Internship Report

Understanding the travel retail market with an emphasis

on the luxury fashion brands at Delhi Duty Free

Submitted
By
Veral Sharma

Under the Supervision of

Dr. Jagriti Mishra

Assistant Professor

IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE POST GRADUATE DEGREE "MASTER OF

FASHION MANAGEMENT (MFM)"

Submitted
to

Department of Fashion Management Studies (FMS)

National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT)
Gh-0 Road, Behind Info City, Near DAIICT,
Gandhinagar-382007 Gujarat
Tel: 7923240832, 23240834, Fax: 079 23240772
Web: www.nift.ac.in

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 DECLARATION

I Ms Veral Sharma hereby declare that the Internship report entitled ―Understanding the
travel retail market with an emphasis on the luxury fashion brands at Delhi Duty Free‖
is the result of my own research work carried out by me during the period from
___________4th June 2018 ___to ______18th July 2018___________ except as cited in the
references. This report has not been submitted to any other University or Institution for award
of any degree/diploma etc.

Signature
Name of the Student: Veral Sharma
Date: 13th August 2018

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3
 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that Ms. Veral Sharma of National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT),
Gandhinagar has successfully completed her Internship work titled Understanding the
travel retail market with an emphasis on the luxury fashion brands at Delhi Duty Free
in partial fulfillment of requirement for the completion of 2 Years Post Graduate Programme
"Master of Fashion Management (MFM)" as prescribed by the Department of Fashion
Management Studies (FMS), National Institute of Fashion Technology.

This Internship report is the record of authentic work carried out by her during the period
from 4th June 2018 to --------- under my mentorship.

Signature

Name of the Faculty Mentor: Dr .Jagriti Mishra

Designation: Course Coordinator

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I am grateful to NIFT for proving me this opportunity to work in a corporate environment

which leads me to complete this project titled „Understanding the travel retail market with
an emphasis on the luxury fashion brands at Delhi Duty Free‟. I express my heartiest
gratitude to my industry mentor Mrs. Jyoti Vimal for her constant support and guidance
which has motivated me towards the completion of the project.
A special thanks to Mrs Nishat Khan from the marketing team for her advice and generosity
that kept me inspired during the tenure of my internship.
I would also like to thank my mentor our Couse Coordinator Dr. Jagriti Mishra and other
faculty members who have helped me during the course of this project.

NAME: VERAL SHARMA

Master of Fashion Management

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Table of Contents
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ...................................................................................................................... 5
ABSTRACT............................................................................................................................................ 8
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................... 9
1.1. Purpose of the project ............................................................................................................... 10
1.2. ABOUT THE COMPANY ....................................................................................................... 13
1.2.1. Purpose and Vision of the Company....................................................................................... 13
1.2.2. Duty Free: ............................................................................................................................... 13
1.2.3. Delhi Duty Free: ..................................................................................................................... 14
1.2.4. Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning- Delhi Duty Free ................................................... 23
1.2.5. Delhi Duty Free SWOT Analysis ........................................................................................... 23
1.3. Problem Definition- ....................................................................................................................... 26
1.4. Objectives: ..................................................................................................................................... 26
1.5. Methodology: ................................................................................................................................. 26
1.6. Scope of the study: ......................................................................................................................... 27
1.7. Limitations ..................................................................................................................................... 28
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW .............................................................................................. 29
2.1. Airport Retail ................................................................................................................................. 30
2.2. Duty Free ....................................................................................................................................... 33
CHAPTER THREE .............................................................................................................................. 40
(This chapter discusses the consumer survey and studies price as a variable at Delhi duty Free and the
Domestic market further explaining the Visual Merchandising tools that could be used by the Sales
Associates.) ........................................................................................................................................... 40
3.1. Price Comparison: .......................................................................................................................... 41
3.2. Visual Merchandising Techniques:- .............................................................................................. 42
3.3. Sample Design: .............................................................................................................................. 48
3.4. Sample Technique:......................................................................................................................... 48
3.5. Questionnaire Design: .................................................................................................................... 48
3.6. Analysis.......................................................................................................................................... 49
3.7. Findings: ........................................................................................................................................ 52
Chapter Four (Competitors Analysis) ................................................................................................... 54
4.1. Changi Duty Free Services ............................................................................................................ 55
4.2. Heathrow Airport (World Duty Free) ............................................................................................ 59
4.3. Dubai Duty Free............................................................................................................................. 62
4.4. Delhi Duty Free.............................................................................................................................. 67

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Chapter Five: Suggestions and Conclusion .......................................................................................... 71
5.1. Suggestions .................................................................................................................................... 72
5.2. Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................... 74
Appendix- Questionnaire ...................................................................................................................... 77

List of Figures
Figure 1- Hugo Boss Product Offering ................................................................................................. 18
Figure 2-Armani Exchange Product offering........................................................................................ 19
Figure 3-MontBlanc Product Offering.................................................................................................. 20
Figure 4-Swarovski Product Offering ................................................................................................... 20
Figure 5- Armani Exchange Product Offering ...................................................................................... 21
Figure 6-Hugo Boss Price Range .......................................................................................................... 21
Figure 7-Swarovski Price Range........................................................................................................... 22
Figure 8-Duty free and travel retail sales worldwide from 2016 to 2023 (in billion U.S. dollars) ....... 31
Figure 9-Color Blocking ....................................................................................................................... 44
Figure 10- Color Blocking .................................................................................................................... 44
Figure 11-Merchandise Display Techniques ........................................................................................ 45
Figure 12- Merchandise Presentation ................................................................................................... 47
Figure 13- Price of Products, Customer Satisfaction ............................................................................ 49
Figure 14-Offers as a motivational factor ............................................................................................. 49
Figure 15- Services at DDF .................................................................................................................. 50
Figure 16- Delhi Duty Free in a word ................................................................................................... 50
Figure 17- Atmosphere at DDF ............................................................................................................ 51
Figure 18-Preferred Products ................................................................................................................ 52
Figure 19-Offers at iShopChangi.com .................................................................................................. 56
Figure 20- World Duty Free Official website ....................................................................................... 59
Figure 21-Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby ................................................................................................ 64
Figure 22-Dubai Creek Golf and Yatch club winner ............................................................................ 65
Figure 23-Dubai Summer Surprises ...................................................................................................... 66
Figure 24-Delhi Duty Free- Online Portal .............................................................................................. 67
Figure 25- Social Media Marketing ...................................................................................................... 68
Figure 26-Shop and Collect .................................................................................................................. 68
Figure 27-Offers at Delhi Duty Free ..................................................................................................... 69
Figure 28- Social Media Marketing through Bloggers ......................................................................... 73

List Of Tables
Table 1-Hugo Boss Price Comparison .................................................................................................. 41
Table 2-Armani Exchange Price Comparison....................................................................................... 41
Table 3-Swarovski Price Comparison................................................................................................... 42

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 ABSTRACT

The concept of airport retailing is growing at an enormous rate and so are the opportunities
for the growth of Delhi Duty Free. With the rise in the number of travellers crossing border of
the country, creates a market place for the presence of Duty Free stores offering products to
the customers at prices which are exclusive of the taxes and custom duties applied by the
government of different nations.

This research provides an understanding of the airport retailing and duty free market with
respect to the luxury fashion brands that have a presence in the duty free area at Indira
Gandhi International Airport Delhi.

A secondary research was also conducted to study the various offers offered to the passengers
by the Changi Airport (Singapore) Duty Free Store, Dubai Duty Free, and Heathrow Airport
(London) World Duty Free in comparison to Delhi Duty Free. This was done to suggest
measures that could be adopted by the Delhi Duty Free to enhance its sales.

A primary research was also conducted to understand the consumer perception and
preference in accordance to the luxury fashion products offered by the duty free stores
compared to the domestic market

This gave an insight into where Delhi Duty Free stands compared to its competitors and the
steps that could be taken to improve the experience that is being provided to its customers by
the store.

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 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

(This chapter discusses the purpose of the project, problem

definition, objectives, company bio, scope and Methodology)

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1.1. Purpose of the project

The concept of Duty Free shopping is known wide across the globe taking into consideration
the growth in the number of passengers who fly internationally every year. According to the
Association of Private Airport Operators, in the year 2017-18 17.4 million people travelled
via the Indira Gandhi International Airport which is 1.9 million travellers more as compared
to the people travelling internationally in the year 2016-17. Duty Free stores are exempt from
the payment of certain national taxes and duties on the ground that the people travelling
internationally will take the products out of the country.

This project highlights the following aspects:

a. To provide an understanding of the travel retail market while comparing Delhi Duty
Free in terms of offers and promotions to its key competitors in the world.
b. To show a comparison in terms of price of the luxury fashion apparel products at
DDF in contrast to the domestic market.
c. The Visual Merchandising tools that could be used by the Sales associates to enhance
the visual appeal of the store.

The activities that were performed by me at Delhi Duty Free as a buying intern during the
tenure of my internship were:

a. Creating Article creation Files from the Master Brand Files of the luxury fashion
products.
b. Listing of the products offered by various luxury fashion brand vendors including
Swarovski, MontBlanc, Armani Exchange, Victoria Secret and Hugo Boss.
c. Selecting the range that is to be purchased from the products that have been listed.
d. Assisting the sales associates at the airport in order to guide them on the various
aspects of effective visual merchandising techniques.

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 Figure 1- Master Brand File for Fossil

The figure shows the Master Brand File of the brand Fossil which provides the basic
information about the products in the form of the Vendor Name, Brand Name, Item Category
Name, Bar Code, Product group name, DDFS article code, Size, Color Code,
Purchase/Invoice and the Cost in US Dollars. Master Files are the original form of listing a
product and are helpful for generating Article Creation Files.

Figure 2- Article Creation File for the brand Fossil

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The Article Creation file is then prepared from the Master Brand File which enlists all the
information that is associated with the listing of the products into the system. Article creation
Files include various heads that are to be filled in, these heads are in the form of:

 Description- Name of the item.

