Digital Airport Commerce Ecosystem: A Whitepaper Analysis

This whitepaper examines the digital airport commerce ecosystem, focusing on how airports, airlines, and travel retailers can leverage digitalization to combat declining revenues and evolving passenger behavior. It addresses the challenges facing the travel retail industry, including changing consumer habits and the rise of e-commerce, and proposes a collaborative approach to create a digital ecosystem. The paper details the benefits for all stakeholders, including increased non-aviation revenue, improved customer engagement, and enhanced shopping experiences. It explores key elements of a successful digital ecosystem, such as online platforms, digital business models, and the importance of collaboration. The whitepaper also analyzes the decline in traditional travel retail, the importance of online touchpoints, and the limitations of current Reserve & Collect solutions, and suggests strategies for improvement. The paper emphasizes the need for airports and retailers to adapt to the digital age to remain competitive and capitalize on future opportunities.

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The Digital Airport Commerce Ecosystem: How Airports
Airlines and Travel Retail can benefit from Digitalizatio
This whitepaper describes how stakeholders
in the travel retail industry – airports, airlines,
brands and duty-free operators – can benefit
from digitalization and how they can begin their
journey on the way to a digital airport commerce
ecosystem.
Management Summary
Airports, airlines and travel retail operators are currently facing
unparalleled challenges, both in the way they do business as well as
in the aviation industry itself. Rapidly changing purchasing behavior
by customers, the evolving E-Commerce industry and digitalization are
disrupting traditional revenue streams and business models of airports
and airlines.
The passenger’s buying behavior has fundamentally changed. Research
shows that traditional travel retail is being challenged and major growth
is unlikely. Digitalization is a threat for all key players in the aviation
industry, should they choose not to change anything. However, airports,
airlines and travel retailers can also embrace digitalization and view it
as an enormous opportunity to find new ways to generate core non-
aviation revenues. To achieve this though, they will need to collaborate
and create a digital airport commerce ecosystem together. The result:
A win-win situation for all stakeholders.
Airports have several competitive advantages when utilizing
E-Commerce that can help them gain the pole position in omnichannel
retailing. To create a digital airport commerce ecosystem and an online
platform, the key players in aviation need full management support,
a skilled team with a digital attitude, value-creating digital business
models, enabling legal contracts and high-performance, scalable IT.
This whitepaper shows the benefits of a digital airport commerce eco-
system for all aviation industry stakeholders and explains approaches
and use cases for a successful collaborative digital business, such as a
“Quaternity of Travel Retail”, which will transform current problems into
future opportunities.
Management Summary
Chapter I: The decline in Travel Retail –
and how to stem the tide
Chapter II: Why a digital airport commerce
ecosystem is beneficial for all stakeholders
Chapter III: Key elements of a digital airport
commerce ecosystem
Chapter IV: Establishing the digital airport
commerce ecosystem
TABLE OF CONTENTS
WHITEPAPER: THE DIGITAL AIRPORT COMMERCE ECOSYSTEM
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The new Quaternity of Non-Aviation Revenues.

