Driving Growth for a Duty-Free Retailer at a European Airport

Urgent pain: The retailer faced immediate risk of missed revenue because product mix, pricing/value messaging and the in‑store experience were not proven to resonate with U.S. international travelers.

As a duty‑free retailer operating at a major European airport, the client needed to understand U.S. travelers’ motivations, needs and purchase triggers for in‑airport food, cultural items and duty‑free goods. The research brief included MRS to focus on what specifically drives purchases so assortment, pricing and service could be tailored.

The stakes were clear: capture growing luxury and duty‑free spending, avoid lost sales from poorly targeted assortments and messaging, and create memorable retail experiences that drive purchases and repeat business.

Core question: How should the retailer change product assortment, pricing/value messaging and the in‑store experience to make duty‑free, food and cultural offerings more relevant and compelling to U.S. international travelers—and thereby increase relevance and sales among this high‑value segment?

Differentiator: The inclusion of in-market shopper analysis at the airport set the approach apart, directly observing American international passengers in the travel retail environment alongside interviews and surveys.

Process (sequential):

1. Program design: Set an 8-week research program focused on American international passengers.
2. Fieldwork: Conducted qualitative interviews, administered quantitative surveys and executed in-market shopper analysis at the airport.
3. Analysis: Profiled consumer segments and mapped shopping behaviors.
4. Assessment: Evaluated product and price expectations across mass and luxury tiers and identified service & experience drivers specific to travel retail.
5. Delivery: Compiled findings and recommendations for client use.

Methods & tools: Mixed-methods market research — quantitative surveys, qualitative interviews, in-market shopper analysis; outputs included segment profiles, behavior maps and expectation assessments.

FAQ — Quick answers: Our role: SIS led design, fieldwork and analysis. Steps involved: design → fieldwork → analysis → delivery. Timeline: 8-week program. Methodologies: interviews, surveys, in-market shopper analysis, segment profiling, behavior mapping, price/product and experience assessment.

Outcome: Actionable intelligence used to refine assortment, pricing and in-store messaging for U.S. traveler shoppers.

1. Key findings: clear segmentation into two shopper groups and differing buying habits
2. Passenger expectations for value and price ranges in mass and luxury categories
3. Perceptions of airport customer service and preferences for origin/quality of goods
4. Product categories most likely to trigger impulse purchases
5. Value-focused messages identified as the most effective purchase drivers

Business impact: These insights enabled the retailer to prioritize SKUs, adjust price/value communications, and design in-store experience improvements to better capture traveler spend — helping decision-makers focus merchandising, marketing and inventory decisions where they will drive the most return.

Credibility: The client implemented the recommendations to inform assortment and messaging decisions (anonymized client use).

Forward-looking benefit: The work enables faster merchandising iterations, improved shopper insights savings and more efficient testing cycles — and supports ongoing improvements in mobile survey turnaround time for future programs.