 Description 2- Additional Description.
 ARI Division Code- The Prime Classification of items as Configured in System.
 ARI Category Code- The code of Item category as configured in system Secondary
Classification.
 ARI Product Group Code- The code of Product group as configured in the system
Third Level Classification.
 Vendor Number- This is a unique code denoted to the different vendors.
 Vendor Item Number- Vendor Referance No.
 Item Bar Code- Barcode printed on the product
 DDFS Division Code- The Prime Classification of Items as Configured in System
 DDFS Item Category Code- The code of Item category as configured in system
Secondary Classification.
 DDFS Product Group Code- The code of Product group as configured in the system
Third Level Classification.
 Brand Owner Code- Code of the brand owner or the parent company.
 Master Brand Code- The Code associated with the different brands under the parent
company.
 Sub Brand Code- The third level classification of the product categories falling under
different brands.
 HSN Code- Code used for the customs tariffs.
 Unit Price (Dollars)
 Unit Price (INR)

Article Creation Files are created by entering these codes thereby listing the products in the
system.

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1.2. ABOUT THE COMPANY

1.2.1. Purpose and Vision of the Company

Purpose: Create an outstanding shopping experience every time.

Vision: We will deliver the best shopping experience for our

customers and value for our partners.

1.2.2. Duty Free:

The world's first duty-free shop was established at Shannon Airport in Ireland by Brendan
O'Regan in 1947. Designed to provide a service for Trans-Atlantic airline passengers
typically travelling between Europe and North America whose flights stopped for refuelling
on both outbound and inbound legs of their journeys, it was an immediate success and has
been copied worldwide.

Dr. Brendan O‘Regan was not the pioneer, but it can be said that he was a ―father‖ of a
modern concept of Duty Free as a direct place where a person can buy goods he is interested
in.

Diplomats living in embassies (considered as foreign territory), the military and men at sea
had enjoyed duty-free allowances for years before the Shannon shop opened its doors.
Indeed, liquor had been available to British seamen for on board consumption since the
1500s. In the 19th Century, ships passengers were also allowed to purchase supplies without
duty and were able to enter the country they were visiting or returning to without paying
import duties on items they had bought during their voyage.

Duty-free shopping was in its infancy when two American entrepreneurs, Charles Feeney
and Robert Warren Miller, created Duty Free Shoppers (DFS) on 7 November 1960. DFS
started operations in Hong Kong and spread to Europe and other places around the globe.
Securing the exclusive concession for duty-free sales in Hawaii in the early-1960s created a
business breakthrough for DFS, and the company was positioned to focus on emerging
Japanese travellers. DFS continued to innovate, expanding into off-airport duty-free stores
and large downtown Galleria stores and grew to become the world‘s largest travel retailer.

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1.2.3. Delhi Duty Free:
Duty Free Goods refer to the merchandise on which import duty is not charged because it is
sold only to departing passengers in an airport's or port's departure lounge. Non-residents can
buy it outside of bonded areas on presentation of valid travel documents (such as a passport
and travel ticket) but can collect the purchased item only at the departing point.

Delhi Duty Free is India‘s biggest duty free retailer which was launched in July 2010. It is
spread over an area of 4000m2 space covering 9 stores. The area at the departures is
approximately 1732m2 and the area at the arrivals is approximately 1707m2. The boutiques
and fashion cover an area of approximately 391m2. Until the launch of Delhi Duty Free
people had a poor notion of Duty Free shops which were considered to be dingy and
mismanaged. The launch of Duty Free brought a new revolution to the country by bringing in
its exclusivity by offering different categories of luxury products to the passengers at reduced
rates.

Delhi Duty Free Services Pvt. Ltd. (DDFS) is a joint venture company between DIAL (Delhi
International Airport Limited), IDFS (Indian Duty Free Services) and ARI (Aer Rianta
International). The company was awarded the concession to manage and operate the Duty
Free Shops at Terminal 3, Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi. DDFS is a single
largest duty free retail operator in India operating out of T3, the 6th largest single terminal
building in terms of floor area.

Delhi Duty Free Services operates, maintains and manages duty free outlets at Indira Gandhi
International Airport (IGI Airport), New Delhi, under concession from Delhi International
Airport Pvt Ltd (DIAL) which holds 49.9 per cent in the company; 33.07 per cent stake is
held by Yalorvin Ltd, a subsidiary of Aer Rianta International cpt (ARI) and the rest 17.03
per cent is held by GMR Airports Ltd. Delhi Duty Free Services sells perfumes, cosmetics,
confectionery, liquor, tobacco and fashion products at IGI Airport.

Size and Spacing: At approx. 4000m2 DDFS is India‘s largest duty free retail space at T3 IGI
Airport in Delhi. Through its design Duty Free has aimed at a contemporary vision of a
Modern Duty Free Environment. This is in synch with high international standards
synonymous to the overall architectural vision of the airport terminal. Its designs are sensitive
to the local culture and have adopted a sense of local ‗Sense of Place‘ which is reflected
throughout the shops through the use of traditional patterns, colors, materials and local
elements.

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The design is very simple and elegant giving consideration to natural shapes, textures, visual
elements, dimensions and use of color, resulting in the passenger enjoying the benefit of
clean sightlines across all categories from anywhere within the shops.

From the outset DDFS has been conscious of the changing environment of progressive India
and considered the change in customer needs, expectations, profiles and disposable incomes
over the years. DDFS has allowed flexibility within the shop design to adjust its model to
react to change in our offer, national and global trends, festivals and promotions by retaining
control of key areas of the shops. This allows DDFS the ability to run the shops according to
its business needs, moving away from the traditional model of allocating the majority of
space to brands. This point is further illustrated by way of their digital media platform which
includes two large media walls and 32*52 inch plasma screens, from Samsung, all centrally
controlled, which have the ability to change by the minute, hour, day or month depending on
the shop activity. The system may even allow live feeds for real time interaction.

Area allotment:

Departures- Approx. 1732m2

Perfumes and cosmetics- 700m2

Liquor, tobacco and confectionery- Approx 816m2

Boutiques and Fashion- approx. 391m2

Arrivals- Approx. 1707m2

Colors: Colors used within the interiors are the local colors, ‗colors of deli‘ which depict
‗Harmony and Rhythm‘. Use of vibrant and contrast colors that are traditionally Indian but
used in a modern manner, has been given an important consideration.

Lighting: The high quality standard and finish of the shops are further enhanced by lighting
provided by Ansorg and Philips, which are strategically placed to highlight the product range
and design.

Lights are very attractive, effective with good use of good and vibrant color. The concept
behind the design is to create the mood of people to shop at Delhi Duty Free. Modern LED
color changing technology is also used by DDFS.

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Visually More Appealing: To create a clutter free and vibrant environment, Delhi Duty Free
has 12 LCD screens, showcasing the brand promotions, 2 video walls at departure, 40 LCD
POS machines.

DDFS has also introduced a range of Fashion and Accessories within modern and spacious
environment presenting a complete range from Hugo Boss, Mont Blanc, Armani Jeans,
Swarovski and Victoria Secret. The area that has been allotted to Boutiques and Fashion is
approximately 391m2.

Victoria Secret: Opened on 7 April 2014, at IGI T3 departure with an area of 995sq ft store
features the brand‘s range of beauty products accessories and innerwear designed. It includes
the FiFi Award-winning Victoria‘s Secret Bombshell, and other collections such as Victoria
and the signature VS Fantasies with an availability of Lip Gloss and Body Care products.

Accessories include branded cosmetic cases, fashion bags, passport holders, phone cases,
travel adaptors and headphones, as well as scarves, sunglasses and underwear.

The shop interior features a gallery of black and white images and a video wall that
broadcasts footage of the Victoria‘s Secret Angels.

Armani exchange: Armani is an Italian fashion house founded by Giorgio Armani which
designs, manufactures, distributes and retails haute couture, ready-to-wear, leather goods,
shoes, watches, jewellery. Armani exchange is a bridge line collection of denim related
clothing created in 1981. Armani jeans is mainly sold in departmental stores, although there
are 15 freestanding Armani stores in the world, in addition to an Armani Jeans Café in Milan.

Hugo Boss: The Boss Black Men‘s Collection from Hugo Boss, which is the premium line
for business, leisure and events, is best known for the clean & finest cuts with exceptional
detailing and the impeccable quality. Sophisticated designs, exclusive materials and
traditional tailing characterize this high class collection, which stands for the uncompromised
craftsmanship and timeless elegance.

This luxury brand offering includes the Boss Black and Boss Green collections for men. The
store has been designed in line with DDFS‘s vision to offer an ―exclusive travel retail concept
store‖. Key design elements of the store emanate the brand essence of Hugo Boss, featuring a
black façade and merchandise display areas to facilitate ease of shopper navigation.

16
The collection at DDFS comprises of suits, variety of jackets like Pasini Jackets, Knitwear
Shirts and Jerseys, trousers and Jeanswear, Belts, Scarves and other leather goods.

Swarovski: Swarovski crystals have become an essential ingredient of international design

with a range of precisely-cut crystals and related luxury products. Since 1965 the company
has also catered to the fine jewellery industry with precision-cut genuine and created
gemstones. The Swarovski Crystal range includes Crystal sculptures and miniatures, Fashion
collection, Watches etc.

MONT BLANC: The epitome of writing culture has evolved into a diversified brand in the
world of Luxury which offers sophisticated, high quality writing instruments, exclusive
Swiss-made watches, fine leather goods, high-class fine and silver jewellery as well as stylish
eyewear and fragrances. Mont Blanc as a brand is all about the legacy, intelligence, power
and performance. The collection at Delhi Duty Free mainly comprises of Jewellery &
Accessories in the form of cufflinks, keyrings, bracelets etc., Writing instruments, Wallets
and other leather goods.

PRODUCTS: The different luxury brands have different product offerings at Delhi Duty
Free.

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 Hugo Boss

Mens apparel

Shirts Polos Trousers Suits Shoes Accessories Knitwear

Formal Basic Formal Bags

Casual Fashion Casual Socks

Solids Ties

Caps

Scarfs

Figure 1- Hugo Boss Product Offering

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 Shirts

T Shirts Trouser

Bottomwear Shorts

Denim

Knitwear
Mens Apparel Outerwear
Jackets

Shoes
Footwear
Slippers

Armani Belts
Exchange
Accessories Bags

T shirt Wallets

Dresses
Denim
Womens Apparel Bottomwear
Trouser
Footwear
Bags
Accessories
Clutches

Figure 2-Armani Exchange Product offering

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 Refill

Ball pen

Writing
Roller Ball
Instruments

MontBlanc Watches Fountain Pen

Bags Mechanical Pencil

Figure 3-MontBlanc Product Offering

Stationery

Earrings

Pendants

Bracelets
Swarovski
Rings

Heavy Necklace

Watches

Figurines

Figure 4-Swarovski Product Offering

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Price:

The price range of different luxury apparel products falling into different categories available
at Delhi Duty Free are:

Figure 5- Armani Exchange Product Offering

Figure 6-Hugo Boss Price Range

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Figure 7-Swarovski Price Range

Speciality at DDFS

DDFS has introduced an award winning and highly successful whisky store to T3 which has
the collections of super-premium malts under one concept.

