Leaning on Lexingham: Travel Blue aims to double travel accessories business with enhanced branded offer

Since its founding in the UK in 1987, Travel Blue has carved out a niche as a ‘one stop shop’ for the travel accessories category across 110 countries and with the world’s leading global travel retailers.

Now, with this year’s launch of Lexingham mobile accessories, the Travel Blue Group has become a family of brands, which include Travel Blue itself and eyewear line Z-Zoom. With the anticipated growth of these brands and the wider travel accessories category, the group can double sales within five years, according to Chief Operations Officer Daniel Levin.

The Travel Blue business was built on staples such as neck pillows – which remain an important platform of the core range – and travel adaptors, headphones, phone accessories, power banks and chargers becoming part of the expanded selection in recent years.

Lexingham takes these various strands of the accessories business and rolls them into one brand that can be presented and merchandised as one, explains Levin.

Daniel Levin and Jonathan Smith: In launching Lexingham, Travel Blue Group says the focus is firmly on millennial shoppers who generally travel more but spend less than other groups

“We found that the electronics offer at many airports is fragmented and confusing for the shopper. There are multiple suppliers, brands and even colours. It’s not easy sometimes to tell whether what you see packaged on shelf is a cable, earphones or another accessory.

“We know that consumers are impatient, and want to find what they are looking for quickly. So we took the five major accessories in electronics – power banks, cables, chargers, audio and adaptors – and created a brand around them, Lexingham. No other brand has this full range of solutions, all speaking the same language. You can put them all on a wall or in a stand-alone unit for a coherent offer in the store.”

Lexingham represents the latest step in the Travel Blue drive to create a brand family for the wider travel accessories category

In launching Lexingham, Travel Blue Group says the focus is firmly on millennial shoppers who generally travel more but spend less than other groups. It also emphasised millennials’ dependence on digital devices and accessories to keep them charged and connected at all times.

Levin says: “Millennials are one-third of all travellers today but they spend the least of anyone. We segmented each of the shopper types and really drilled down into what would appeal, how we could inform and deliver a clean, informative message.

“People need to know exactly what they are getting. Tech manufacturers have often used consumer lack of knowledge to confuse but today the shopper knows more than ever what they want. The phone for them is really the centre of their life; not to be in charge is like a disaster. We offer fast, easy to understand on-shelf solutions at good prices.”

Travel Blue at Hangzhou Airport: The company has become a global force in travel accessories

Consumer electronics is a highly competitive market, led by popular international brands sold through specialist retailers in the travel channel. But Levin says that Lexingham has its own niche.

“Customers are willing to spend more on a brand they don’t know because they work on emotion and experience. If they like the feel, the presentation, the quality, the two-year global guarantee that we offer, then they see a company that takes care of their needs. We have that same mentality around service above all. I’m COO but I’m copied on all customer service emails. It matters to me personally.”

Executive Director Jonathan Smith adds: “We can offer interesting margins to the retailer and are very price-competitive with the big global brands, often 30-40% lower while offering quality that fits the retailer’s demanding criteria.

“We also have an advantage in that we are coming to the major duty free retailers as an existing trusted supplier. We have a track record of delivering around the world. The retailer doesn’t need to open a new account and take a chance on a new partner. That is where our philosophy of the ‘one stop shop’ makes a difference.”

“The retailer doesn’t need to open a new account and take a chance on a new partner. That is where our philosophy of the ‘one stop shop’ makes a difference.”

The Lexingham range will evolve as consumers’ needs change too, notes Levin. “Lexingham will adapt much faster than many brands, whether it is in changing specifications, new technology or other elements.

“We will do that with our dynamic team from around the world. We are going for 32 years and we have changed so much in that time. There are challenges of course but they are good ones that force you to learn and adapt.”

Elsewhere, within the Travel Blue range, the company is rolling out new ranges of ergonomic and feather pillows, as demand for higher quality items in this category grows.

Eye for an opportunity: Travel Blue has diversified well beyond its original travel pillows core business

The brand owner is also updating and changing its offer across other categories such as security locks. Levin says: “In Asia and Latin America we see more emphasis on security so padlocks are very popular. This category does well in these regions and we are coming out with new lines.

“Adaptors are always changing and will always be in demand as people have more devices. You have to offer something that fits every part of the world as people travel everywhere these days. You need a quality adaptor that offers confidence that it will work for the traveller. At the Singapore show in May we launched a worldwide adaptor that speaks to the needs of the market.”

“We are confident of doubling our business maybe even sooner than in five years. We can grow the average spend across the industry. That builds turnover, offers solutions for the consumer and helps our partners.”

The other brand in the family is Z-Zoom, an eyewear line launched into travel retail two years ago and which is performing strongly, says Levin.

Z-Zoom serves a niche that is not covered by the luxury end of the sunglasses market, claims Travel Blue

“Z-Zoom is within our comfort zone as it works off similar principles as the rest of the Travel Blue experience: strong point-of-sale and merchandising, service and quality. It was a steep learning curve to develop it and come up with a solution that is affordable and well designed.

“The reading glasses category is very interesting but to date hasn’t been given a high priority in travel retail. That is now changing, just as travel essentials was once treated as an afterthought but is now a vital part of the business.

“We have developed Z-Zoom since. We were asked to produce a range of affordable, fast moving sunglasses at US$35 and below. That doesn’t compete with the branded sunglasses offer at US$50 and above that so many others specialise in. There was a niche in the market that we have tapped into.

“We went for fairly conservative styles that sell quickly, and we change the range quickly as demand changes. That means thinking about different styles in different regions, about kids and other target groups.

“We also offer clear choice and presentation. If you go into a store to buy sunglasses, you try on a test pair, look in the mirror, but often you want to buy a fresh pair, not the ones you have just tried on. We offer a fresh sample that is already packaged and sitting on the shelf. It’s easy and convenient.

“With Z-Zoom we created a clear message and communication, with accessories (wipes, sprays etc) that fit neatly. It’s still an impulse buy so when it’s positioned correctly in the store, it can fulfil a need for the retailer.”

With the focus now on building Lexingham to become a fully-fledged travel retail brand, the ideal scenario would be to position it in-store with Travel Blue and Z-Zoom for a single travel essentials solution, where possible.

“Mobile accessories represent a big opportunity; once Lexingham reaches the shop floor we are confident it will sell.”

Smith says: “It’s important to note that we are a group: Travel Blue Group. Cross-category selling is an opportunity. One issue we face for example is pillows being placed in areas that don’t suit. Pillows are an impulse sale but often the category buyer wants to drive their own business, not the total store. We have Lexingham, Z-Zoom and Travel Blue – you have one shipment, one supplier but several brands. We would love to see that combination in-store happen in the future.

“That is one of our big opportunities. We have established our name, the services we offer and our distribution network. We are a trusted supplier across three core brands. We have achieved a lot in a short space of time. Lexingham is just reaching stores now and the reaction is positive. Mobile accessories represent a big opportunity; once Lexingham reaches the shop floor we are confident it will sell.”

Levin says: “We are global and have learned many lessons about how to grow the business. We can help the retailer create a win-win through our experience. We know that being a retailer is a difficult job. What I would like to see is more of a partnership listening to our suggestions to grow the category and total store business.

“That’s why we are confident of doubling our business maybe even sooner than in five years. We can grow the average spend across the industry. That builds turnover, offers solutions for the consumer and helps our partners.”

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