ESTONIA. Ferry and short-cruise operator Tallink yesterday (Friday) unveiled its latest – and environmentally cleanest – vessel, the €230 million (US$246 million) Megastar to TV, online and print media. The Moodie Davitt Report was on location to visit the new ship, which doubles retail space on the company’s busiest route, between Tallinn in Estonia and Helsinki in Finland,
Estonia-based Tallink Group took delivery of the Megastar on Tuesday. It goes into service on Sunday 29 January with a large two-deck 2,800sq m shopping offer called Traveller Superstore, replacing the 1,500sq m available on the fast ferry Superstar.
This is the first time that the company has developed a two-level store. It features an internal staircase as a focal point, helping to create a spacious department store-like feel.
The shop’s upper (8th) deck is devoted to more leisurely browsing among a wide selection of categories, including fashion and accessories, fine food and deli items, while the lower (7th) deck is designed for ‘express’, bestseller and bulk shopping – though retaining a luxury feel throughout (more on the product departments below).
Walk-through wonderland
The shop, in the rear section of the ship, takes up its full width to ensure that passengers walk through the full product selection. Tallink Duty Free Director of Business Development Magnus Skjörshammer told The Moodie Davitt Report: “As we refurbish our ships now, we are implementing this kind of walkthrough as it works very well.”
The creation of such a large store is designed to leverage the value that Tallink Group sees on Helsinki-Tallinn’s so-called ‘shuttle’ crossing, which takes just two hours. Tallink Group CEO Janek Stalmeister said: “We started the shuttle service about ten years ago in 2007 when Star was delivered and now we are entering a new era with Megastar.”
An even earlier express service between the cities had been running from 1997 “and from then to now we are carrying ten times more passengers”, added Stalmeister, who noted that the route has shown growth over most years. “With this bigger ship we can increase revenue and business volume,” he commented.
The Finland-Tallinn route handled about 4.7 million of Tallink Group’s nine million annual passengers in 2015, making it highly valuable in traffic terms. However, due to the short crossing time, maximising the retail offer had been a challenge.
In 2015, Tallink, a listed company, had shopping and restaurant sales of €500.6 million (US$$534) million, making it one of the biggest duty free and travel retail businesses in the Nordic region.
Caution on excise duty rises
Company executives would not be drawn on the sales lifts they were expecting from the much bigger shop-fit and brand offer on Megastar, despite its extra passenger capacity (2,800 vs 2,000).
Speaking to The Moodie Davitt Report, Stalmeister said: “We have no prognosis on specific pax numbers but the route has been developing for many years and we expect this to continue. Our first-year numbers are less important than the long-term development.”
One reason for Stalmeister’s caution is the increase in alcohol excise duties that Estonia plans for this year so that they are more in line with those in Finland. Big hikes this summer on beer excise, and on certain other fermented beverages, will limit the savings for Finns on the route and could deter them from cross-border shopping excursions. The excise hike will also impact Tallink’s profitability on beer if the company has to absorb some of the increases to keep its prices attractive.
Balancing that will be the introduction of hard-to-find, high-end and high-margin liquor products on the route for the first time. Rare whiskies and Cognacs such as Rémy Martin Louis XIII at €2,299 and Hennessy Paradis at €519 take centre stage in an eye-catching circular display within the vast liquor area that dominates the upper level of the Megastar store.
Non-Baltic nationalities, for example Asian travellers, will play their part in countering any negative effect on sales to Finns. Stalmeister says that these passengers now make up about 15% of Tallink Group’s traffic, and high-end products are of great interest to them.
Once Megastar is in service – with the Traveller Superstore open from 7am to 12.30am daily and also open when the ship is docked – Tallink Duty Free’s Skjörshammer believes that a +10% increase in sales per pax would be the ballpark target.
Beauty to the fore in strong category line-up
In layout terms, one of the three entrances on the upper floor opens into a weaving walkway reflected by a ceiling design of the same shape, leading into a 350sq m beauty department. Chanel (with new fixturing) and Dior lead the large mix of brands, and the section closes with what Tallink claims is the first floating Kiehl’s shop-in-shop in Europe.
A jewellery, watches and sunglasses sections come next, which then leads to a bags, accessories and fashion section, which includes Armani Jeans for the first time.