This innovative whisky concept offers the best from world‘s whisky regions, from around the
world including Scotland.

HUMIDOR- “Offering you the best”

A walk in Humidor has been incorporated in the arrivals and departures forming suitable
surroundings to offer the finest premium cigars from Cuba, Honduras and Dominican
Republic. DDFS aims to give cigars a specialist positioning and thus create a right ambience
in which to purchase.

Delhi Duty Free as a Shopping Destination

Delhi Duty Free promises for an ―ULTIMATE‖ shopping experience for the customers one
which is unparalleled anywhere in the world with wide range of Indian an international
products.

Other than the range, great ambience act as an important factor while shopping, with good
visual displays all around, 16 LCD screens showcasing the brand promotions, pleasing
layouts and illumination.

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Specially trained staff, attractive promotions and offers add to the shopping experience of the
traveller.

1.2.4. Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning- Delhi Duty Free

Segmentation:

Segmentation is a process to identify the needs of the customers and thereby segmenting the
market accordingly. Delhi Duty Free is a store that provides products to the passengers in the
course of their travel and thus it segments the market force on the basis of:

 Destination- The passengers shopping for products from Delhi duty free are
segmented on the basis of the country they are flying to.
 Nationality- The other basis of segmentation is done on the basis of the passport of
the passenger i.e. the country of origin of the passenger is taken into account.

Targeting:

The company targets the travellers travelling across borders by offering them quality products
at a subsidised rate which they can carry along with themselves while travelling
internationally.

Positioning

Delhi Duty Free has been positioned in the mind of the customers as a competitive travel
retail outlet providing best shopping experience and value to the target customers.

1.2.5. Delhi Duty Free SWOT Analysis

Strengths

a. Spread over a wide area and has the benefit of being the largest duty free retailer
in the country.
b. Placed at an advantageous location at the departure area of the IGI Airport T3.
c. Enjoys the presence of high end luxury global fashion brands thereby providing
the customers an exclusive and pleasant atmosphere while shopping.
d. Delhi Duty Free offers a wide range of products to the customers in the form of
Confectionery, Liquor, Perfumes, Tobacco, Cosmetics, fashion and many more.

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 e. Provision of attractive offers to the customers which keeps the customers
motivated to make the purchase.
f. Open for 24 hours a day, Delhi Duty Free provides products to the customers as
and when needed without any time restriction.
g. Customer loyalty and brand name.
h. Receives price and cost advantages.

Weaknesses

a. Delhi Duty Free offers products to the passengers travelling internationally which
acts as a disruption by limiting the market force.
b. People spend approximately two hours on an average at the airports and thus this
time restriction limits the amount of goods that could be purchased by the
passengers.
c. The amount of product choices offered by the Duty Free stores is less relative to
the products offered by the exclusive brand outlets.
d. People at times prefer to buy products from the country they are travelling to
rather than making a purchase at the airport.

Opportunities

a. Having a presence at the international airport Delhi duty Free gets access to a
diverse range of customers hailing from different countries and backgrounds.
b. The store has now increased its reach to have an online presence which gives the
customers ability to pre book the items they would like to purchase before
landing at the airport.
c. There is rapid growth in the travel retail industry with more and more people
travelling internationally every year.
d. With the growing travel retail industry, more and more brands are trying to enter
the Duty Free Area.
e. Delhi Duty Free enjoy its monopoly over the Delhi International airport as it‘s
the largest retailer in terms of space and offers the customers a variety of high
end luxury products.

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Threats

a. Faces stiff completion from Duty Free stores present at Dubai, Singapore and
London.
b. There are airport restrictions with respect to the retail space allocated to Delhi
Duty Free.
c. Delhi Duty Free might lose the existing customer base while trying to reach new
customers.
d. Availability of cheaper products in the domestic market also restricts the amount
of sales.

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1.3. Problem Definition- Delhi Duty Free offers products to the passengers travelling
internationally via the Indira Gandhi International airport Terminal 3 at prices which are
exclusive of the customs and taxes levied by the government of India. The stiff competition
that is faced by the company due to the presence of other duty free stores across the globe is
being addressed in this research along with the difference in the price range of luxury fashion
products available at Delhi Duty Free in contrast to the domestic market.
The top three duty free stores that provide tough competition to Delhi Duty Free are Duty
Free stores at Changi Airport Singapore, Dubai Airport and Heathrow Airport London.
The sales associates working at the luxury apparel stores under Delhi Duty Free were not
very proficient with the knowledge associated with the internal Visual Merchandising tools, a
workshop was hence conducted in order to assist them for the same.

1.4. Objectives:
The objectives of this study are:
 To provide an understanding of the travel retail industry thereby studying the factors
that differentiates Delhi Duty Free from the domestic market.
 To show a comparison in terms of the offers that are provided to the passengers by
Delhi Duty Free and its key competitors, thereby suggesting effective ways to
improve the level of service provided to the customers.
 To guide the Sales Associates appointed at the stores by providing them Visual
Merchandising tips through a workshop.

1.5. Methodology:
A. Secondary Research
The predominant tool used in this research was Desk Research. This involves studying
the offerings by the competitors in terms of the promotions, price and other offers that are
provided to the customers. Social Media marketing techniques used by Delhi Duty Free
and its competitors were also studied.
To study this, the following methods were used:
 Weekly Reports.
 Store and Market Visits
 Online Research

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 B. Primary Research
The aim of the primary research was to gather the opinion of the passengers with respect
to the luxury fashion products that are being provided to the passengers by the different
duty free luxury fashion brands at the airport.
Primary data collection included visits to the Indira Gandhi International Airport
Departure zone which has the presence of the luxury fashion boutiques including Hugo
Boss, Armani Exchange, Swarovski, MontBlanc and Victoria Secret. The aim to conduct
this research was to find out the key reasons behind the preference of passengers to shop
at Duty Free boutiques or if they would rather shop at the domestic market.

Type of Research
This research would be both Qualitative and Quantitative. Qualitative Research is
primarily exploratory research; it is used to gain an understanding of underlying reasons,
opinions, and motivations. It provides insights into the problem or helps to develop ideas
or hypotheses for potential quantitative research. Quantitative Research is used to
quantify the problem by way of generating numerical data or data that can be transformed
into usable statistics.

1.6. Scope of the study:

 This study provides an understanding of the difference in price of the luxury fashion
products falling into different categories available at Delhi Duty free and the products
available in the domestic market.
 This study can be used to provide a comprehensive view of the offers given to the
passengers by the duty free stores at Changi Airport, Dubai Airport and Heathrow
Airport having a presence online.
 This study also gives an insight of the similarity in the merchandise offered by the
luxury fashion brands at Delhi Duty Free and the merchandise at their exclusive
outlets.
 The study can also be used by Delhi Duty Free to decide the offers that could be
provided by them to their customers in comparison to the offers provided by their
competitors.

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1.7. Limitations
 The geographic scope of this research was restricted to the city of Delhi, so the results
are very specific to the particular region.
 The price results of the different airports are as per the international websites and
therefore these may scarcely differ from the retail store options and prices.
 The sample size used for the purpose of primary research was comparatively small
due to the limited time period of 3 days (as per the norms of the organization) that
was allocated to visit the airport.

28
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

29
 Literature Review

2.1. Airport Retail

Airports are not solely geared toward handling passengers and baggage. The non-aviation
business—including shopping, dining, parking, and advertising—is constantly expanding as a
vital source of revenues.

Non-aviation business refers to everything at airports not directly related to air travel, such as
retail trade, catering, parking, and advertising. Airports have recognized the opportunity to
boost both revenues and profits with the help of the non-aviation sector and, as a result, have
significantly expanded the areas dedicated to retailers and restaurants. Even airports not
initially designed or built with retail areas in mind have since managed to develop a retail
presence. For example, Frankfurt Airport now has 570 square meters of non-aviation area per
1 million passengers, while London Heathrow has 1,050 square meters per 1 million
passengers.

The expansion into non-aviation is accompanied by more diverse retail concepts, particularly
in fashion, well-ness, and beauty. In the fashion sector, premium and luxury formats have
been supplemented by the mainstream segment—illustrated by the Accessorize store in
Munich and Zara in Barcelona. Wellness and beauty outlets are found at numerous airports
and work particularly well at those with a large number of transfer passengers. The Be Relax
wellness brand, to name one, is represented at nine airports in Europe. Beauty products are
now sold in mono-brand shops in addition to duty-free stores.

Airport locations are doubly valuable for brand manufacturers as they promise profits and
provide a prominent location that supports the brand. Successful models may include
independently operated shops and concessions allocated to retailers, which in turn may be the
traditional duty-free companies. Luxury brands, such as Armani, choose different operator
models in different locations. However, merely having a strong brand and a successful
business in high-street retailing does not guarantee success. The travel retail segment has its
own business models and challenges and requires a certain kind of management.

The non-aviation business segment continues to attract a more diverse group of retailers—
extending beyond premium and luxury brands to also include mainstream brands. To operate
profitably in this environment requires new business models, innovative strategies, and
insights into a wide and diverse customer segment. Knowing your customers—their

30
terminals, flight schedules, destinations, and preferred products—can prove lucrative.
Developing a strong business intelligence function—particularly for duty-free operators—
that uses the large amount of detailed information that is gathered is vital for designing
merchandise strategies that get the most value from each potential consumer.
(ATKearney, 2011)

Figure 8-Duty free and travel retail sales worldwide from 2016 to 2023 (in billion U.S. dollars)

According to a new report published by Allied Market Research, titled, Travel Retail Market
by Product and Channel: Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2017-2023, the
travel retail market size was valued at $69.5 billion in 2016, and is projected to reach $125.1
billion by 2023, growing at a CAGR of 8.9% from 2017 to 2023. Perfumes & cosmetics
segment in the global travel retail market possesses a strong customer base.

