FRANCE. Toulouse-Blagnac Airport has named several brands and retailers to operate across its 5,000sq m of revamped commercial space in 2018. The airport company has granted concessions to Dufry (as reported), Areas (Elior Group), Lagardère Travel Retail and standalone boutiques to Rituals, Tous and Victoria’s Secret.
The airport will expand its offering in departures across Hall C and Hall D to 17 shops (ten currently) and 15 eateries (eight new openings this year). A Dufry duty free store, enlarged from 680sq m to 1,850sq m, will open in April.
Once completed, the commercial offer will comprise the following outlets (including existing shops and restaurants).
Retail
- Rituals – cosmetics & well-being
- Tous – jewellery & luggage
- Victoria’s Secret – fashion accessories
- La Tête Dans Les Etoiles & Looping – aeronautics and space-themed games & entertainment – Lagardère Travel Retail
- Parfois – fashion accessories
- The Fashion Place – multi-brand fashion concept (existing store) – Lagardère Travel Retail
- Stade Toulousain – fashion and sportswear accessories
- Relay (5 outlets) – press, books, grocery & fresh products (Casino Shop) and travel essentials – Lagardère Travel Retail
- Donjon – jewellery and watches (existing store)
- FNAC – electronics (existing store) – Lagardère Travel Retail
- Aélia Beauté – perfumes & cosmetics (existing store) – Lagardère Travel Retail
- Decouvrir Le Sud-Ouest/Stade Toulousain – gourmet food products, regional products and sportswear (existing store) – Lagardère Travel Retail
- Tie Rack – luggage, bags, fashion accessories (existing store)
Food & beverage
- Starbucks – Areas
- Pret A Manger – Lagardère Travel Retail
- Factory & Co – gourmet burgers – Areas
- Super Wild Coffee (two points of sale) – coffee shop and fast food with freshly prepared products – Areas
- J’Go (two points of sale) – counter/fine foods and bistronomic restaurant – Lagardère Travel Retail
- Mas Q Menos – tapas restaurant – Areas
- Victor – regional products from Toulouse market V.Hugo – Areas
- Eric Kayser (two points of sale) – artisanal bakery – Lagardère Travel Retail
- Panorama – seated eating/co-working space – Areas
- Trib’s – self-service and assisted fast food – Lagardère Travel Retail
- Pop-Up bar – including Maison Pariès (Basque pastries), Yummy & Guiltfree (fresh gluten-free waffles), Zumo (juice bar), O Sorbet d’Amour (homemade ice cream) – Lagardère Travel Retail
- Light Bar – coffee shop and outdoor terrace in the boarding lounge – Areas
“International traffic is growing strongly at the airport because of numerous openings of routes to Europe and the rest of the world,” said Toulouse-Blagnac Airport Executive Board Chairman Jean-Michel Vernhes.
“And so we will be adapting our commercial offering to this increase in traffic by offering passengers major international brands, such as Starbucks, but also the brands which make up the identity of our region and its art of living, for example, J’Go, the well-known Toulouse restaurant.
“The duty free zone will extend over 1,850sq m, which is very significant for a regional airport. Why? Beyond the traditional ‘alcohol-tobacco-perfumes’ found in all airport duty free, we will be adding a range of the best regional products” – Toulouse-Blagnac Airport Non-Aeronautical Revenue Development Director Bruno Balerdi
Toulouse-Blagnac Airport Non-Aeronautical Revenue Development Director Bruno Balerdi said: “The airport wanted to innovate with new brands to improve the customer experience. Passengers will have access to brands that are not available in Toulouse, such as Pret A Manger, Tous as well as Factory & Co, Victoria’s Secret and others, such as Rituals or J’Go, that cannot be found in any other French airport today.
“The other original development is that in the commercial area, we will showcase the contrast of Toulouse that brings together high-tech and quality of life, and attracts so many new inhabitants every year. A concrete example of this driving idea is the duty free zone – it will extend over 1,850sq m, which is very significant for a regional airport. Why? Beyond the traditional ‘alcohol-tobacco-perfumes’ found in all airport duty free, we will be adding a range of the best regional products.”
Travel essentials
Lagardère Travel Retail’s new travel essentials shops will include a 109sq m combi-store showcasing two concepts – a children’s store named Looping and an aeronautical- and space travel-themed concept named La Tête Dans Les Etoiles, meaning ‘your head in the stars’. These were designed especially for Toulouse-Blagnac Airport.
The walk-through Relay/Stade Toulousain outlet will celebrate the city’s famed rugby union club and local products with its ‘O Toulouse’ themed area.
A last-minute Relay store in Hall C will be an optimised concept for the news and books brand within a reduced space. It will also feature an ‘O Toulouse’ regional area.
Finally, a Relay/Trib’s combi-store will open on Hall A. Trib’s is a ‘grab and go’ food concept focusing on simple and fresh products.
International standards
Last year was a was a record year at Toulouse-Blagnac Airport for passenger traffic which reached 9.2 million (+14.6 % over 2016). Growth was boosted by low-cost travel, driven by the easyJet, Ryanair and Volotea airlines. The share of low-cost flights rose from 32.2% to 41% of total traffic.
“This growing use of the airport means that we had to adapt our infrastructure, to offer the services an international clientele is entitled to expect. This is the reason for the building work started in 2017, which will give Toulouse an airport on a par with the best international standards,” said Toulouse-Blagnac Airport Supervisory Board President Anne-Marie Idrac.
“A single area for security checks, incorporating the latest technologies, a more attractive range of shops and catering outlets within a vast commercial space, a boarding pier dedicated to low-cost and regional airlines, a 4-star hotel connected to the air terminal: this is what our airport will be offering its passengers in 2018,” added Vernhes.
