Eyewear specialist Rodenstock has classed 2019 as a “bumper year” for its Porsche Design sunglasses brand in global travel retail.
With almost 30 new openings this year across Asia, Europe, the Middle East and North and Latin America, Rodenstock said the brand has significantly increased its footprint in the channel.
Rodenstock Director Global Retail Eyewear Petra Eckhardt-Koestler said the brand’s successes reflect Rodenstock’s commitment to travel retail. She noted collaborations with retailers which are supported by in-store marketing and promotional campaigns that engage with the travelling consumer.
Eckhardt-Koestler emphasised the company’s relationship with China Duty Free Group (CDFG), with listings in airport stores in Guangzhou, Chongqing and Beijing, downtown in Sihanoukville, Cambodia and in the group’s Heihe border store.
As reported, Porsche Design launched a special-edition collection of its P’8531 model, which was limited to 500 pieces and exclusive to CDFG, in September.
“Working with retailers to offer exclusives and special editions created for them is crucial in this competitive market,” Eckhardt-Koestler said. “The P’8531 is the best-selling sunglasses model from Porsche Design and the special edition sold extremely well.”
Across the EMEA markets, Rodenstock has new locations in airports in Helsinki, Lisbon, St. Petersburg, and Kuwait with Dufry. Business in the Americas, Eckhardt-Koester said, is “really beginning to take off”.
She noted the partnership with Dufry-owned Hudson at John F. Kennedy, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood and Las Vegas McCarran international airports. “This is working extremely well for us and, with additional new openings in Canada and the US, has given us a really effective footprint in the Americas travel retail sunglasses sector.
“Dufry is a superb partner for us in North America and EMEA and we’re looking forward to further developing our business with them in 2020.”
Earlier this year, Rodenstock expressed its aim to secure listings with the top ten travel retailers within the next three years. Rodenstock is active in over 80 countries and holds licences for Porsche Design, as well as producing collections under its own name.