This sweeps around the wide central staircase towards the rear showcase’s kid’s clothing and toys zone, with confectionery taking a large space, and key brands such as Toblerone and Fazer enjoying excellent visibility.
FAST AND (ENVIRONMENTALLY) FRIENDLY Tallink describes the 212-metre Megastar as “the most advanced ferry in the Baltic Sea”, not least because of its propulsion system. As a ‘next generation’ LNG (liquefied natural gas) fast passenger ferry, built at the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland, the ship has modern dual-fuel engines capable of running on LNG and marine diesel oil. Using LNG as a main fuel lowers emissions and reduces energy consumption, says Tallink. The ship also complies with the current and future emission regulations for ECAs (Emission Control Areas), including the Baltic Sea. |
The ‘new arrivals’ section completes the U-shape around the staircase and currently hosts a number of oversize ‘mega’ products from various brands such as Jack Daniel’s (3-litre bourbon at €129.90), Grant’s (4.5-litre whisky at €139) and giant slabs of Fazer chocolate, in keeping with a current launch promotion that reflects the ship’s name. An own-brand Megastar bourbon-cask whisky has also been created in a limited edition of 350, each bottle costing €79.90.
Direct car access makes shopping easy
Megastar’s 2,800sq m Traveller Superstore includes self-service solutions for scanning on the go and for checkout to speed the flow of passengers through the shop, an important consideration given the two-hour time window. A new facility is direct access to the car deck on the lower level of the shop so that passengers with special VIP parking for this area (100 cars maximum) can load their items immediately after purchase – useful for those that take the trip primarily to shop.
Three more limited shopping offers are available: an open-plan Lobby Shop, and two wall units for users of the Business and Comfort Lounges.
As well as the main retail offer, Megastar has seven restaurants, cafes and bars, plus a special area with a playroom available for kids – and a kennel for pets on the garage level. It also has four travel classes – standard Star Class, upgraded Comfort Class, exclusive Business Lounge and a new area called the Sitting Lounge.
It all adds up to a diverse and alluring passenger offer. Excise duty challenges notwithstanding, the launch of Megastar bodes well for one of this key duty free region’s biggest and most innovative players.
A diverse dining offer As well as its novel dual-floor shopping offer on the Megastar, Tallink has created a sizeable food & beverage offer on upper decks eight and nine. With a short crossing time of two hours from Tallinn to Helsinki, F&B is a key commercial component of the passenger service. Seven restaurants, cafes and bars are available, ranging from a la carte dining to a franchised Burger King.
All the F&B areas have been designed by Finnish studio, dSign Vertti Kivi & Co, whose ferry and cruise work can also be seen on Viking Line’s Viking Grace (launched in 2011) and various projects with TUI Royal Caribbean Cruises.
On Megastar, dSign has developed what it describes as “several different types of experience islands that suit the needs of different kinds of customer groups and ease the navigation onboard” with particular emphasis on ensuring smooth customer flows. Geometric patterns, clean lines, muted toned and warm woods underlie the feel. The Coffee & Co self-service café on deck eight – which also houses conference and business lounges – is a large rest area with 444 seats where freshly-made sweet and savoury snacks and drink, plus takeaway foods are available. Tallink says that its coffee “is brewed to the taste of our main customers – Estonians and Finns” which implies particular roasts. Deck nine is the main catering level where the open-plan Delight Buffet and a la carte Chef’s Kitchen make up the core offer. Delight seats 374 and is open all day with meals reflecting the times of the sailings. Chef’s Kitchen is a 60-seater with dished planned by the ship’s head chef as well as special regional menus.
Further F&B options are available in the Business and Comfort lounges and the Drivers Lounge on Deck 10, especially for truck drivers. In 2015, Tallink Group had combined shopping and restaurant sales of €500.6 million (US$534 million) up from €487.5 million (US$520 million) in 2014.
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Further along the deck is the self-serve Fast Lane restaurant and a large Burger King. At Fast Lane a variety of meals are available and chefs cook to order in front of customers. Towards the stern passengers can visit the Victory Bar and Sea Pub. Victory is an open-all-sides sports bar with big TV screens and gaming machines, while the pub has a classic low-lit drinking setting complete with a small performance stage.
