PERU. Lagardère Travel Retail has opened three Aelia Duty Free stores at Lima Jorge Chávez International Airport under what it hailed as “a ground-breaking profit-sharing agreement” struck with Lima Airport Partners (LAP) last year.
The openings mark a debut for the travel retailer in Latin America, which will be followed soon by several F&B outlets at Santiago de Chile Airport. It took over the stores from long-time incumbent Dufry.
The Aelia Duty Free shops cover 3,000sq m across departures and arrivals. They feature the core duty free categories, plus travel accessories, souvenirs and snacking items.
Lagardère Travel Retail said it aimed to blend its international expertise with local know-how, and to use key features of the Aelia Duty Free brand and concept to lift the traveller experience and diversify the offer in Lima.
To mirror the airport’s renovation plan, Aelia Duty Free plans to feature a strong Sense of Place. The local offer makes up 15% of the total product range, with over 800 product references. In total 15 new local brands have been added to the portfolio and the retailer is planning to further extend this local range by adding more than 20 new local brands in the coming months.
In line with the group’s CSR pledge to support local producers and economies, the Aelia stores are committed to championing the ‘Peru’ brand. In addition to the 100 jobs being created locally to run the operations, the staff will include 20 young people from the ‘Tu Futuro’ programme.
This has been developed by LAP in partnership with the Association Forge to promote the employment of the youth in the Callao region where the airport is located. Over 40 local suppliers are involved, while staff uniforms and shops furniture are 100% manufactured locally.
Lagardère Travel Retail Peru CEO Cyril Letocart said: “It has been a great challenge to start operations in just a few months and we are so happy to finally be open to passengers travelling to and from Lima. We are very grateful to our partners at LAP for such a fruitful collaboration and for their support. Our mutual understanding and shared vision delivered value far beyond the terms of our contract.
“We opened our office in Lima four months ago with four staff and we have built a dynamic team of 120 staff ready to provide the highest standards of customer service to passengers. Our focus for the coming months will be to enhance the customer experience and bring the best of Peru to Lima Airport.”
Lima Airport Partners Retail Manager Lucio Benavente commented: “We are very glad to start the operations of the Aelia Duty Free stores at Jorge Chávez Airport, hand in hand with an experienced and renowned company as Lagardère Travel Retail, also a strategic partner for LAP’s business relationships and new business models. This alliance responds to our commitment to offer a unique and innovative experience to passengers, with rapid responses to user needs, adapted to the new and changing demands of the industry.”
As reported, Lagardère Travel Retail and LAP last year agreed a long-term concession contract based on profit-sharing for the exclusive operation of duty free stores at the airport. The partners said they were “pioneering a new era for travel retail business models” with the move. The Moodie Davitt Report featured a major interview with airport and retailer in our October 2021 Magazine edition on the thinking behind the agreement. Click here for access (page 62).