reported, Unifree Duty Free (majority owned by Gebr Heinemann) has a 25-year contract at the new Istanbul Airport, which opened in April. The spectacular facility houses 53,000sq m of retail, overseen exclusively by Unifree Duty Free through a model that blends direct retail and leasing.
Unifree said that its new structure would enable it to make faster, more accurate business decisions and react to changing market conditions. This will aid both internal management and engagement with the 2,364 staff, it added.
Of the June appointment of its Chief Commercial Officer, Unifree said: “Ian Foster previously worked as a high level executive for leading duty free retail companies [previously Dufry -Ed] and successfully ran commercial operations in many international airports. He now will be in charge of all retail commercial operations in Istanbul.”
Foster said: “We will re-evaluate the travel retail dynamics in Turkey beyond conventional duty free merchandising and continue to grow with the introduction of global brands.”
*An interview with Ian Foster will appear in our Cannes Print Magazine, out next week at TFWA World Exhibition, with the Online Magazine sent to our worldwide readership.