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Chapter I: The decline in Travel Retail – and how to stem the tide
Kian Gould, CEO & founder of AOE, at Global Retailing
Conference: “Digitalizing the Global Travel Retail World”
Presentation Video: http://l.aoe.com/DigitalizingGTRW
Presentation Slides: http://l.aoe.com/GRCslides
The travel retail industry has been undergoing major changes in recent years.
Declining per passenger spend – despite steadily increasing passenger numbers,
changed purchasing behavior and the omnipresence of smartphones – are just a
few factors that are forcing airports, airlines, travel retailers and brands to rethink
their business models.
Landing fees as well as fuel and other operational charges are steadily increasing
and being challenged by airlines, thereby increasing the dependence on non-
aviation revenues for both airports and airlines. Sustainable financial viability is
seriously threatened and represents an ever-present strategic challenge.
Non-aviation revenue is the most important financial source of income for airports
today. On a global basis, approximately 50% of total revenues are from non-
aviation sources making these revenues the most important financial pillar of
airports. Accordingly, non-aviation is one of the most important strategic areas for
the future.
Region
Non-Aviation
Revenues as a %
of Total Revenues
Aviation
Revenues as a %
of Total Revenues
Europe <10m pax
Europe 10m~30m pax
Europe >30m pax
52%
48%
43%
48%
52%
57%
Global average 49% 51%
Asia Pacific <10m pax
Asia Pacific 10m~30m pax
Asia Pacific >30m pax
45%
41%
52%
55%
59%
48%
Americas <10m pax
Americas 10m~30m pax
Americas >30m pax
53%
58%
56%
47%
42%
44%
Global <10m pax
Global 10m~30m pax
Global >30m pax
50%
48%
48%
50%
52%
52%
On a global basis, approximately 49% of total airport revenues came from non-aviation sources. Source: Moodie
International and The S-A-P Group, 2015
In chapter I, we showcase the decline in Travel Retail and explain how Airports, Airlines, Brands and Retailers can deal wit
situation and find ways to benefit from digitalization.
Presentation Video:
Digitalizing the
global travel retail
world

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“Despite the challenges facing the industry, there are solutions to han
this disruption. This new reality also offers numerous opportunities to
only survive but also thrive in the rapidly changing business environm
Kian Gould
CEO & Founder
AOE
These, and other, changes will continue to affect the airport commerce
ecosystem for years to come. Therefore, airports need to be innovative
in creating their new non-aviation revenue streams. Travelers are
increasingly predisposed to spending more of their money online,
thereby leaving less for airport shopping. Airports and airlines need to
Changing passenger behavior: The disruption of non-aviation revenues
Market share development by Channel
Aiport Shops
Airlines
Ferries
Other Shops & Sales
2015
57.3%
4,3%
3,3%
35,1%
2016
56.2%
3,9%
3,2%
36,8%
2017
55,8%
3,8%
3,2%
37,2%
Loss | Gain
i 2,6%
i 11,0%
i 3,4%
 5,9%
AMERICAS
$11.3 bn
SPH 11,5%
EUROPE
$20 bn
SPH 8,1%
AFRICA
$0.8 bn
SPH 1,8%
MIDDLE EAST
$5.9 bn
SPH 13,5%
ASIA PACIFIC
$30.6 bn
SPH
 5,3%
The 68.5 billion USD (2017) global Travel Retail Market is contracting,
Spent per Head (SPH) is decreasing. Source: TFWA, IATA, ACI
Aviation passengers’ behavior is changing.
In the past, passengers entering an airport
were usually enthusiastic. Flying was new and
exciting. Strolling and exploring, overwhelmed
by all the impressions. Many were at a major
airport for the first time. This has changed
significantly. Low cost carriers have made
flying affordable for a much broader spectrum
of passengers, the number of frequent business
travelers is booming across the globe.
Observing passengers at airports nowadays,
one realizes that their behavior there is
similar to behavior elsewhere: always on their
smartphones, except at check-in, security and
boarding. Physical animation and interaction
has therefore become a significant challenge.
Looking at the statistics during the past
years, the travel retail market has stagnated.
Propensity to spend is dropping continuously,
because shopping has become easier online
– coupled with free returns, easy and speedy
deliveries, increasing brand presence and
direct marketing on B2C channels on mobile.
Online players such as Amazon and Alibaba
with their strong global presence have become
direct competitors for travel retailers.
2015 - 2017
be present on those digital channels where their passengers are, if they
wish to stand a chance at improving retail revenues and winning back
the business of digital passengers. This disruption is well underway;
major airports and airlines have already begun to digitalize their
businesses dramatically.

