A marketplace with unusual dynamics:|An investigation of shopper behaviour in travel retail sector

Abstract

This paper attempts to contribute to the previously conducted research in investigating the behaviour of shoppers in the travel retail industry, especially at airports. Revenues generated by duty-free stores have become the top non aeronautical income sources of airports, and this sector promises to increase its impact if the actual needs of travellers and growth opportunities are studied correctly. As the nature of travel stands out of the ordinary routines, conventional rules of consumer behaviour are not sufficient to describe those at the airport environment. Explanations for the dynamics of travel retail are provided by studying the effective shopping motivators, stimuli, and circumstances in this unique context. This study relates aforementioned factors to the likelihood of shopping from duty-free stores and investigates how they are related. In order to better understand this likelihood, this study embraces a quantitative approach by analysing the data collected from Turkish respondents participated in a large-scale survey (n = 513) . The analysis of the responses leads to deeper comprehension of the travellers’ inner worlds. By elaborating on the analyses, numerous managerial implications which have the potential of being notably beneficial to the business are suggested.