By Peter Sempelmann
ACROSS: Travel retail has experienced significant disruption over the past few years. How would you describe the state of the industry today?
Lucio Rossetto: Travel retail remains one of the most dynamic sectors in physical retail. What attracted me to the industry eleven years ago still holds true today: it continues to grow. And that growth is not only linked to increasing passenger traffic. Over the past two decades, spending per passenger has consistently grown faster than passenger numbers themselves.
Airports have invested heavily in commercial infrastructure, consumers increasingly view airports as places where they can spend time and enjoy experiences, and retailers have become better at responding to changing customer needs. All of this has contributed to the continued growth of travel retail.
The pandemic fundamentally changed travel patterns. Yet the sector appears to have recovered remarkably well.
Covid was undoubtedly a major shock. But if you look at Europe, the industry emerged stronger than many expected. Before the pandemic, a large part of travel retail—particularly duty free—was built around a relatively narrow group of customers, especially Chinese and Russian travelers. Those passengers either disappeared or changed their travel behavior dramatically. Despite that, European travel retail managed to return to pre-Covid sales levels. That tells you something important about the sector: it is highly resilient and capable of adapting quickly.
Where is growth coming from today if not from those traditional customer groups?
We had to rethink our offer. Before Covid, it was often enough to have the products Chinese and Russian travelers wanted. Today, the customer base is much broader.
One important shift has been value for money. We invested heavily in pricing capabilities to ensure our offer remains competitive and relevant to different customer segments. At the same time, we started paying much more attention to groups that were previously underestimated. American travelers, for example, are highly interested in local products and regional gastronomy. They are less focused on categories such as perfumes and alcohol than previous generations of international travelers.
“The airport has become a place where people expect to discover something authentic.”
Another important segment is what we might call national diasporas—people who work in one country but maintain strong ties to another. Romanian and Polish travelers have become major spending groups in several European airports. Before Covid, they were not a strategic focus. Today, we know we cannot do without them. The strategy is to be fast and adapt our offer to changing passenger needs.
Airports have traditionally been associated with luxury retail, perfumes, and alcohol. Has that model changed?
I would say the focus has shifted from luxury to relevance. Luxury remains important, but it is no longer the main growth story. Some of the customer groups that traditionally drove luxury sales are traveling differently today. What we see instead is a growing demand for products that are connected to the destination. Travelers increasingly want to find something unique about the place they are visiting. They want local food, local brands, local stories, and local culture. That is why we are dedicating more space to regional products and destination-specific concepts.
This trend even changes how we design stores. Five or six years ago, the first thing passengers saw when entering a store was typically perfume or alcohol. Today, in many locations, the first thing they see reflects the destination itself. In Prague, for example, visitors immediately encounter Czech beer and local specialties. The airport has become a place where people expect to discover something authentic.
So “sense of place” is becoming a commercial strategy?
Absolutely. The convenience of the airport makes it the ideal place to purchase local products. Travelers often do not have time to shop extensively during their trip. The airport becomes the last—and often best—opportunity to buy something representative of the destination. We see this across all our business lines. In some airports, we operate stores dedicated to local sports teams. In others, we highlight regional gastronomy or local brands. The stronger the connection to the destination, the stronger the customer response tends to be.
Food and beverage seems to be another area undergoing rapid transformation.
Food is probably one of the most important growth categories in travel retail today. In medium-sized airports, food can already represent close to half of total passenger spending. What is particularly interesting is that food spending is less dependent on airport size than traditional retail categories. The quality of airport dining has improved dramatically.
Ten years ago, having a proper meal at an airport was often difficult. Today, airports offer restaurant concepts that can genuinely compete with city-center locations. We are also seeing increasing demand for local dining concepts. In Rome, for example, we are introducing concepts that are deeply rooted in the local culinary culture. Travelers want authenticity, and food is one of the strongest ways to deliver it.
Is this still about premiumization?
Yes—but not necessarily luxury. Travelers are willing to spend more if they receive quality and authenticity in return. What does not work particularly well is luxury for the sake of luxury. Celebrity-chef restaurants are a good example. Travelers are generally not looking for an exclusive fine-dining experience before a flight. They want quality, convenience, and choice. The same applies in retail. A modern airport store should offer niche fragrances costing several hundred euros alongside affordable local products. The objective is not luxury in itself—it is breadth, quality, and relevance.
E-commerce has transformed much of retail. How has it affected travel retail?
Not all digital concepts have been as successful as people expected. We have experimented extensively with click-and-collect services and other digital solutions. The demand remains limited.
E-commerce has increased the value of physical retail. That makes airports increasingly attractive for brands because consumers can still experience products directly. You cannot smell a perfume online. You cannot taste a product online. As physical retail becomes more challenging in many city centers, airports are becoming increasingly important environments for brands.
Airports across Europe are investing heavily in new commercial environments. Frankfurt has just opened Terminal 3, Vienna Airport is preparing the southern expansion of Terminal 3 And in Düsseldorf a series of new food and retail concepts have opened. How important are such developments for travel retail?
They are very important, but not necessarily for the reasons people might think. The key issue is not simply building new infrastructure. What matters is how airports organize passenger flows and create commercial opportunities around them. Frankfurt’s Terminal 3 is a major investment that reflects how important commercial environments have become for airports. At the same time, Vienna is pursuing a particularly interesting approach.
What I find particularly remarkable is the concentration of passenger flows. By bringing together traffic from different terminal areas into one larger commercial environment, the airport creates the critical mass needed to support a much broader range of retail and food concepts.
That benefits everyone. Passengers gain access to greater variety and a better experience, while retailers can invest in stronger concepts because they have access to larger customer flows. Ultimately, the airports that succeed will be those that understand commercial space not as an add-on, but as an integral part of the overall passenger journey.
Looking ahead, are you optimistic about the future of travel retail?
Very much so. The growth of travel retail is driven by the mobility of people. More people are living internationally, studying abroad, working in different countries, and maintaining connections across borders.
Some travel patterns will continue to evolve. High-speed rail will replace certain domestic flights. We already see that in countries such as Germany and France. But overall mobility continues to grow. And as long as people continue to move, travel retail will continue to have opportunities to move with them.
Originally published in ACROSS Magazine Issue 2/2026
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