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Planned buying becomes increasingly important
As the numbers show, providing passengers with features to simplify planned buying is becoming increasingly important. Based on a recent global
survey with high-income travelers, the share of pre-planned purchases is even higher than the share for all customers, (71%, with only 29% being
impulse purchases). Moreover, Asian passengers show a high preference towards planned purchasing. In fact, they are the highest spenders at most
airports worldwide and appear to plan almost their entire spending beforehand. Two reasons for this are the language barrier and lack of familiarity.
Importance of making
in-store experience unique
In the Duty Free shopAt the airportOn the way to the airport
At home before
leaving for the airport
At destination before
leaving for the airport
Importance of offering a properly
planned shopping experience digitally
After browsing
After getting advice
from sales staff
After buying
another category
32%
13%
7% 13%
29%
4%
2%
Moments of decision of duty free purchases. Source: m1nd-set
Planned buying is becoming increasingly important, particularly for Asian passengers. Source: m1nd-set Research
Travel retail stagnates, while airport duty free points downwards
According to the latest survey conducted by m1nd-set, based on 50,000 passengers at twelve global airport hubs, there clearly is a change in
passenger buying behavior. The only growth is happening in Asia-Pacific, which is merely driven by downtown duty free and specialty stores instead
of airport and airline shopping, and by a stronger growth in passenger numbers, but not by increases in spend (Statistics conducted by retailers tend
to differ slightly, but that is due to those surveys usually being conducted in-store, therefore excluding the more than 70% who had not shopped
during the journey).
Pre-planned shopping is increasingly becoming the norm as more people
fly more frequently and are therefore more aware of the limited time
and opportunities they have available at the airport. Limited time also
correlates to higher stress, as does worry about stock availability, price,
size of packaging, delivery, etc. For this very reason, more people are
choosing to begin their search for products online, not in-store. These
passengers don’t want to browse through stores anymore, they want to
complete their entire shopping online from the comfort of their home
with an engaging and user-friendly digital airport marketplace solution.
Passengers with the highest net worth income tend to correlate with
top-tier airline frequent flyer or loyalty members, and they choose to
spend their time in lounges as opposed to shopping. These are the very
people who would much rather have the digital tools at their disposal to
search, browse and order from the comfort of their seat, on their device
with seamless fulfillment and payment across the entire ecosystem.
89%
89%
85%
PLANNED IN ADVANCE BOUGHT ON IMPULSE
32%
30%
81% 19%

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47%
14%
8%
7%
7%
Search Online / Buy Online
Search Online / Buy In-Store
Search Online and In-Store / Buy In-Store
Search Online and In-Store / Buy Online
Search In-Store / Buy Online
79% of today’s purchasing
methods involve Online Search
Source: Gartner
The need for extension of the golden hour. Source: m1nd-set
Many airports and travel retailers have converged upon a Reserve & Collect solution as the panacea for traveler pre-engagement as well as growth
in retail revenues. However, conversion numbers have been underwhelming. For Reserve & Collect models, the average pick-up rate is below 50%,
conversion rates are less than one percent. Compared to figures from E-Commerce merchants, these figures are below average, which, given the limited
opportunities offered by Reserve & Collect, is not really surprising. These figures can be easily improved by introducing additional convenient services.
For example, the introduction of online payment leads to a significantly higher pick-up rate of around 95%. With reasonable use cases and personalized
offers, conversion rates of five percent are quite realistic.
In addition, there are a variety of other reasons for the limited results of Reserve & Collect solutions:
How airports and retailers responded with the Reserve & Collect approach
■ One reason for this is that Reserve & Collect usually presents only the typical duty-free product portfolio such as perfumes
and liquors. Passengers, however, are interested in a much broader range of products and are highly diversified according to
passenger groups. In particular, luxury goods and products that are more expensive or unavailable in passengers’ countries
of origin are of particular interest to passengers.
■ Passengers need to be made aware of the Reserve & Collect models, i.e. money needs to be spent on customer acquisition
and promotions.
■ Shopping and transaction tools need to be secure and seamless.
■ Then consider why would passengers reserve products that they can buy spontaneously at the airport, such as perfumes,
cosmetics or liquor? The problem is that this is all that Reserve & Collect platforms are offering.
■ Last but not the least, most of these platforms are not marketplaces and are brand or retailer-driven, which inherently makes
them undiscoverable in the vast universe of shopping apps.
On DF visitors visit the
DF shop on impulse
Make the decision
to buy in DF before
arriving at the
airport
Book their
flight directly
online
Go online while at the airport
24% search info about DF
Find mobile check-in
to be the most
convenient
Search for / see information
about DF shopping Online
Would like to do online DF
shopping before the trip
Motivated to visit DF if receive
offers/coupons on their smartphone
PRE-TRIP ONLINE
TOUCH POINTS
AIRPORT ONLINE
TOUCH POINTS