Development of the travel & tourism industry, rapid urbanization, and change in lifestyle,
owing to increased disposable income of the consumers drive the growth of the travel retail
market. In addition, increase in travel & tourism or international tourist arrivals in the
emerging economies, such as Asia-Pacific and LAMEA is anticipated to create lucrative
opportunities for the global travel retail market.

Wines & spirits is the second largest revenue contributor in travel retail market. The
consumption of wines, particularly luxury wines and spirits has increased considerable

31
growth in the past few years. In addition, it has been observed that luxury wines & spirits are
highly preferred by the international passengers, which leads to the growth of the market.

Asia-Pacific is the largest travel retail market in the world, and is growing at the fastest rate
owing to improvements in living standards, rise in disposable income, and development of
the tourism industry.

In 2016, airports accounted for the maximum market revenue, and is projected to grow at a
CAGR of 9.0 % during the forecast period. Border, downtown, and hotel shops is expected to
grow at the highest CAGR of 9.4%.Perfumes & cosmetics accounted for more than 30% of
market share in 2016, and is expected to dominate the global market by 2023.The luxury
goods segment is expected to grow at the highest CAGR of 11.5% during the forecast period.
China is the major shareholder in the Asia-Pacific travel retail industry, and accounted for
around 65% share in 2016. (Sinha)

Luxury airport retail is thriving, representing an opportunity for luxury retailers, airports, and
marketers all seeking to capture the attention and spend of affluent global consumers. Airport
retail has become so important in recent years that‘s been pegged the ―sixth continent of
luxury.‖ Brick-and-mortar retail has shown low single-digit growth for the past few years.
Meanwhile, airport stores, alongside e-commerce, showed strong growth in 2016 in
comparison to department stores, specialty stores, and mono brand stores. With a projected
growth of over 70% in the next four years, it‘s one of the fastest growing segments in retail.
(Shankman, 2017)

The landscape in airport retail is constantly evolving as changes in consumer behaviour and
retail strategy develop at significant pace. Enhanced technology, sophisticated customer data
and consumer demands – set against a context of challenging macro-economic conditions –
have all combined to create this environment. At the same time, global passenger traffic is
growing, people‘s disposable income has reached an all-time high and emerging market
spend is rising. As a result, in many instances, passenger spend has continued to rise, despite
limited innovations from airport retailers to adapt to new consumer behaviours and
trends. Essentially, the industry has often considered travel retail to be a channel of its own,
safe from the market pressures and competition of downtown.

However, the rise of digital has led to a diminishing price advantage due to the global
dominance and reach of e-commerce giants, which enjoy significant cross-border fulfilment

32
and increasing price transparency. Indeed, digital continues to raise consumer expectations to
the extent that today‘s consumer expects to be able to demand what they want, whenever they
want, however they want.

The growing sophistication of data capture in airport retail opens up innovative ways to
support sales, through demographic profiling, destination spend analysis, or tracking
passenger flows around the terminal through beacon and Wi-Fi enabled technology.

For retailers to maximise value and return on investment, however, airport management
executives need to ensure their teams have the right skill sets to understand, analyse, and act
upon the data they‘re capturing.

Airport retail needs to major on emphasising in-store experience if it‘s going to increase
footfall and in-store conversion. It is here they have the most to learn from the high street in
terms of pushing boundaries around concepts and innovation. Digital simply can‘t compete
with the physical sensory experience; the store environment is crucial to delivering product
and brand engagement. Experience is what will stimulate purchases and drive customer
loyalty.

There is a strong correlation between customer satisfaction and spend. In current times,
consumers are arguably now exposed to too much ‗stuff‘, hence passengers are keen to seek
out different experiences, rather than be exposed to endless shelves of static
commerce. Airport retailers have the opportunity to make the journey less of a process, and
more of an experience. (Avery, 2017)

2.2. Duty Free

Duty-free retail the duty- and tax-free retail industry remains the most important player.
According to Generation Research, around $60 billion in gross sales was generated at airports
around the world in 2015. However, threats are abundant. Political instability, challenging
economic conditions, terrorist attacks, online retail competition and shifting consumer
behaviour all have the potential to diminish the opportunities of increasing traffic on the back
of growing tourism. Despite this, global duty-free retailers have strengthened their position to
grasp the opportunities presented by integrating horizontally and vertically. DUFRY has
become the world‘s number one travel retail company (with 24% of the market) by
horizontally integrating through take-overs of World Duty Free and the Nuance Group. When

33
airports and retailers form a joint-venture, this is a kind of vertical integration between
landlord and tenant.

Luxury fashion, beauty and liquor brands remained popular during the recent economic crisis
with affluent travellers from China, the Middle East, India, Russia and Brazil continuing to
buy Louis Vuitton bags and Hermès clothes at airport stores. Aeroporti di Roma CEO Ugo de
Carolis revealed to the ACI Europe Commercial & Retail conference delegates in Nice on 4
April 2017 that the average spend in the Rome Fiumicino luxury fashion precinct is €500.
Italian and French megabrands are being sought the world over. For example, a unique
crystal diamond-studded bottle of very rare Scottish whisky priced at €250,000 was sold at
the opening of Amsterdam Schiphol Airport‘s luxury liquor store in October
2013. (SCHÖLVINCK, 2017)

Duty-free shops at airports sell products without duty, i.e, without the local government sales
tax added in. At duty-free shops, the size of the duty-free exemption varies depending on the
country, but prices are often competitive in relation to what you‘d find in a normal store.

Ever since it opened in 2010, Delhi Duty Free has been a runaway hit with international
travelers. Until then, people had a very poor notion of duty-free shops in India. Most such
shops were operated by the public sector ITDC, which lacked the special expertise that is
required for efficient and profitable duty-free retailing. Indian duty-free shops were thought
of as dingy places, cluttered and shabbily run. The launch of Delhi Duty Free marked a
dramatic shift in the way duty-free stores were run until then. Spanning 55,000 sq.ft. of retail
area, Delhi Duty Free offers the largest duty-free space in the country.

Delhi Duty Free Services is on a roll. India‘s biggest duty free retailer achieved its highest
monthly sales in the month of June. There were other windfalls as well. The company also
recorded its highest daily sales yet, at over US $600,000, besides registering over +50 per
cent growth in Shop & Collect sales, and highest ever sales in the beauty and liquor
categories.

For Delhi Duty Free, June proved to be a month in clover with sales climbing to giddying
heights, and bringing cheer to its three stakeholders. The three partners in the joint venture
are Delhi International Airport Pvt. Ltd. (DIAL), Yalorvin Ltd. – a subsidiary of Dublin-
based Aer Rianta International cpt (ARI), a world-wide pioneer in operating duty-free shops
globally, and GMR Airports Ltd, which owns and operates Delhi International Airport and

34
Hyderabad International Airport. As an enterprise, Delhi Duty Free is India‘s largest duty-
free retail space and the Terminal it is located in is the sixth-largest single terminal building
by floor area in the world.

Over the years, travelers transiting through Delhi International Airport have come to realize
that Delhi Duty Free offers a world class store and shopping experience with the best in wine
and liquor to tobacco, confectionery, perfume, apparel and fashion accessories.Until recently,
Delhi Duty Free was concentrating on stabilizing and growing the liquor, tobacco, perfume
and cosmetic categories, besides some destination products. However, in the past couple of
years, it has added several new internationally acclaimed concepts, which have made Delhi
Duty Free an extremely admired retail destination and comparable to the duty-free shops in
Dubai, Bangkok and Singapore.

The sheer size of the rapidly expanding middle class guarantees that India‘s travel retail story
remains irresistible for many years to come. The numbers speak for themselves. India‘s
middleclass, at 350 million people and counting is bigger than the entire population of the
US. Every year, more than 5.4 million Indians go abroad to conduct business, attend
meetings, take study trips, go on holidays and vacations, shopping tours, celebrate
honeymoon and for other myriad reasons. With more than 20 million Indian nationals now
living throughout the world (3.4 million in the US alone), the volume of outbound travel has
been climbing at the rate of about 25 per cent a year.

With the knowledge, experience and expertise of three leading partners, Delhi Duty Free has
been able to ensure a wide range of products and an assortment of world-class brands at
benchmarked prices, along with a keen focus on retail service and experiential retailing. As a
result, its stores have garnered the notice and attention of the admiring shopper-traveler.
People in large numbers have taken to checking out the stores when passing through Delhi
International Airport. (Kumar, 2017)

Consumer expectations are rising as ever, so it is not surprising that consumer convenience
and experience are a prominent focus for many airport retailers the upcoming years since they
have the opportunity to turn travelling from a procedure into an experience..Airport sales are
not only growing faster than traditional retail outlets, but also providing multiple, multi-
channel advertising opportunities well-positioned to reach luxury & major brands‘ target
customers. The range of non-aviation business and income sources at an airport is wide,

35
covering retail, food and beverage, parking, landside real-estate and other services. Still the
full non-aviation business potential is often not realised at airports..Future-proofing At the
ACI Europe Commercial & Retail conference on 3-5 April 2017 in Nice, pointed out that the
key strategic direction for European airports is ―futureproofing‖..One of the ways to build
resilience and create agility is to address shifting behaviour from consumers who:

 Want meaningful experiences, not just products / brands

 Purchase anytime, anyplace, anywhere
 Are savvy in digitally comparing prices
 Are constantly online, longing for attention and are part of online communities
 Easily become heavy buyers if peer pressure, social media and the story say it‘s cool
to spend.

This shift in consumer behaviour has been addressed in airline operations as well, which have
been transformed over the past 10 years to improve efficiency; becoming customer service-
driven and passenger-centric. This has led to widespread adoption of self-service processes
and on-going, continual improvements which lead us closer to the ultimate vision of a truly
seamless and secure process. In doing so, passenger demands for airport facilities are shifting.
The industry remains committed to improving passenger processes, seeking opportunities for
processes to happen off -airport (in both a physical and digital, virtual sense). Going forward
passengers will be offered even more choice and control and, if they wish, will be able to
tailor the entire journey when booking to fly, including the use of airport facilities. This will
also impact the commercial areas of the airport. Cause Major & Luxury airport retail is
thriving, representing an opportunity for retailers, airports, and marketers all seeking to
capture the attention and spend of affluent global consumers. (Vourlakis, 2017)

Airports have long been synonymous with luxury retail outlets but now a growing number of
brands are choosing to showcase their wares in a more temporary, and eye-catching, way –
via pop-ups.From the giant Tiffany box in New York‘s John F. Kennedy (JFK) International
Airport to Bulgari‘s retail showcase in Helsinki Airport, these pop-ups are designed to draw
in affluent leisure and business travelers who may not usually have the time or opportunity to
experience a particular brand‘s products first-hand.From whiskey tastings and fragrance
samples to virtual reality demos, travelers strolling through airports today can find a wide
range of opportunities to engage with brands. For shoppers, experience-focused pop-up shops
offer the opportunity to test new products in a fun, leisurely way, often without a hard sell.
36
For brands, airport pop-ups are increasingly been seen as an ideal venue to introduce new
products and brand extensions. And they also come with another big advantage; as airports
offer the unique option of duty-free shop, consumers are often swayed by the prospect of
purchasing a product for less than the price they‘d pay on the high street yet there‘s no danger
of the discounted price damaging the luxury brand image.

