Indian airports emerge as lucrative retail destinations

Delhi Duty Free Services (DDFS), India’s largest duty free retail space at T3,

IGI Airport recently added three luxury fashion brand stores viz. Victoria’s Secret, Armani Jeans and Pandora Jewelry. Increase in number of travelers at the airports either having spare time on their hands or in need of doing some last minute shopping are leading companies to consider retail space at airports, a viable option.

Brands like Benetton and Samsonite already report good business at their airport stores. Samsonite South Asia operates seven stores at different airports. The company’s next store at the Mumbai international airport, is slated to open soon and it plans to more stores at airports. Hidesign, which sells goods at major airports such as Bangalore domestic, Cochin, Delhi (domestic), Hyderabad (domestic) and through shop-in-shop outlets in Shoppers Stop at Raipur and Bangalore International has been seeing positive sales at its airport stores, driven by business bags and gifting.

While Delhi’s T1/T3 terminals offers over 320,000 square feet of retail space, the new Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (T2) in Mumbai has 700,000 square feetof space. Indian airports are estimated to be handling 121 million domestic and 41 million international passengers annually. In the first three months of 2014, over 35 lakh international passengers travelled on Indian carriers alone. From electronic retailer Croma to leather brand Hidesign to Lite Bite Foods and Shoppers Stop—can be found at the new Indian airports. And for the elite traveller, there are Hugo Boss, Bose, Burberry, Prada and Emporio Armani, among others.