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Chapter II: Why a digital airport ecosystem is beneficial for all stakeho
Let’s face it: The days when duty-free alcohol and perfumes were offered to all passengers at unbeatable prices are over. Passengers today have
different expectations of travel retail shops and, above all, they are interested in other goods, especially electronics and premium products. Nowadays,
researching, shopping and paying online 24/7 is standard for passengers. To meet their expectations, tailor-made product promotions must be offered
on a smart platform that enables cross-selling and upselling of products and services of all integrated shops and service providers.
It’s becoming increasingly important to know your customers and their
needs, and to present suitable offers. Business travelers and frequent
flyers have different needs than tourists; travelers from Asia or the
Middle East have different requirements than travelers from Europe
or the Americas. The acquisition and evaluation of customer data only
works via digital platforms, especially in connection with a loyalty
program. Providers can offer loyalty members special conditions and
services such as one-click fast-track booking or lounge access via
loyalty points. Prequalified personalized marketing to existing loyalty
members is convenient for passengers and has high conversion rates. In
addition, non-loyalty customers can be shown suitable offers based on
demographic data such as age, gender, country of origin, etc.
Targeted marketing
to known customers
A key aspect for the development of a digital airport marketplace is the
consolidation of all digital products and services on one platform. When
all stakeholders such as airports, airlines, retailers and brands offer their
own digital solutions, customers face a wide variety of E-Commerce
platforms. Only very few platforms are noticed by passengers, and
even less are actively used. The redundant costs for operating and
marketing these digital solutions are not even considered. A shared
digital marketplace has the advantage that passengers only have to
register once and then have access to all products and services from all
providers.
All products and services
consolidated in one marketplace
Participation
In the international
E-commerce growth
Customer Information
Airports/Airlines know much
more about passengers than
most retailers do
Customer Excellence
Attractive digital offers and
services form a unique
customer experience
Integrated Advertising
Via Wifi, Smart-Panels and
InfoTerminals offer unique
abilities
Digital Devices
Create new transaction and
communication channels
Digitalization
Of the travel journey creates
new touchpoints
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The Digital Airport Commerce Ecosystem: Seamless customer experience at all key players. Source: AOE
In chapter II, we explain the benefits of a digital marketplace for all stakeholders of the “Quaternity” and show some use
from existing airport solutions.

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In addition, the premium products and tailor-made promotions must
be offered to passengers at relevant touch points. In order to generate
sufficient traffic and meet passengers at the right time at the point of
sale, the relevant sales channels need to be utilized more efficiently.
For airports, for example, partnerships with airlines and booking portals
such as booking.com or C-Trip make sense when offering travelers
airport services such as Fast Track or VIP services during flight booking
or in an aircraft – via API commerce in the partners’ channel – without
acting directly as the airport.
Set-up of partnerships
for API commerce and relevant traffic
Premium Product Range
with cross- and up-selling
An important factor for successful digital commerce is a suitable and
attractive product range. Passengers use airport E-Commerce platforms
primarily to gain access to the entire range of luxury and high-end
products such as jewelry, handbags, leather accessories, watches,
laptops, cameras and noise-cancelling headphones. One reason for this
is that these are the categories where scarcity is a real concern for global
shoppers. Accordingly, an attractive product range with a focus on
electronics, luxury- and premium articles is highly effective in meeting
passenger needs. This approach is also ideal for targeting advertising
and marketing efforts. Sophisticated digital platforms enable brands and
retailers to offer targeted products and convenient cross- and upselling.
It is therefore obvious that a more holistic, end-to-end solution is necessary if airlines, airports and retailers want to engage travelers digitally and
convert them into shoppers directly at the airport. A seamless retail experience within the entire travel ecosystem (from airline to brand to airport)
needs to be digitally facilitated if the true retail value of a customer’s journey is going to be unlocked. Benefits for the Stakeholders include:
The benefits of a holistic digital airport commerce ecosystem
Airports Airlines Brands & Retailers
Own digital marketplace with a
wide range of products
Additional traffic and revenue
generation
Use of additional sales channels via
API commerce (white label sales
of own products and services on
external channels)
Seamless digital customer
experience
Larger product range in own
channels
Personalized marketing
Offer of airport services and thus
additional revenue generation
Digital Customer Experience
Monetization of customer data
Additional sales channel
Personalized shop offers to suitable
target groups
Sale of premium products
More traffic generation and
increased conversion rates
Convenient cross- and upselling
Benefits of a holistic digital airport commerce ecosystem for all stakeholders. Source: AOE