A new multi-brand pop-up from L‘Oréal Travel Retail in Qatar‘s Hamad International
Airport offers a prime example. Designed to mimic a luxury hotel, the experiential shop
showcases high-end collections from Giorgio Armani, Lancôme, Yves Saint Laurent, Ralph
Lauren and Maison Margiela. (JLL Real Views, 2018)

While traditional bricks-and-mortar retail has been showing low single-digit growth for the
past few years, there‘s a drastically different story happening in airports. With growing
passenger volumes, airport retailers are seeing surging demand for luxury brands and stores
in terminals.

There may be opportunity in airport retail but it‘s almost a sector unto itself. Barriers to entry,
frequently changing and finicky consumer demands and a myriad of challenges in labor and
operations can make retailing in an airport drastically different.

The airport retail market is expected to reach $90 billion by 2023, according to a recent report
from Credence Research, and will experience ―significant growth‖ as more middle class
families from emerging countries take to the skies.

Credence also points to construction of new terminals in countries like Brazil, Russia, India
and China as an indicator of what‘s to come. The Asia Pacific region is the largest regional
airport retail market, accounting for 41 percent of all revenue share in 2015. North America is
also expected to witness significant growth with the rising sale of duty-free luxury products.

Credence said fashion and accessories are the largest product categories and account for more
than half of all revenues in the global airport retail market. Luxury brands and retailers are
battling for space and market share in airports around the world, showing growth in every
subsector from jewelry and apparel to upscale dining and services.

37
Flyers are growing more interested in luxury brands and are more willing to spend money on
them. Verdict Retail‘s Airport Retail Survey and Luxury Trends 2016-2017 report found that
the most-preferred clothing and footwear brands to be purchased from airport retail stores in
2016 and 2017 will be Hugo Boss and Ralph Lauren/Polo.

Retailers and brands are striving to meet the growing demands for the luxury experience.
Gerry Savaria, executive vice president at Paradies Lagardère Travel Retail, says there is also
a growing push to cater to the elite, or so-called ―1 percent.‖
A growing demographic of people with high incomes still fly on commercial flights; with
money to spend and confinement in secure areas for hours at a time, those consumers are a
lucrative market looking for unique products. And they‘re often more interested in
exclusivity than price. (Stores NRF magazine, 2017)

Travel retail, and airport retail in particular, has been experiencing tremendous growth in the
past few years. Industry experts expect airport sales to maintain the positive trend, improving
every year to reach $100 billion in ten years, which means maintaining an annual growth rate
of around 12%. The figure is impressive – the luxury good market is expected to grow at half
the speed.

More people travel- Every year, over 1 billion people travel internationally — that is
approximately 15 percent of the global population. And with the recent upturns in the
economy, passenger numbers are expected to increase even further, especially in emerging
countries like China.

Travellers are more prone to shop while en route- There are various reasons for this
willingness to spend time and money in airports, the open-plan setup: Airports are democratic
shopping spaces – much more so than malls and high streets. In airports the differentiation
between luxury and casual brands becomes blurred. Travelers just need to enter the open-plan
stores (as airport shops have no doors) to access brands and items they may not have visited
in a more traditional setting.

Free time to browse and buy: Long waits and demands to show up in advance provide
passengers with a lot of time to spare in airports, as airports are constructed as shopping
spaces, which encourage passengers to leisurely walk around and shop during their wait.

38
Holiday atmosphere: After having passed check-ins and security controls, passengers
traveling for leisure are left in the right condition to buy items – whether to indulge
themselves, to start off or cap off their trip.

Retailers can use data insights to better cater for customers- The fixed structure of arrivals
and departures provides retailers with tremendous opportunities to offer improved customer
service. Shops in airports have the privilege of knowing in advance when their customers will
show up, where they are from and where they are heading.

Travel retailers are using this data in inventive ways. For example, World Duty Free Group in
Heathrow airport organizes its staffing and product displays basing on flight schedules. This
way passengers are welcomed by staff speaking their language and with the needed cultural
sensitivities. Products are also changed basing on which nationalities are crowding the
airport, to make sure that the right products are clearly visible to interested customers.

Products get even more visibility- Retailers have realized that travel retail provides them with
tremendous opportunities to create visibility for their products, increase customer loyalty and
recruit new customers in different countries. Airports have become an area where brands test
their possible success in new markets, basing on customers‘ nationalities and flight
destinations. Many brands also offer ―travel retail exclusive‖, special products which are only
available to travelers to entice shoppers to buy appealing to their desire for exclusive items.

Travel retail is, in many ways, different from traditional retail spaces. Brands have managed
to capitalize on the differences to tap into a very lucrative market. As travel retail is expected
to grow steadily in the next few years, brands count on some of their success in airports to
trickle down to their traditional stores, and possibly help open new, profitable markets.

(LS Retail, 2017)

39
 CHAPTER THREE

(This chapter discusses the consumer survey and studies price as a variable
at Delhi duty Free and the Domestic market further explaining the Visual
Merchandising tools that could be used by the Sales Associates.)

40
3.1. Price Comparison:
The travel retail industry has been booming with more and more people travelling by air and
hence availing the services that are being rendered at the airport. The Luxury fashion
boutiques that contribute to a total of 6% share in the total revenue of the Delhi Duty Free
Services have been studied on the basis of the price of the merchandise that they offer to the
passengers. A contrast can be seen in the price range of the merchandise at DDF with respect
to the domestic market.

Market Visits and surveys were conducted in order to explore the price of the merchandise
available at Hugo Boss (DLF Emporio) Delhi, Armani Exchange (Ambience) Delhi and
Swarovski (Ambience) Delhi. The table below shows the product categories that have
significant difference in terms of price:

Shoes- Shoes-
Shirts Polos (Rs) Trousers Formal Casual Suits (Rs)
(Rs) (Rs) (Rs) (Rs)
Hugo Boss- 7740- 7490- 10380- 23730 13200- 51820-
DDF 12000 10000 12300 17570 60000
Hugo Boss- 9000- 9000- 14500- 34500- 17000- 66500-
DLF Emporio 22500 25500 21500 42500 28000 106000

Table 1-Hugo Boss Price Comparison

Shirts T shirts Trousers Denim Shoes Belts (Rs)

(Rs) (Rs) (Rs) (Rs) (Rs)
Armani 6800- 8000-
Exchange- 5100-7000 4200-5700 5500-7100 10000 12000 4500-5500
DDF
Armani
Exchange- 3999-8999 3999-6999 7999 10000- 8999- 5000-7000
Promenade 17000 13999

Table 2-Armani Exchange Price Comparison

41
 Earrings Bracelets Pendants Watches (Rs) Heavy
(Rs) (Rs) (Rs) Necklace
(Rs)
Swarovski- 3500-12500 4830-11000 4900-9000 17000-67000 10000-24000
DDF
Swarovski- 3790-30900 4690-37900 4690-27900 16900-40000 13900-30900
Ambience

Table 3-Swarovski Price Comparison

The store of Victoria Secret at Delhi Duty Free was under renovation during the months of
June and July which proved to be a restriction while studying the price range of the products.

3.2. Visual Merchandising Techniques:-

Displaying merchandise in a store in a manner that elicits a positive image of the store, gets
customers' attention and entices them to buy. Visual merchandising is an art form of
capturing the attention of customers, as well as an art of persuasion, using visually appealing
strategies with the aim to boost profits.

A knowledge gap could be seen among the sales associates working at the airport in terms of
the internal Visual Merchandising elements. Thus in order to inculcate a clear understanding
of the subject a workshop was conducted.

The duration of the workshop was 3 hours and was conducted by presenting a presentation,
followed by a short quiz and a live practical session.

The broad internal Visual Merchandising elements that were covered during the workshop
include an in depth understanding of color, lighting, music, store layout, space organization,
signage and symbols and props. The internal Visual Merchandising elements were discussed
elaborately. Visual Merchandising tips were also provided to the associates in relation to
different internal VM elements.

Color plays a major role in luring a customer into a store. It also has the power to evoke
strong emotions and influence the way a product is perceived. Color is the first thing that is
noticed by a customer and is associated with brand recognition.

42
Visual Merchandising tips:

• Use of Color Blocking- A colour wheel is used to show the relationship between
different colours based on three primary colours - red, blue and yellow.

• In winters people prefer darker colours whereas in summer or spring people prefer
lighter colours.

• Products can be placed left to right from darkest to lightest during winter and the
reverse during summer.

• Lighter colors can also be placed on the top and the darker colors can be placed at the
bottom of the shelf.

• Subtle backdrop can be used to deviate the customer‘s attention towards the product
which is being offered for sale.

Understanding was also provided to the sales associates as to how designers play with the
different types of colors to create interesting combinations.

Pastel Shades (Spring - Summer

2018)
Monochromatic shades
(Milan Fashion Week
Trends, Fall Winter 2018,
Monochrome, Erika
Cavallini, Giorgio Armani)

43
 Colour blocking is „The‟ trend to follow this
summer!

Figure 9-Color Blocking

Figure 10- Color Blocking

Taking colors that are opposites on the

Color color wheel and pairing them together
Blocking to make interesting and complementary
color combinations.

44
 Figure 11-Merchandise Display Techniques

Lighting shapes the overall atmosphere of a store and helps draw a shopper‘s attention to a
particular item in a display. Lighting can elegantly guide the shopper to the areas of the store
that are to be highlighted.

Visual Merchandising Tips:

• The ambient lighting in a luxury store should be lower than that of regular retail
stores.

