air malls

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mornin’ merry makers ✈️🧳🌍🚀🏝️,

ever notice how time works differently in airports?

you're simultaneously rushing everywhere & killing time nowhere.

in that weird time-space continuum exists one of retail's most fascinating ecosystems. i had this revelation recently in puerto rico, being herded through yet another duty-free shop. normally, i speed-walk past these stores, only stopping if i'm feeling nostalgic enough to buy airport alcohol like it's college spring break.

but this time was different.

maybe it was my cold or maybe it was my retail-obsessed brain finally clicking into gear, but i started seeing these stores in a whole new light.

where else can you:

• capture (quite literally) captive customers

• convince people to buy giant toblerone bars @ 6am

• charge premium prices while advertising "tax-free savings"

• operate 24/7/365 as the only merchant selling [fill in the blank]

• generate coffee shop lines longer than an apple product launch

time to buckle up as we’re going on a fascinating flight through travel retail!

✈️ surprising air-retail stats

let's start with some mind-blowing numbers:

• global airport retail valued @ $40B in 2023 & expected to be $115B by 2033

• 71% of passengers eat at the airport (that’s a lot of very mid, overpriced food!)

• 60% of passengers intentionally arrive early to shop, dine, or relax

• about half of airport revenue comes from retail, food, & beverage

• men spend more in travel retail than women ($148 vs $137)

• fragrance is 20% of duty-free spending, followed by alcohol @ 14%

🛍️ duty-free decoded

first i must demystify duty-free bc it's way more complex than just "tax-free shopping."

starting with the definition. duty-free actually means:

• no excise taxes

• no import duties

• no value-added tax (VAT)

but here's the very important catch

you often need to be traveling internationally to score these savings. to make matters worse, often the "savings" aren't really savings at all when you factor in other retail promotions or just the price on google…

so next time, you’re in duty-free, please remember:

• savings depend on the product — liquor & tobacco only make sense where import taxes are sky high.

• when in europe, the vat refund usually beats duty-free.

• some airports are goldmines (dubai), others are duds (usa).

• always price-check as “duty-free” is often just a scammy sticker.

fun fact: duty-free shopping started in shannon airport, ireland in 1947 when a business man noticed travelers would buy more if they didn't have to pay taxes on their purchases. genius!

🧳 passenger psychology

now let’s get into what makes airport shopping so unique:

• captive audience: literally nowhere else to go

• time warping: when on "airport time," normal spending rules don't apply

• scarcity mindset: thinking i might not find this again! is a powerful motivator

• higher-income audience: the average international traveler has more money

• elevated emotions: mixture of excitement, anxiety, & boredom makes us more likely to spend irrationally

• gift guilt: for everyone who forgot a gift or refused to settle, then to only drop 10x the local price on a “local craft” that probably wasn’t made locally.

put all of this together & passengers are so very primed to shop.

especially when at one of these jaw dropping airport destinations ↓

🔮 air malls

confession: i'm one of those weird people who actually enjoys getting to the airport early (hope this makes you proud, mom!).

so after years of traveling for work & fun, i've watched up close as airports evolved from sterile waiting rooms into full-blown retail destinations.nowhere is this terminal transformation more dramatic than in asia & the middle east, where airports have basically become

luxury malls with boarding gates.

when i lived in singapore, i'd actually go to changi airport extra early just to explore.

why stress when you can soak up trees?!
(pic above is real & not ai generated)

so if you’re traveling internationally soon, let me put you onto 3 airports that are revolutionizing transit retail:

1. changi airport (singapore) includes

   • the world's tallest indoor waterfall @ 7 stories high

   • extensive nature including a butterfly garden & koi pond

   • a separate building for shops & restaurants called the jewel

2. incheon airport (south korea) includes:

   • a museum, casino, & movie theater

   • cultural experiences like concerts & ceremonies

   • skating rink & wonderbox theme park for families

3. dubai airport (united arab emirates) includes:

   • luxury car raffles on the reg

   • sleep’n fly pods for napping

   • a pool, gym, & internal five-star hotel

looking at these mega-retail airports makes our u.s. terminals feel quite tragic.

as tsa lines get longer & delays more frequent, smart retail could transform these pain points into actually enjoyable experiences. we're starting to see hints of this with branded vending machines & pop-up kiosks.

but still, i think there's so much more potential.

because when you're facing a 7-hour delay, wouldn't you rather be building a lego set or testing perfumes than staring at your phone next to the only available wall plug?

i’m here for this retail runway for both fashion & flights!

be merry,

MacK

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