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If all stakeholders collaborate and contribute their strengths, a world-class digital airport commerce ecosystem with outstanding customer experience
can be created, benefitting all stakeholders. These benefits are greater than those that would be possible with individual solutions, since various
synergy effects can be achieved. For example, products and services of all stakeholders are no longer scattered across various apps and websites;
instead, passengers can find and buy all services and products through one solution. Savings on websites, logistics, payment and fulfillment reduce
costs. Moreover, total revenue can be increased through cross- and upselling and by linking commerce with loyalty programs and airport services.
1+1=3: Creating an airport commerce ecosystem with benefits for all stakeholders
AOE has successfully implemented digital solutions based on the OM³ platform at London Heathrow, Frankfurt Airport, Auckland Airport a
Singapore Airlines. Here are a few concrete examples of use cases that provide passengers with convenience and add value to their entire journey:
Learnings and examples of use cases from existing airport solutions
The range of use cases and corresponding benefits is virtually unlimited, especially if the solution is based on an API-commerce platform that allows
easy implementation of new services. It is advisable to implement an integrated, scalable and easily adaptable solution in order to be able to take
future needs and short- and medium-term challenges into consideration.
■ Support planned shopping: Asian passengers in particular value product reservations and online shopping in advance and in their
own language. Consequently, an overview of the product range with special offers is an important factor. Shopping list features,
personalized offers and cross-/upselling functions in combination with convenient payment- and delivery options support
passengers in their shopping.
■ Convenient frequent flyer services: Frequent flyers and business travelers often have similar itineraries, little time and are interested
in convenient solutions. Stakeholders can offer special services accordingly. If the traveler is late, you offer a fast track service. If
the flight is delayed, the appropriate information is accompanied by an offer for lounge access and discounts for online shopping
with delivery to the lounge. Travelers receive additional points on their loyalty program account for service bookings or shopping.
■ Create attractive sales offers: For high-priced electronics or luxury items, discounts or duty-free offers might exceed the price of
the flight. For example, the duty-free purchase of an Apple computer on a trip from Auckland to Sydney is so much cheaper that
the flight to Sydney is virtually free. Merchandise discounts on flights from London Heathrow to European destinations might also
exceed the airfare savings when purchasing a premium watch. Such offers are extremely attractive for passengers and can be
advertised accordingly.
■ Use online as advantage: With duty-free offers, the online presentation of special premium products makes more sense than classic
duty-free offers such as alcohol or perfumes, since passengers can also buy the latter as they pass by. In addition, shopping for these
items online offers no additional benefit. Instead, the focus online should be on special brands and premium products, accompanied
by discount campaigns.
■ Subscriptions as services: Recurring services can be offered as subscriptions. For example, parking can be conveniently arranged as
a monthly statement so that the traveler does not have to worry about travel expenses.