• Although the light must be strong enough to enable customers to inspect the
merchandise.

• Soft light creates an intimate, but professional mood, and suggests to shoppers that
they are in a very exclusive store catering to the discerning buyer.

• Accent lights can be used to draw attention to specialty items. These lights should be
narrow, beamed and bright.

• The beams should be focused on the main attraction and lighting intensity should be
reduced to surrounding so that the featured item will stand out sharply.

• Under-shelf lighting and display case lighting should be strong enough to ensure that
merchandise is easy to see.

• Use more light for dark colors, less light for light colors.
45
Music is one of the most common and widely known methods to create comfortable buying
atmospheres. It can evoke emotion in shoppers and improve the atmosphere in-store. Music
hits the customer as soon as they enter the store and is designed to reflect what the brand
stands for.

Visual Merchandising Tips:

• Playlists should be influenced by current trends and also include older iconic
artists.

• Music is modified to mirror the atmosphere and time of day.

• Music should stay in line with what the retailer stands for and should be
relevant to the audience.

Store Layout- The different types of Store layouts include Grid layout, racetrack layout,
Free Form Layout etc. A boutique must be in the form of a free-form layout so that the
customers could meander around the racks in the boutique with ease.

Visual Merchandising Tips:

• Smaller, round racks combined with displays should be used around the store's
perimeter which encourages continued browsing.

• Use of focal points such as mannequin displays can be used to create different
sections in the store featuring particular types of products.

• This strategy will help in avoiding cluttered displays.

• The displays should be periodically changed to keep the store interesting for
the customers and to display seasonal products.

Displays: Individual and notable physical presentation of merchandise.

Displays are intended to:

• Stimulate product interest

• Provide information

• Suggest merchandise coordination

46
 • Generate traffic flow

• Remind customers of planned purchases

• Create additional sales of impulse items

• Enhance the store‘s visual image

Merchandise Presentation: Merchandise presentation includes the ways that goods are
hung, placed on shelves, or otherwise made available for sale in retail stores.

• Shoulder-out presentation: The way most garments are hung in home closets
with only one side showing from shoulder to bottom.

• Face-forward presentation (face-out presentation): Hanging of clothing with

the front fully facing the viewer. This should always be done at entrances and
aisles.

Figure 12- Merchandise Presentation

These were the internal Visual Merchandising elements that were focused upon while
delivering the presentation. The presentation was carried forward with a quiz which included
the following questions that was structured in a manner to keep the workshop interactive
thereby brushing up the knowledge of the sales associates.

 What are your areas of concern when it comes to Visual Merchandising?

 What are the top 3 things you notice about a store after entering it?
 Name any 2 internal and external Visual Merchandising Elements.
 While selling a shirt what else can you recommend the customers to buy?

47
  Can you differentiate between summer and winter colors?
 What kind of atmosphere does a soft light create?
 Name any 2 colors that could be used together to give an effect of color blocking?
 What do you understand by cross selling?

The workshop was concluded with a video session which dealt with the easy folding
techniques of different garments. This workshop proved to be really helpful for the Sales
Associates as it provided them a better understanding of the internal Visual Merchandising
tools.

A primary research was also conducted in order to understand the buying behaviour of the
passengers shopping at Delhi Duty Free.

3.3. Sample Design:

 Sample Size: The sample size used for this research is limited to a total of 50
passengers travelling across borders of the country via the Indira Gandhi International
Airport Departure Zone Delhi.
 The confidence level is estimated to be 95%.

3.4. Sample Technique:

Probabilistic Cluster sampling technique was used in this research. Cluster sampling is
defined as a sampling technique in which the population is divided into already existing
groupings (clusters), and then a sample of the cluster is selected randomly from the
population. The term cluster refers to a natural, but heterogeneous, intact grouping of the
members of the population.

3.5. Questionnaire Design:

The following points have been taken into consideration while preparing the questionnaire:

 Factors influencing the buying behaviour of passengers in terms of luxury fashion

products at Delhi Duty Free.
 Perception of passengers with respect to Delhi Duty Free as a travel retail outlet.
 Satisfaction level in terms of offers provided by Delhi Duty Free.
 Preferred category of products that are bought by the passengers.

48
3.6. Analysis
The key findings that could be derived out of the survey are as follows:

Price
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree

10%
30%
20%

40%

Figure 13- Price of Products, Customer Satisfaction

To check the satisfaction level of the passengers in terms of the price of luxury fashion
products available at Delhi Duty Free respondents were asked the same. 30% i.e. 15
respondents strongly agree that they are satisfied with the price that is being offered at Delhi
Duty free. 40% i.e. 20 respondents agree with this statement, 20% i.e. 10 respondents were
neutral and the rest 10% i.e. 5 respondents disagree to the same.

Offers
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral

30%
40%

30%

Figure 14-Offers as a motivational factor

49
Majority of the respondents i.e. 40% strongly agree that more offers and discounts motivate
them to make a purchase at Delhi Duty Free. 30% of the respondents agree with the statement
and the ratio was same for the people who were neutral to the fact.

Services
Agree Neutral Disagree

10%

30%
60%

Figure 15- Services at DDF

60% of the respondents agree that Delhi Duty Free provides better services than the domestic
market. 30% of the respondents were neutral or indifferent towards the fact that the services
that are provided at Delhi duty Free are better than the domestic market and the rest 10%
disagree with the statement.

Good value Exciting Exclusive Economical Overpriced

10%

10% 30%

20%

30%

Figure 16- Delhi Duty Free in a word

50
The respondents were asked to describe Duty Free shopping experience in one word. 30% i.e.
15 respondents out of 50 replied that ―Good Value‖ best describes duty free shopping, yet
another 30% of the respondents replied that duty free shopping is ―Exciting‖, 20% responded
that Duty Free shopping is ―Exclusive‖, 10% of the respondents believe that duty free
shopping is ―Economical‖ and the ratio was same for the people who believe that Duty Free
is ―Overpriced‖.

Atmosphere
Strongly Agree Agree Neutral

30%

50%

20%

Figure 17- Atmosphere at DDF

50% of the respondents agree that Delhi Duty Free provides better shopping experience than
domestic brands, 30% of the respondents were neutral to the statement and 20% agreed to the
same.

51
 Products
Cosmetics Perfumes Fashion Products Confectionery Other

20% 20%

20%
30%

10%

Figure 18-Preferred Products

30% of the respondents replied that they would like to purchase perfumes at Delhi Duty Free,

20% each replied that they would be inclined to buy confectionery and cosmetics, 10% of the
respondents would like to buy luxury fashion products while the remaining 20% would buy
products falling in other categories.

3.7. Findings:
The key findings that could be drawn out of this research are:

 There is a significant difference in the price range of luxury fashion products that are
available at Delhi duty free and at the selected domestic brand outlets.
 The starting price of the products at Delhi Duty Free is comparatively low in most of
the product categories as compared to the domestic market.
 The upper price limit of the products at Delhi Duty Free is also less in terms of the
price which is being offered to the customers at the domestic market. The reason
behind this fact is that the passengers travelling via the international airport are time
bound and hence they do not often make purchases at extremely high prices as they
would have made under normal circumstances.
 Majority of the respondents believe that Delhi duty free provides a better atmosphere
for shopping than the domestic market outlets.

52
 Majority of the respondents would describe Delhi duty free in terms of ‗Good Value‘
and ‗Exciting‘ while a limited number of passengers also felt it to be a bit
‗Overpriced‘, which was specifically observed in the case of MontBlanc writing
instruments.
 When asked about their product preference at Delhi duty free majority of the
respondents replied that they would be interested to buy Confectionery, Cosmetics
and Perfumes.
 It was observed that more offers and discounts motivate the passengers to make a
purchase at Delhi duty free.

53
Chapter Four (Competitors Analysis)

54
 4.1. Changi Duty Free Services

In the year 1972 the first Concorde supersonic aircraft arrived at Singapore following this in
1975 the government made a decision to develop Changi as the new airport to replace Paya
Lebar. The year 1979 marked the birth of Changi airport after its foundation was laid for the
development of Terminal 1. Since then Changi Airport serves more than 100 airlines flying to
400 cities in around 100 countries and territories worldwide. Each week, about 7,200 flights
land or depart from Changi, or, about one every 80 seconds. The airport has won over 557
awards since its opening, including 26 "Best Airport" awards in 2017 alone. Changi Airport's
sefforts to mitigate the effects of ageing infrastructure include continual physical upgrades to
its existing terminals and building new facilities to maintain its high standards in airport
service quality.

Pricing: Contrary to common perception around the world that shops at airports are a rip-off,
this is most certainly not the case in Singapore. In fact, at Changi, the prices are cheaper than
a lot of other places in town; everything is 7% cheaper at the airport. For big ticket items such
as designer handbags, jewellery, watches and electronics – many of which are fixed-price
items – this represents substantial savings.

For the duty-free staples cosmetics, perfumes, liquor and tobacco – prices are guaranteed to
be lower than downtown Singapore or major airports in the region. In the case of beauty
products, many items are up to 40 per cent cheaper than those in the city. Hence, the common
practice among locals of stocking up on their beauty stash only when travelling.

From electronics and timepieces to fashion accessories, chocolates and beauty products,
travellers can access over 500 brands and 10,000 products via Changi‘s online shopping
portal. Designated collection points are present across all the terminals which makes picking
up the purchases easy and convenient. The shoppers can even share their wishlist with their
family and friends by using iShopChangi‘s Share a Wishlist service.

Online Presence: The travellers with ample amount of time can check-in early and go on a
terminal-hopping shopping spree to explore the full array of stores across Changi‘s four
terminals. But if the travellers are time-strapped they can shop online at iShopChangi before
the trip, and collect the products at a single collection centre before they fly. The travellers

55
can make purchases anytime from 30 days and up to 18 hours before the flight, giving them
plenty of time to work out the products they desire.

Changi Duty Free provides its customers with an easy to use interactive website that lists
down various products and offers for the customers to choose from. iShopChangi is the
official website of Changi Duty Free services that lists down the featured deals, weekly deals,
new arrivals and such offers for the customers. Here are the four reasons that are mentioned
on the website to make an individual shop at iShopChangi:

Tax & duty free shopping-Save more tax and duty free products offered by retailers on
iShopChangi.

