www.ari.ie

Aer Rianta International – Delivering Excellence in Travel Retail through Partnership and Profit.

Aer Rianta International cpt. (ARI) was formed in 1988 as the dedicated international division of Aer Rianta, the Irish state owned airport operator and is today a wholly owned subsidiary of the Dublin Airport Authority. The company has built on over 50 years experience in travel retail, including the establishment of the world's first airport duty-free facility at Shannon, Ireland. ARI was also the first international duty-free operator to enter the former Soviet Union, a region in which ARI remains the market leader today.

Since then, either as concessionaire, manager or operations partner, Aer Rianta International has actively promoted airport retailing in many countries and is currently engaged in modern retail centres at major airports in Europe, North America and the Middle East, as well as in Russia and Ukraine.

Respected as one of the world's leading airport retailing specialists, ARI has earned its global reputation through its flexible and enterprising business culture, its world class international capability and its ability to consistently convert commercial opportunities into profit.

Key Regions.

ARI currently manages operations in three major geographical regions; Russia, the C.I.S. & Eastern Europe, Middle East and America. As Director General Eamon Foley comments "operating successfully in such diverse markets demands, above all else, flexibility. Flexibility in operations to deal with diverse customs requirements, retailing environments and passenger profiles, flexibility with respect to partnerships, through which the majority of our businesses are managed, and flexibility with respect to commercial models, as evidenced by the blend of concessionaire and management contract models in our portfolio."

Russia, the C.I.S. & Eastern Europe

ARI has been present in Russia since 1989 when, together with partners Aeroflot, it was awarded the concession to operate Moscow Duty Free at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport. This was added to by Pulkova airport, St. Petersburg. Since then ARI has continued to expand its operations in Russia. In 2004 the company announced that, together with its local partners, it had been awarded the concession to operate duty free shops in Domodedovo, Moscow. This was followed in 2005 by Vnukovo, Moscow. As Director of Retail Operations, Bill Maxwell, comments; "Russia remains a core market for ARI and one which we are committed to leading in the long term. We believe Russia's continued economic development offers many new opportunities, especially to those that really understand what it means to do business there."

ARI is not just a single country player in the region. It has had a presence in Kyiv, Ukraine since 1992, and last year opened the first ever duty free shop at Prishtina International Airport, Kosovo. The company continues to look for business development opportunities in the Balkan Region, and, according to its management team, is actively seeking acquisitions and partnerships, as well as more direct approaches.

The Middle East

In 1990 ARI and its local partner set up Aer Rianta International Middle East (ARIME). Based in Bahrain, the company is today the largest multiple site operator in what is the currently the fastest growing region for air passenger growth. ARIME's first contract was to operate Bahrain International Airport, a contract still held by the company today. In 2005 Bahrain International Airport won two Raven Fox industry awards for excellence, a testament to the strength of the relationship between ARIME and the airport operator.

In addition to Bahrain, ARIME, together with its partners, today manages airport operations in Doha International Airport, Qatar, Beirut Airport, Lebanon and Muscat International Airport, Oman. Since 2004 it has also advised Egypt Air with respect to its retail operations. ARIME and its partners also operate in-flight duty free concessions with Gulf Air and the downtown liquor store in Qatar.

North America & The Caribbean

Since acquiring operations at Montreal, Ottawa, Halifax, Edmonton and Winnipeg in 1998, ARI North America (ARINA), a wholly owned subsidiary of ARI, has maintained its position as one of the leading players in the Canadian market. From this base, ARI continues to target opportunities in North America and in 2004, together with its partner, opened thirteen duty paid stores in Terminal 4 of New York's JFK airport. The company is also active in the Caribbean region.

Retail Excellence at ARI

Innovative shop design, new concept development, purchasing and retail operations have driven ARI's growth to date. All of ARI's locations are tailored in terms of layout, and most noticeably, in terms of product mix, to provide the customer with a powerful sense of the place he or she is visiting. The retail experience at Bahrain International Airport, for example, is a very different to that experienced in Montreal, though each location demonstrates the highest standards of retail excellence.

Runway Retail

Recently Aer Rianta International has rolled out its "Runway Retail" concept. The idea behind this concept is to balance the need for regional variations with the need for frequent travellers to clearly recognize quality retail as they pass through airports that are new to them.

ARI operates both duty free outlets and duty paid stores under this branding, and the concept has already been rolled out at ARI's North American locations, at Domodedovo and at Prishtina. Further roll outs are planned this year. As well as creating higher shopper recognition at the airport itself, the Runway concept and supports ARI's promotional programmes, helping to stimulate sales across all locations.

ARI – Understanding Airport Operators

One of ARI's key strengths is that, with an airport operator as its parent and being an investor in several European airports, it understands intimately the importance of non aviation revenue to its clients. Examples of the long term approach include ARI's willingness to enter the Russian market in 1988 at a time of significant change there, and to continue with these early relationships to the present day throughout some turbulent times. As Foley remarks "We recognize that for our airport partners, maximising financial return does not mean maximizing return today, or this year, but over the lifetime of the relationship".

The Future

2005 was a very successful one for ARI. A combination of new business wins and healthy growth in existing ones leaves the company well poised to continue to exploit opportunities in the Middle-East, North America, Russia, the C.I.S and Eastern Europe.

In addition, the company has begun to broaden its horizons, and is currently actively looking to opportunities in the emerging markets of India and Asia. It is likely that success for ARI in these markets will come through its proven strategy of linking with local partners both on a transaction basis and, potentially, on a regional basis.

As Eamon Foley surmises "We remain firmly committed to those principles that have contributed to our success thus far. We seek out viable projects where our key strengths in shop design, retail operations and buying power – often matched with the local knowledge brought by our partners - offer our clients an opportunity to build a sustainable long term relationship to maximise their returns. In particular we are experts in dealing with fast changing macro environments, and in such locations we believe we are second to none in delivering to plan."

Contact:
Dermot Ryan, Business Development Manager
Aer Rianta International
Shannon Airport
Co. Clare
Ireland.

Phone: +353 61 71277
Fax: +353 61 474595
Web: www.ari.ie

 

Click here to obtain a copy of AIRPORT 2010