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Chapter III: Key elements of a digital airport commerce ecosystem
In summary, the following are the most important factors for successful Omnichannel Commerce:
Success factors of Omnichannel Commerce in Travel Retail
Multiple touchpoints before, during and after the trip
Sufficient free traffic in relevant channels
An attractive premium product range
Targeted personalized marketing promotions at the right time and in the right channel
Features supporting planned shopping, cross- and upselling
Convenient service offers
Infrastructure, logistics, payment and fulfillment
To achieve a holistic digital end-to-end solution with an omnichannel experience, the key players of the aviation industry need to redefine their
business model along the lines of what we call “The new Quaternity of Travel Retail”, which includes the four major groups of stakeholders: Airports,
Airlines, (Duty Free) Retailers and Brands.
Airports, airlines, brands and retailers pursue different, and sometimes competing, interests – this makes it seem difficult at first glance to find a
solution that is equally beneficial for all parties. However, if one considers the overall benefits that can be created with appropriate cooperation and
which takes all major concerns of each individual stakeholder into consideration – and factoring in the risks of major E-Commerce competitors such as
Amazon or Alibaba – then the question can really only be “How can such a joint solution be achieved?” In addition, as proof that it is possible: There
are already airports today offering such integrated digital solutions.
Airports, airlines, brands and retailers all have some advantages and disadvantages in terms of E-Commerce, but none of the stakeholders can fully
meet all requirements. Everyone is dependent on partners in certain areas or has to build up capacities at great expense.
The Travel Retail “Quaternity”: Collaboration of all key players
Airlines (Duty Free)
Retailers BrandsAirports
In chapter III, we talk about the key success factors for an Omnichannel Commerce platform in Travel Retail, why Airports
competitive advantages in E-Commerce and how to create a beneficial win-win collaboration for all key players of Travel R

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Airlines play a crucial role in this Quaternity. Many airlines realize that
pure inflight shopping from the cart is no longer a viable or interesting
business as it relies almost 100% on impulse purchasing. Cost of
transport here is extremely high, while range is extremely limited. In
addition, luxury products often remove themselves from this equation,
as they fear damaging the premium image of the brand. Therefore, it
comes as no surprise that there are virtually no airlines left that manage
to get more than two percent of their passengers to purchase in-flight.
Nevertheless, the airlines, if managed properly, possess a treasure
trove of passenger data that in theory could enable stakeholders
The crucial role of the airlines
Airport
Services Flight
Info
Passengers
Personalized
Marketing
E-Commerce
Physical
RetailProducts
Payment
Fulfillment
IT
Logistics
DIGITAL
MARKETPLACE
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Airli
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B
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R e t a i l e r s
Beneficial collaboration of Travel Retail Stakeholders with a digital marketplace. Source: AOE
to sell products and services of the airport with a high degree of
personalization, engagement and accuracy. Unfortunately, in today’s
industry, the airports and airlines still tend to work against each other
rather than cooperate in this regard; it will require a significant change
of perspective to realize that, together, stakeholders can increase the
size of the pie – and corresponding revenues and customer loyalty –
significantly. Obviously, this is far more preferable than each side
continuing to cannibalize the other stakeholders’ shrinking piece of the
total, smaller, pie.
The overall goal for all players is to create a truly seamless customer
experience in a digital airport commerce ecosystem. This is where a
mutual collaboration between all stakeholders must start. Each key
player can contribute his or her core strengths to this joint proposal. In
this model, the airport evolves into the (digital) marketplace provider,
bringing all key players together and providing the required services
How to create a Quaternity collaboration
such as logistics, wayfinding, real-time delivery, real-time flight
information, etc. – services that only airports have the facilities to
provide. The retailers and brands can provide a fitting and compelling
product offering, both digital and physical. Collaborating with airlines,
retailers and brands allows airports to engage with the passenger from
the very beginning, even before the passenger starts his or her journey.