Travel exclusive deals-Enjoy travel exclusive deals and offers available only at Changi
Airport and iShopChangi.

30 days money back guarantee-Customers who are not satisfied with their purchases at
Changi Airport or iShopChangi can return the product within 30 days for a full refund or
exchange.

Convenient online shopping-Fully optimized so that you can shop on the go or at the
comfort of your own home 30 days in advance, up to 18 hours before your flight departure.

Figure 19-Offers at iShopChangi.com

56
The image shows the offers that would be provided to the customers who make purchases at
iShopChangi.com.

Membership Cards: Discerning shoppers these days want to earn even as they shop. For
those suffering from perpetual wanderlust, earning points and converting them to travel-
related perks such as miles is a popular practice. Credit cards and airlines are not the only
ones offering frequent flyer miles. This scheme would highly benefit frequent shoppers at the
airport. This scheme would get the customers exclusive savings and rewards at more than 400
participating outlets, the customers can also get to earn points for every dollar they spend.
The points can be redeemed for Changi Dollar Vouchers which can be for spent at the airport.
The Changi Rewards programme offers three membership tiers – Platinum, Gold and
Member – featuring different rewards and privileges.

Changi Duty Free provides a number of exclusive services to the membership card holders in
the form of:

Luxury shopping experience at DFS fashion avenue- 14 Platinum members along with
their guests were cordially invited to explore the newly opened DFS Fashion Avenue. A mini
private tour aws conducted by the local actress to introduce the store offerings along with the
latest series for each brands at DFS Fashion Avenue. Guests enjoyed special shopping
privileges along with a spread of refreshments.

Changi rewards airport tour- 64 Changi Rewards members and their guests participated in
a private tour to discover more about our very own airport. Members were brought around
Changi Airport transit area to unfold a series of unique offerings, ranging from butterfly
garden to 24hours movie theatres and rooftop swimming pool. Lunch was provided where
members get to choose from a range of local delicacies at Terminal 3 Singapore Food Street.
At the end of the event, each guest went home with an exclusive goodie bag.

Changi rewards members‟ movie night – Wonder Woman- Changi Rewards organized its
third Members‘ Movie Night, with a private screening of Warner Bros. Pictures‘ Wonder
Woman. More than 90 Changi Rewards members and guests were invited to be a part this
event.

Whiskey appreciation session- During The Whiskey Festival 2017, 24 Changi Rewards
members and their guests were invited to join in a Whiskey Appreciation session with
Charles MacLean, the official ambassador of The Whiskey Festival 2017. An interactive

57
session was conducted as Charles MacLean shared his extensive knowledge and passion for
whiskey while members got to taste DFS limited edition whiskies as well as gain a new
understanding of whiskies. Each tasting was accompanied by food pairing for a better
whiskey appreciation experience.

58
 4.2. Heathrow Airport (World Duty Free)

Heathrow Airport originated in 1929 as a small airfield on land south-east of the hamlet
of Heathrow from which the airport takes its name. Heathrow Airport is a major international
airport in London, United Kingdom. Heathrow is the second busiest airport in the world by
international passenger traffic, as well as the busiest airport in Europe by passenger traffic,
and the sixth busiest airport in the world by total passenger traffic. Total size of London
Heathrow Airport is 1,227 hectares with 2 runways.

Figure 20- World Duty Free Official website

World Duty Free aims to offer the ultimate airport shopping experience. As the UK's leading
travel retailer it features over 17,000 products across its airport stores and aims to bring for
the customers latest products at great value prices.

World Duty Free's unparalleled premium selection of products ranges from cosmetics to
confectionery, fragrances to fashion accessories, spirits to souvenirs, skincare to sunglasses,
fine foods to fine wines, and champagne to cigars and tobacco.
The London Heathrow Duty Free provides a number of services to the passengers in order to
keep them engaged. These services are in the form of:

59
Reserve Collect: Reserve & Collect is a free service available to all passengers which allow
the customers to browse and reserve the selection of products and the stores will have it ready
to collect when the passengers visit the store. This service allows the customers to:

 Browse the range of products and brands available at Heathrow.

 Add the items they want to their basket and submit the request.
 They will receive confirmation of price and availability of their reservation request.
 When the passengers arrive at Heathrow they can simply visit the store where they
have made the reservation to collect and pay for their shopping.

Plus, Heathrow Rewards members collect an extra 100 points and Heathrow Rewards
Premium members collect an extra 150 points whenever they use the service.

Personal Shopper: Heathrow offers its passengers a complementary stylist-trained shopping

assistance. The team members at the airport have international knowledge and can also offer
the facility of providing assistance in many different languages. This facility could be availed
by:

The customers could fill up a booking form 48 hours prior to the travel for an appointment
with an accredited stylist.

The team at Heathrow contacts the customers to discuss what they are looking for, their
budget and the time available to them.

The Personal Shopper will arrange where to meet the customer after security and the contact
details of the same will also be shared with the customers.

The personal shopper will prepare a shopping plan to make the most of the time of the
customers.

Collect On Return: While travelling within the UK or EU passengers can use free Shop &
Collect service to buy in store they depart - then pick up purchases from a convenient
collection point on their return. This would reduce their concern of lugging everything along
on their travels.

Store staff will make the arrangements and a customer‘s purchases will be waiting for him at
arrivals when they come back. Shop & Collect is available at all shops in the departure
lounge at Heathrow.

60
Home Delivery: The passengers could have their purchases delivered to any UK mainland
residential address; FREE when they spend £300 or more and their Heathrow Rewards card
(or £500 for non-members).

Whether the passengers have forgotten a last-minute gift or just want to take advantage of
great Heathrow prices without the baggage, the passengers could let the staff know the
delivery details when they make the purchase and the products would be delivered at their
doorsteps.

Shoppers Promise: Heathrow Shoppers Promise enables the passengers to shop with total
confidence knowing that if they change their mind, they can return the product within 60 days
and the stores at Heathrow guarantee a full refund in accordance with their terms and
conditions. As part of the Heathrow Shopper Promise, Heathrow will also arrange for the
product to be returned to the relevant retailer on the passenger‘s behalf if there is a fault.

Heathrow Duty Free also known as World Duty Free offers a selection from a diverse range
of product categories to its passengers.

World Duty Free enjoys the presence of brands like Hugo Boss, Dior, Dolce & Gabbana,
Gucci, Hermes, Paul Smith, Ralph Lauren and many more.

61
 4.3. Dubai Duty Free

Founded in 1983, Dubai Duty Free recorded first-year sales of US$20 million and has grown
into one of the biggest travel retail operator in the world with sales turnover of US$1.93
billion in 2017. Dubai Duty Free currently operates some 36,000sqm of retail space at Dubai
International Airport and 2,500 sqm at Al Maktoum International. To date, Dubai Duty Free
has received 600 awards including the Frontier Awards for ‗Airport Retailer of the Year in
Single Location‘, which was won by the operation for the eighth time.

In addition to its retail operation, Dubai Duty Free operates a Leisure Division which
includes The Irish Village, both in Garhoud and Riverland Dubai, The Century Village,
Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium and The Jumeirah Creekside Hotel. While the successful
running of the shop floor is a major focus for Dubai Duty Free, the operation is highly
committed to promoting Dubai through a series of high level sporting events including the
Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, Dubai Duty Free Irish Open and Dubai Duty Free
Irish Derby.

Recent Developments: Dubai Duty Free has achieved new retail developments in 2017
which include adding around 2,000sqm of retail space in the Passenger Terminal building
(PTB) of Al Maktoum International Airport (AMIA). Additionally, Dubai Duty Free opened
a 350sqm retail shop in Riverland Dubai at Dubai Parks and Resorts on 30th October 2017.
Other ongoing developments include the expansion of the warehouse automated system. The
expansion will be able to achieve an additional storage capacity by over 25% for perfumes
and cosmetics category.

Dubai Duty Free provides exclusive offers to the passengers to keep them engaged and
motivated.

Offers and Discounts: Dubai Duty Free marked its 34th anniversary as it welcomed
passengers travelling through Dubai with a special 25% discount on a wide range of
merchandise over three days which began at midnight on 18th December and continued until
the operation‘s anniversary day on 20th December. Total sales for the three days reached
Dhs196 million (US$54 million).

Sports Initiatives: Whether it is on the golfing green, the tennis courts and the racecourse,
sponsorship and the support of international events has been an integral part of Dubai Duty

62
Free‘s marketing strategy since 1983. A supporter of golf for many years, Dubai Duty Free
hosts a series of high-profile golf tournaments, including the annual Dubai Duty Free Golf
World Cup, Dubai Duty Free UAE Nationals Cup, Dubai Duty Free Golf Cup and Dubai
Irish Golf Society tournament.
Away from the golfing fairways, the firm tennis favourite with UAE tennis fans and a global
TV audience is the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, owned and organised by Dubai
Duty Free.
International horse racing has provided an excellent medium for Dubai Duty Free to capture
the global media attention and the Dubai Duty Free Stakes in the UK in April, the Dubai
Duty Free Shergar Cup (Ascot) in August, the Dubai Duty Free International Raceday in
September are part of the operation‘s racing sponsorship in the UK.
By supporting so many events at the highest level and all around the globe, Dubai Duty Free
is effectively promoting Dubai‘s sporting, leisure and business facilities, which are second to
none.

Dubai Duty Free Foundation: In October 2004, Dubai Duty Free launched the Dubai Duty
Free Foundation, a charitable body founded under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh
Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and Chairman
of Dubai Duty Free, and with Colm McLoughlin as Chairman of the board. The Foundation,
which aims to raise funds for worthy causes with a particular emphasis on causes that directly
benefit children, has since donated funds to several charities, both at home and abroad.

The Foundation also assisted to restore eyesight to 800,868 people in India through the Sight
Savers Programme and has built houses for those affected by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami

Meanwhile, as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility programme, Dubai Duty Free also
encourages its 6,000 staff members to recycle plastic waste and turn it into useful products
through its Plastic Recycling Drive, and therefore collectively focusing on the 4R‘s: Reduce,
Re-use, Reinvent and Recycle.

To date, the Foundation has supported 40 local and 53 overseas charities since 2004, a clear
indication of Dubai Duty Free‘s ongoing commitment to the community.

63
Events conducted by Dubai Duty Free:

The dubai duty free irish derby festival: Dubai Duty Free, title sponsor of the ―Dubai Duty
Free Irish Derby‖ now on its eleventh year, is one of Ireland's greatest international race
weekends of the year, with the world's finest Thoroughbreds competing for one of the
ultimate prizes in the Irish sport. This event was held in the month of June.

The world‘s leading airport retailer sponsored six of the eight races on the card including the
flagship race. This three-day racing festival promises a spectacle of fashion, entertainment,
music and the finest racing. It is unrivalled in its prestige and tradition and is most definitely
the social occasion of the year.

Figure 21-Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby

10th emirates airline festival of literature: Held in the month of March Dubai Duty Free is
one of the sponsors of the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature which is the Middle East‘s
largest celebration of the written and spoken word, bringing people of all ages, nationalities
and backgrounds together with authors from around the world to promote education, debate
and, above all, a love of reading and writing, in a celebratory and enjoyable way.

The LitFest, as it has become known, will bring, among others, a fantastic cast of authors,
writers and speakers from numerous countries who will cover a wide range of subjects, styles
and genres. It provides the chance to attend literary discussions, listen to readings, participate
in workshops, and experience the exciting Fringe and children‘s events.

64
Dubai Duty Free Literature Festival

Dubai creek Golf and Yatch Club: The tournament grew quite popular among the Golfers
in Dubai and has huge turnouts every year. The 24rd edition boasted an impressive field of 97
players which was won by former Dubai Creek Club Captain, Patrick Marrow who scored a
superb total of 44 Stableford points.

The annual Dubai Duty Free Golf Cup has been running for 25 years and is conducted at
Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club.

Figure 22-Dubai Creek Golf and Yatch club winner

Dubai Summer Surprises

Dubai Duty Free is a strategic partner of an event under the name Dubai Summer Surprises
(DSS). It was launched in 1998 to position Dubai as an international summer destination. The
festival is one of the highlights of the city‘s summer calendar with GCC residents and other

65
tourists flocking to the city, looking for bargains in over 6,000 stores that are participating in
this annual event.

This festival is also heavily geared towards families with each mall undertaking a programme
of events for children of all ages. In addition to the shopping bonanza, a part of Dubai
Summer Surprises has nothing to do with shopping and everything to do with fun!

Figure 23-Dubai Summer Surprises

Many such events are held each year with the active partnership of Dubai Duty Free for the
passengers availing the services at the Dubai International Airport.

66
 4.4. Delhi Duty Free

Online Presence- Delhi Duty Free has an online presence which lets the passengers browse
the products they would like to purchase before actually buying the products. This offer is
mostly restricted to the purchase of Cosmetics, Perfumes, Liquor, Confectionery, Destination
products and travel retail exclusives.

Figure 24-Delhi Duty Free- Online Portal

The website highlights deals of the month, fresh arrivals, top sellers and travel retail
exclusives, thereby offering the passengers with the facility of Shop and Collect.

67
Figure 25- Social Media Marketing

Delhi Duty Free has an active Instagram page which lists the upcoming offers for the
customers to keep them updated.

Figure 26-Shop and Collect

Shop n Collect: This service is perfect for the travellers who want to travel light and take
advantage of the amazing limited period special offers. It‘s a free service which the travellers
can simply use by contacting the retail team members at DDFS departure highlighting the

68
products they want and paying for the same. The goods will be securely stored, transferred to
arrival and while arriving one can conveniently pick up their goods from the dedicated shop n
collect counter at arrival store. Customers get an additional 5-10% discount when they pre-
book the products.

Offers- The on-going offers at the store was in the form of discounts that were provided to
the passengers by giving them voucher coupons issued to the customer after making a
purchase. Under the current offer scheme of Duty Free Delights if a customer shops between
the price range of Rs6500-Rs13499 he is liable to get a discount voucher of 5%, if he shops
for Rs13500-Rs23499 he gets a discount voucher of 10% whereas if he shops for Rs23500 or
above the customer would get a discount voucher of 15%. These vouchers could be redeemed
at the time of the next purchase and is valid for any product category while shopping at Duty
Free stores.

Figure 27-Offers at Delhi Duty Free

Events conducted by Delhi Duty Free

Delhi Duty Free funds school and skills centre in India- Delhi Duty Free has announced a
corporate social responsibility project in which it is developing a school and skills centre for
children with mental and physical challenges. The Delhi Duty Free- funded school and skills
centre will both be located in the state of Uttrakhand, and are the first of their kind in the
area.

A residential school for children of all abilities in Uttrakhand currently houses 70 young
people.

69
The skills centre will enable children to develop skills which will help them to earn their own
livelihoods and to reintegrate with their families. Skills taught at the centre range from candle
making, beauty services and IT to the production of garments using a range of sewing and
knitting machines. As part of its corporate social responsibility programme, Delhi Duty Free
has also worked with the Himalayan School Society. It established the Him Jyoti School in
Dehradun, Uttrakhand, which provides free boarding school education to high academically
achieving girls from impoverished local families. (Holland, 2018)

70
Chapter Five: Suggestions and Conclusion

71
 5.1. Suggestions
Based on the above study the following suggestions could be drawn out that could be helpful
for Delhi Duty Free:

Membership Cards: The facility of membership cards could be provided to the

customers by Delhi Duty Free. This step would be helpful in gaining loyal customers for the
company. The organization would also be able to track the number of customers returning
back to shop at the stores. Similarly offers could also be provided to the customers based on
their shopping frequency.

Offers and Discounts: It was observed that more offers and discounts attract more
customers towards the store and hence incentives should be provided to the passengers to
keep them motivated in the form of new schemes.

More product categories online: Steps could be taken to strengthen the online
presence of the store. The online store of the Delhi Duty Free is restricted to a stipulated
amount of product categories whereas the other online stores of the key competitors are more
user friendly and provide more product choices to the passengers.

Inclusion of Fashion Luxury Products at the website: The online website of

Delhi Duty Free does not allow the customers to browse the fashion apparel products. This
facility could be provided to the passengers so that they could easily browse and select the
products that they would like to buy before actually visiting the store. This step should be
helpful in increasing the sale of the fashion apparel products at DDF.

Strong online presence: Steps should be taken to make the customers aware about the
online presence of the store and further the passengers should be motivated by providing
exciting offers if they browse and pre book the products online. Further reasons could also be
listed at the official website for the people to shop at Delhi Duty Free.

Social Media Bloggers: Social media bloggers are on a rise, Delhi Duty Free can work
upon this factor at its advantage by contacting the travel bloggers who could promote the
merchandise being offered at the store while travelling to different countries. This would
motivate the passengers following these opinion leaders to do the same, thereby increasing
the awareness and social media visibility of the brand. For example travel bloggers like the

72
Bruised Passports who travel very often could be contacted to promote the products at Delhi
Duty Free.

Figure 28- Social Media Marketing through Bloggers

The reason behind this marketing suggestion is to increase the awareness of the brand and
further to increase the sales of the luxury fashion products.

Events- Special events could also be conducted by the organization for the passengers as
well as for the loyal customers of the company. This measure would make the customers feel
valued and promote the practice of customer acquisition and retention. These events can be in
the form of movie nights and similar events for the loyal customers.

73
 5.2. Conclusion

The sky is not the limit for travel retail which is growing at an enormous rate and so are the
opportunities associated with the entry of luxury fashion brands at the airport. In this project
titled ‗Understanding the travel retail market with an emphasis on the luxury fashion brands
at Delhi duty Free‘, an attempt has been made to gather the perception of the customers
shopping at Delhi duty Free. Further to understand the offers that are provided by the key
competitors of the company a secondary research was also conducted which was useful in
suggesting some changes that could be adopted by Delhi Duty Free to attract more customer
attention.

Through this research it can be concluded that with the rise in the number of people travelling
every year, more and more people are gravitated towards duty free stores that are located at
the airports. The passengers travelling to different destinations are time bound and hence they
are not able to spend much time at the stores, to ease this issue duty free stores have increased
their reach by opening up various online portals which lets the customers browse the products
before hand and make the actual purchase when they land up at the airport.

The travellers are motivated to make a purchase when they are offered attractive offers by the
duty free stores. The duty free stores having a presence at the Dubai, London and Singapore
conduct events for their loyal customers and have emerged as strong shopping destinations in
the travel retail market. The constant renovation and the ease of shopping that is provided to
the customers by these shopping destinations also plays a major role in creating loyalty
among the customers towards Duty Free stores.

Delhi Duty Free has grown to become India‘s largest travel retail market, with constant
innovation the company could reach exceptional heights by fulfilling its vision of providing
best shopping experience to the customers. A small step to achieve this could be in the form
of creating a strong online base thereby increasing its visibility and attracting prospective
customers.

74
References

ATKearney. (2011, December). Airport shopping takes of. Retrieved June 2018, from ATKearney:
http://www.atkearney.in/consumer-products-retail/ideas-insights/article

Avery, A. (2017). WHAT IS IN-STORE FOR AIRPORT RETAIL? Retrieved June 2018, from Airport world:
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retail.html

Dubai Duty Free. (n.d.). Events. Retrieved July 11, 2018, from Dubai Duty Free:
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Cup-%E2%80%93-Dubai-Creek-Golf-Yacht-Club

Holland, J. (2018, March). Delhi Duty Free funds school and skills centre in India. Retrieved July 16,
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Appendix- Questionnaire

1. ―I am satisfied with the price of the luxury fashion apparel products available at Delhi
Duty Free‖. Do you:
a. Strongly agree
b. Agree
c. Neutral
d. Disagree
e. Strongly disagree
2. ―Offers and Discounts motivate me to make a purchase at Delhi Duty Free‖. Do you:
a. Strongly agree
b. Agree
c. Neutral
d. Disagree
e. Strongly Disagree
3. ―Delhi Duty free provides better services than the Domestic Market‖. Do you:
a. Strongly agree
b. Agree
c. Neutral
d. Disagree
e. Strongly disagree
4. Describe Delhi Duty Free in a word:
a. Economical
b. Overpriced
c. Exclusive
d. Exciting
e. Good Value
5. ―Delhi Duty free provides a better atmosphere and experience than the domestic
brands‖. Do you:
a. Strongly agree
b. Agree
c. Neutral
d. Disagree

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 e. Strongly Disagree
6. What is your preferred category of products available at Delhi Duty Free?
a. Confectionery
b. Cosmetics
c. Perfumes
d. Fashion products
e. Other

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