EssilorLuxottica and Qatar Duty Free have teamed up to launch the first-ever Ray-Ban store in the country at Doha’s Hamad International Airport. Featuring engaging digital elements and fresh sunglasses category innovations, the mono-brand store opened its doors at the beginning of November.
The main objective with the new concept store was to create a unique environment that expresses the Ray-Ban identity. The 110-sqm space captures the eye with large vertical mirrors and LED walls featuring striking videos from the brand’s latest campaigns. The signature institutional palette of grey and red is brought to life through concrete surfaces and red-mirrored plexiglass that demarcates the collections, making the brand’s timeless icons instantly recognizable.
The largest Ray-Ban store in Travel Retail is located at the new Hamad International Airport Central Concourse Terminal. The store is a contemporary new international fashion and jewellery capital for the travel retail industry, designed to leverage the high-traffic transfer hub and its increasingly high-spending passenger profile.
Matteo Goi, Head of Travel Retail at EssilorLuxottica EMEA, said: “It is very rewarding to see the sunglasses category being presented and marketed as a true ‘core category’ in collaboration with our partners at Qatar Duty Free, and particularly with a powerful global brand like Ray-Ban. EssilorLuxottica is pushing the category to truly come into its own, gaining additional visibility and securing such a sought-after high-profile promotion placement in the world’s best airport. We are very proud of this global-first not only for us as a company, but for this opportunity-rich category.”
Mr. Thabet Musleh Qatar Duty Free, added: “We are very proud to introduce Rayban’s new retail concept in Qatar amongst many other prestigious brands at the new Hamad International Airport Central Concourse Terminal, an ideal location for Ray-Ban to launch its boutique. This is an excellent opportunity to place the growing sunglasses category front-and-centre in front of one of the largest passenger mixes in the world, and just in time for one of the biggest global sporting events.”
Inside the store, travellers can find Ray-Ban’s full assortment, with full walls dedicated to Ray-Ban ICONS, Ferrari and Kids in celebration of the brand’s most popular collections. The product display systems uses metal calamine cells filled with integrated light to maximize each individual pair of sunglasses’ stylish features, including a new Aviator made with a solid yellow gold 18-carat frame and polarised lenses, as well as a travel retail exclusive Wayfarer with a semi-transparent grey frame and green lenses. The Ray-Ban Titanium collection features as well, a collection of sunglasses made by one of the world’s finest metals: ultra-light, strong and resistant to corrosion.
From Q4 2022, the store will also stock the New Legacy Limited Edition – a Middle East headdress of Arab and Middle Eastern countries – has been described as ‘merging modernity with tradition’, combining a timeless icon like the Ray-Ban wayfarer with the traditional heritage of the Middle East. With this innovation, Ray-Ban are aiming to reach the region’s Gen Z market, who are characterised by their national pride, traditions and strong link to their heritage, but also an openness to embedding modern elements into their fashion and lifestyle choices.
