Pernod Ricard Global Travel Retail (PR GTR) announced the opening of its first portfolio boutique in duty free with long-time partner Shen Zhen Duty Free (SZDF), operating in Mission Hills, SZDF’s new shopping complex located in Haikou, north Hainan.
The opening marks another milestone in the expansion of Pernod Ricard’s presence in Hainan following the opening of the first Martell boutique in duty free at CDFG Haitang Bay early 2021. As Pernod Ricard’s first portfolio boutique in travel retail, it offers shoppers the opportunity to choose from the Martell and scotch whisky ranges, addressing consumer trends of cross-category purchasing and maximising basket size.
Alongside the full Martell range, the number one Cognac in the Prestige category in both volume and value (IWSR 2020), the boutique’s offering includes Ballantine’s, Chivas Regal and Royal Salute scotch whiskies, as well as Malts from The Glenlivet and Secret Speyside ranges. Travellers can also purchase rare whiskies including the exceptional Royal Salute 52 year-old and The Glenlivet 50 year-old, and choose from the full Caperdonich range, introduced to China’s duty free market for the very first time.
Reflecting PR GTR’s commitment to innovate within the channel and continuously re-define the retail experience, store features include eye-catching integrated merchandising screens creating an interactive and engaging shopping environment, the AI ambassador immersing shoppers into the world of Martell, and a tasting bar to sample star-products neat and within cocktail serves.
True to the Group’s ‘Good Times From a Good Place’ commitments, the store combines innovation and sustainability. PR GTR’s approach to instore digitalisation with digital merchandising units reduces carbon emissions thanks to total modularisation – preventing the need to remove and replace merchandising units or POS materials and instead, allowing for real time in-store digital updates.
Commenting on the opening, Liya Zhang, VP Marketing, PR GTR said: “This boutique represents a milestone for Pernod Ricard and our growth in global travel retail. It is not only our first portfolio boutique in duty free, but also another opportunity for us to bring our vision of the future of retail to shoppers – retail theatre powered by digital, immersing travellers in every aspect of the shopping experience.”
Simon Van Moppes, North Asia General Manager, PR GTR addresses the importance of Hainan for the brand: “If we go back a year and a half, wines and spirits were not being sold duty free in Hainan. We’ve had a unique opportunity to start from scratch in a new location with a fantastic set of mature shoppers and consumers. Our surveys show that 70% of Chinese travellers expect more exciting features and digital services from their retail experiences, so this environment has provided the opportunity for us to accelerate our market introduction and retail innovation plans, including the unveiling of our first duty free portfolio boutique with Shenzhen Duty Free at Mission Hills.”
Jiangwei You, Chairman of SZDF Group reflected: “As part of our long-standing partnership and first-time collaboration with Pernod Ricard GTR we are excited to bring a digital shopping experience to consumers. We are incredibly proud to house the first portfolio boutique in our Mission Hills Resort and are very confident in the success of the store.”
The Hainan boutique’s opening on Friday 29th of October marked PR GTR’s first collaboration with long-standing partner SZDF. To celebrate the occasion, representatives from PR GTR and SZDF attended a ribbon cutting at the store’s opening ceremony.
The store is located on the first floor in block 5, TIMESDF Haikou Mission Hills Duty Free Town. Full store address: 39 Yangshan Dadao, Longhua District, Haikou City, Hainan. Opening hours: 10:00 – 21:30 seven days a week.
