Temporary stores are not just about incremental retail sales – they can have important strategic functions too. PTW talks to thought leaders and shares five very different examples.
Their presence – in-store as well as in concourses – is now commonplace, certainly at hub airports. It would be rare to walk through a gateway such as Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG), London Heathrow (LHR) or Hong Kong International (HKG) without encountering a pop-up of some type.
Recent activations include L’Artisan Parfumeur in CDG Terminal 2F; Walker’s Scottish Shortbread in LHR T5 during the holidays, complete with a bagpiper; and Blue Bottle Coffee kiosks at HKG.
There are myriad reasons why they go up in the first place. The initial idea was to evaluate brands before they were considered for permanent space in duty-free stores. Travel retailers could bring in brands for a month or two and assess their potential before deciding to take them on.
Successes and failures
It doesn’t always work. Apparel brand Jack Wills tried a pop-up at London Heathrow in 2011 with much fanfare but ventured into the airport space only briefly. However, the concept is a relatively cheap way for brands to try out the airport channel with little to lose if it doesn’t work out – and a lot to gain if it does.
Lutz Deubel, commercial director and head of center management at Hamburg Airport, comments, “Pop-up stores are a win-win for everyone. Passengers can look forward to more variety; there are often products to discover that are not (yet) available in our regular retail outlets. And shop operators have the opportunity to test concepts.”
The northern German gateway had Swarovski and Delta Bags pop-ups last year and is currently preparing new ones; brands that could also have “the potential to establish themselves as shops at the airport in the long term”, according to Deubel.
Strategies for pop-ups have also evolved. They are now regular calendar fixtures for airport concourses – just like high-profile promotions in-store – and are also used to meet a variety of objectives – from full brand immersion and small-business development, to supporting local labels, sustainability messaging and category education.
AGS Airports, which runs Aberdeen, Glasgow and Southampton airports in the UK, has increased its use of pop-ups. Craig Norton, retail account manager at Glasgow Airport, explains, “They allow us to build up a profile for a particular discipline during peak periods before entering a longer-term deal or tendering for that retail segment. They can also support refurbishment works within a unit by enabling a reduced product line to remain available.”
Moving on from transactions
In his book, Future Ready Retail, Ibrahim Ibrahim, managing director of Portland Design, says that retail must shift from being simply a distribution channel to “moments of experience”. In airports, brands and retail concessionaires understand this and know that pop-ups are a way to deliver that engagement and also bring in ‘fresh blood’. Ibrahim says that the industry needs to create “places that are not just full of shops but experiences they will remember as mementos of their visit”. This is something that airports are trying to achieve.
At Zebra, a global design agency doing a lot of work in Middle Eastern airports, director Lee Roberts says, “With a low capex and greater flexibility when it comes to design guidelines, airport pop-ups allow brands to push the envelope on their creative expression. They are a fantastic format to present limited-edition lines or new products to passengers in transit who are killing time and looking for last-minute gifts or a personal treat.”
Changi Airport is a good example. It has been emerging as a spirits pop-up mecca since Lotte Duty Free took over the liquor and tobacco concession. Last year, nine pop-up stores introduced limited editions from brands like The Macallan, Johnnie Walker and Hennessy.
“Pop-ups allow brands to push the envelope on their creative expression”
Lee Roberts, Zebra
Care needs to be taken on the sustainability front, however, as building and then tearing down temporary stores is not environmentally friendly. But pop-up builders like Elba, a partner to many high-end brands, are on the case. CEO Thibaut de Malézieux says, “By nature, temporary pop-ups are very challenging in terms of sustainability unless we make them to be reused. Materials are one of the main aspects. Not only do we design stores using eco-friendly materials but we also take the full lifecycle into consideration.”
Elba is now able to provide complete CO2 emissions data from material acquisition and production to installation and afterlife. “Our latest best-practice case is the Moët Hennessy pop-up we built for the 250th anniversary of Veuve Clicquot, which is now reused in its boutique at Paris Charles de Gaulle Terminal 2F,” says de Malézieux. The company also created pop-ups for L’Occitane’s Sol de Janeiro brand. Designed in a modular way, they can be moved from one location to another to scale up reuse rates.
Collectible pop culture lands in Singapore
Changi Airport, Singapore
The Funko pop-up store at Changi Airport’s revamped Terminal 2 – the brand’s first in an Asia-Pacific airport – came to an end at the end of February this year after a six-month run. The US company sells vinyl figurines in its Pop!, Vinyl and Soda collections, which are highly collectible and coveted.
This latest Funko outpost, which also featured an exclusive Singapore merlion plus trendy pop-culture-themed Loungefly backpacks, was operated in partnership with concessionaire Simply Toys. It had an activity area for kids and offered interactive experiences such as photo ops with life-size versions of the figures. Posing with Harry Potter, Dancing Groot and Batman were all part of the experience.
Giving small businesses a boost
San Francisco Airport, USA
Over a decade ago, in September 2013, the San Francisco Airport Commission launched a pop-up concession program at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) specifically to give small retailers access to the airport channel.
One of the attractions for the concessionaires was that the fixtures were move-in ready, which cut the startup construction costs that were often a barrier to entry.
The program remains in place and the most recent retailer to come on board on a specialty retail lease was Chalo, a business owned by Danielle An, selling bags and gifts. Since October 2023, An has operated one of the pop-up concessions in Terminal 3. She will be the fourth graduate of SFO’s program to be awarded a specialty retail lease at the West Coast gateway.
Airport director Ivar Satero comments, “The program has been a win-win. It gives small businesses greater access to retail while introducing travelers to concepts that truly delight. Ten years on it continues to achieve its goal.”
The scheme’s first pop-up opened in January 2014 in Terminal 3’s Boarding Area E. Since then, 11 businesses have taken the spaces, now on two-year leases instead of one. “The overwhelming feedback from tenants was that an extra year was desired so they could get a feel for what it is like to do business at the airport,” said a spokesperson for SFO. Among them have been XOX Truffles, McEvoy of Marin selling olive oil, and casual apparel brand San Franpsycho.
As with all leases at the airport, pop-up applicants must submit a proposal during an RFP process and the highest-ranking proposer is awarded the space. According to SFO, it is often the case that products from pop-up tenants continue to be offered at other airport retailers once the retail lease has ended.
A brand partnership tennis smash down under
Melbourne Airport, Australia
The tennis-themed pop-up will have a long-term presence in 2024 and ties in with a wider Aperol Australian Open campaign in off-trade travel retail locations across Australia and New Zealand. Campari Australia’s four-year agreement with Tennis Australia for Aperol as an official partner is a big deal for the parent company and brand, hence the high-visibility airport pop-up.
The store is in Aperol’s iconic orange color and features tennis elements such as court markings, rackets and nets. An eye-catching circular archway leads to an immersive, Instagrammable digital sunset, highlighting the relaxed, sundown drinking experience that Aperol promotes. Travelers are invited to sample an Aperol Spritz and also have the chance to win an Australian Open 2025 experience, encouraging a return visit to Melbourne.
Marco Cavagnera, managing director of GTR at Campari Group, says, “Aperol’s first-ever experiential pop-up store in travel retail is a landmark for this Italian icon, and it reflects the growing importance of the channel to Campari Group.”
For Lotte, pop-ups like this are about passenger engagement and memorable retail experiences. Stephen Timms, CEO of Lotte Duty Free Oceania, says, “The Australian Open is Melbourne’s must-see event each January so it is exciting to be able to offer departing passengers a colorful, convivial and culture-driven experience in the airport. We are confident that the space will resonate with passengers.”
Hawaiian brands woo Tokyo
Haneda Airport, Japan
The Pacific island’s Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT) was behind the project, which brought some of the state’s vibrant culture to the Tokyo gateway. It was part of an export program with the objective of expanding sales in Japan. Mana Up co-founder Meli James says, “This was the first Hawaii pop-up shop at Haneda Airport and it achieved record-breaking sales. The store saw transactions from 11,370 shoppers in two weeks.” Social media coverage hit two million impressions.
Over 164,000 people pass through HND departures daily (well ahead of Narita’s 50,000+), and the pop-up gave them the chance to interact with Hawaiian brands. These included long-standing favorites such as Hawaiian Host, Diamond Bakery, Honolulu Cookie Company, Kahala, Kauai Kookie and Leonard’s Bakery. Up-and-coming names on display were Ua Body and Nick Kuchar Art & Design. Debuting in Japan were Komodo Hawai’i, Kō Hana Rum, Noho Home and Maui Ku’ia Estate Chocolate.
The project was a complex collaboration that also included JATCO (Japan Airport Terminal Co), the State of Hawaii, the CPB Foundation, the Ulupono Initiative, the Hawaii Tourism Authority and Hawaii Tourism Japan.
DBEDT’s director James Kunane Tokioka says, “The Aloha Market was a fresh way for Japanese travelers to connect with Hawaii, keeping us top of mind when they are making their travel decisions.”
Jason Brand, co-founder of Kō Hana Rum, adds, “We received many new sales opportunities and were excited to showcase our products at the Aloha Market.”
JATCO donated 10% of the pop-up’s profits to Hawaiian charities such as the Maui Strong Fund. Mana Up and HND are already in discussions about holding a similar event.
Climate change messaging from Switzerland
Geneva Airport, Switzerland
Major global airport retailer Lagardère Travel Retail partnered with the United Nations Office in Geneva to unveil the 170 Actions and More to Combat Climate Change pop-up at Geneva Airport in November 2023. It was part of an ongoing collaboration with UN Geneva’s Perception Change project.
Initially Lagardère Travel Retail Switzerland partnered up to raise awareness of the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals. This was followed in February 2023 by the first pop-up designed to increase consciousness about refugee living conditions and the challenges of forced displacement – and to promote the sale of MADE51 products made by refugees.
The latest pop-up is in Geneva Airport’s new East Wing, adjacent to Lagardère’s Aelia Duty Free store, the first eco-responsible shop in Aelia’s network. Pascal le Droff, CEO of Lagardère Travel Retail Switzerland, says, “Our second pop-up reaffirms our commitment to sustainability. By integrating sustainability into our operations, we aim to inspire change. We are turning theory into action at Geneva Airport.”
For six months, passengers can discover the 170 actions they can take to protect the environment, from reducing inequalities to embracing sustainable consumption. An interactive space inside the pop-up encourages passengers to suggest additional ideas. Tatiana Valovaya, general director of the UN office in Geneva, comments, “The pop-up is more than an exhibition space; it is a call to combat climate change. Each action, no matter how small, can contribute to the global effort to preserve our planet.”
The CEO of Geneva Airport, André Schneider, adds, “This collaboration not only aligns with our commitment to provide passengers with enriching and conscientious experiences but also reflects our vision of being a leader of sustainable airports and becoming a hub for sustainable initiatives.”
This article originally appeared in the April 2024 issue of Passenger Terminal World. To view the magazine in full, click here.