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Europe
92%
81%
Asia Pacific
91%
86%
China
93%
89%
Middle East & Africa
75%
79%
North America
94%
91%
South America
82%
82%
Business
Travelers
Vacation
Travelers
Use of WiFi at Airports
Capitalization of WiFi is a big opportunity for airports. Source: m1nd-set
Airport’s opportunity to capitalize on WiFi
Most airports already offer free WiFi for travelers. A study commissioned
by TFWA in 2016 and researched by M1nd-set indicates that over 80%
of all passengers use WiFi at the airport. This is obviously free additional
traffic for the airports, which could easily be converted. However, in most
cases the airports neither capitalize on the opt-in functionality of their
WiFi, nor use the landing page for commercial purposes. As an example,
airports could use their WiFi policies to get approvals by the travelers to
use their personal data, which most airports do not possess. Being able
to use this data creates opportunities for personalized offers based on
the passengers’ behavior and needs. In combination with coupons and
special offers presented on the landing page, or through offers based on
the current location of each passenger (e.g., located through iBeacons),
capitalizing on WiFi is a big opportunity, a competitive advantage and
represents low-hanging fruit for airports.
Competitive advantages for Consumers Competitive advantages for Retailers
• Low cost of returns: Roughly 30% of costs for
E-Commerce are shipping and return costs. For
airports, return costs are very low, as most
people either return the product directly or don’t
return it because they are already abroad
• Low traffic acquisition costs: Traffic acquisition is
the second major cost driver in E-Commerce. But
for airports, traffic acquisition comes almost for
free, as potential customers are already at the
airport and/or checking out the airport’s website
• Immediate product availability: No waiting time
for passengers, immediate access to purchased
products
• Product look & feel: Passengers can look at and
check out real products in the store, before
taking them with them
• Omnichannel experience: The combination of
online and offline contributes to a higher
conversion rate and creates a more satisfying
customer experience
However, what competitive edge do airports have when implementing E-Commerce? Is an airport competition for Amazon or Alibaba or is it a
completely different value proposition? The airport is a unique environment where service and product tend to blend seamlessly, unwittingly into
each other. During the past five years of helping airports to realize their digital potential, we have come to realize that airports have several unique
competitive advantages:
Competitive advantages for E-Commerce at Airports
So, even if the current situation for travel retail is being challenged by the big players, there are a lot of opportunities waiting to be exploited.
Moreover, there is one more very impactful opportunity for airports that is already in place, but has not yet been capitalized on – the potential of WiFi.

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Personalized information and connected services in real time to create real benefits
New Use Cases for High Street Shopping: Shop downtown, have your purchase
delivered at the airport – Tax Free
Key for any type of digital solution is the ability to provide relevant
and accurate, real-time information that makes a difference in the
passenger’s journey – at any time, for any channel or device. Product
availability, pricing, payment, logistics, fulfilment. Everything needs
to be 100% real-time to drive a truly seamless customer experience. It
is important to provide meaningful information to each target group,
by personalization and profiling. This can be based on either loyalty
programs, the actions performed by the channel visitor or data provided
by the airlines’ partners. The marketplace should be able to adapt to the
passengers’ needs at any time and always enable their desired shopping
experience when it comes to delivery methods, payment and product
range, because disappointed shoppers never come back, neither in retail
nor in E-Commerce.
Yet another way to benefit from such a digital solution is the integration of downtown shopping into the aviation retail
marketplace – which offers an excellent service either for passengers shopping downtown or for extending product catalogs
and making them more compelling with regional products. Passengers can purchase tax-free products downtown and the
retailer can send the products to the airport, ready for pickup after clearing security. This service is already in place in
Auckland, New Zealand, and adds a significant portion to non-aviation revenues.
The case shows: It is possible to create an exciting customer experience and real benefits through digitalization of your business model.
Link to video: l.aoe.com/om3video
Integrated digital marketplace solution combines shopping and airport services
As the first and only player in the field of fully integrated airport non-
aviation digitalization, AOE has managed to build on solutions and
experiences it has garnered in airport digitalization rollouts for a number
of major clients, including Frankfurt Airport, Heathrow and Auckland.
We have combined four years of this expertise and tens of thousands of
days of development work into a single one-stop solution for airports
and airlines, which completely changes the way they generate non-
aviation revenues digitally: The OM³ Suite. The “Omnichannel Multi-
Merchant Marketplace” digital commerce solution is now live at three
airports and is being rolled out continuously throughout the industry
at both airports and airlines. The video below shows some exciting use
cases, illustrating how airports can engage with passengers and how
they can create real benefits for customers: