Imperial Tobacco presents Category Management approach in Singapore

 

No ‘one fits all’ solution

 

The demand for international travel continues to grow globally. Whichever source one looks at, international passenger numbers are expected to increase in 2014 by over 5% versus last year. Europe is seen to be a strong driver in travel again, South Americans are becoming more and more relevant and the BRIC states continue to attract high levels of attention - just recently followed by MINT. 

 

The Chinese remain on top of the agenda, not just because travel numbers are increasing significantly, but more importantly their premium oriented shopper behaviour and interest in international brands make them a highly attractive target group for retailers and suppliers.

So the future looks bright in our business – at least looking at the numbers. But we all know there is still more to do for all stakeholders. A passenger is not automatically a shopper and despite positive trends for future patterns, there is much untapped potential today. To increase footfall and maximize shopping basket size is the daily challenge. Against this backdrop, Imperial Tobacco is using the TFWA Asia Pacific Conference & Exhibition this year to present its Category Management Approach to retailers and airport authorities (stand D37).

Imperial Tobacco Trade Marketing & Category Development Manager Simone Horn explains: ‘Investment into research to find out more about shopper behaviour and segmentation is essential to best handle the complexity of a multi-national target group coming together at the “melting pot” of the duty free outlet.

Simone Horn, Trade Marketing & Category Development Manager, Imperial Tobacco

As a retailer you cannot be an expert in each and every category and have an in-depth understanding of both the trends and developments within our shoppers’ home markets and their varying needs in an international environment. Shopper behavior in Duty Free is very different from ritual habits at home and often a confusing environment for travellers. They are confronted with different languages, different currencies, unknown products and selling units as well as import allowances they might not be aware of.

‘The days when saying “people will buy anyhow due to the savings in Duty Free” are over, the “global” transparency of offers and pricing and increased competition between airports and retailers require more than just putting products on shelf. There is no doubt that the tobacco category faces external challenges like legislative issues, but is an important footfall and spending driver and should therefore not be seen as “to be milked only”,’ says Horn.

She continues: ‘How important in reality the category still is and how tobacco effects the overall shopping basket size can be seen in Ireland, where after implementation of a tobacco display ban, overall sales dropped  by more than 30% also effecting other categories.

. The picture in Australia is similar; allowances for tobacco products were significantly reduced which led to a double-digit plunge in overall spend.’

So the more challenging an environment is, the more important it is to consult the experts. The Imperial Tobacco Duty Free Category Management approach is based on in-depth research and analysis which helps in understanding the different needs of travellers, the roles the different categories play, the importance of shop layout and shopper navigation, how to create an optimal portfolio based on individual outlets and how to best merchandise the category – also in ‘challenging’ environments. 

 

‘We are looking forward to presenting the Imperial Tobaccos Category Management approach at this year’s TFWA Asia Pacific event. See you in Singapore!’ concludes Simone Horn.