Airport Experience® News - Pre-Conference Issue 2025

DATA CHECK

PURCHASING SHIFTS Data Shows Higher F&B And TR Shares, Lower Reliance On Duty Free

BY CAROL WARD

Key Performance Trends: John F. Kennedy International

2023

2019

Sales per Enplanement

Duty Free 23.6%

$22.51

F&B

Duty Free 33.5%

F&B 46.2%

F&B 41.4%

$23.35

Newsstand/TR 20.6%

$0.00

$5.00

$10.00

$15.00

$20.00

$25.00

Newsstand/TR 16.5%

Specialty 8.6%

Specialty 9.7%

2019 Sales E/P

2023 Sales E/P

$698.34 Million

$728.1 Million

Source: AX FactBooks, 2020 and 2024

eading airports in North America show a slightly increased reliance on food and beverage and newsstand/

Generally speaking, those airports with a heavier reliance on duty free sales had lower F&B shares, as a percent of total spending. Over the four years, F&B’s share of total spending increased at all but one of the 10 airports, with Montreal Trudeau International Airport (YUL) as the outlier. YUL’s reliance shifted significantly toward duty free in the four years, with that share growing to 31.7%, from 22.7% for the airport. Duty free’s share of airport concessions sales declined at each of the other nine airports highlighted. Among the bigger declines were a 10 nearly percentage point drop for JFK and a 6.4 percentage point drop at LAX. LGA was the only airport among the 10 to show a drop in newsstand/travel retail’s percentage of total sales. Specialty retail managed to eke out share gains in four of the 10 airports – JFK, Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) and LGA – but declined in the other six highlighted airports. Each of the 10 airports increased spend per enplaned passenger. :

L

travel retail sales to drive concessions revenue while, as a percentage of overall traveler spending, duty free sales have slipped for most airports. Specialty retail also struggled to keep pace with other categories. Airport Experience News used comparisons of concessions data from the 2020 AX FactBook with data from the 2024 AX Fact Book. The books reflect 2019 and 2023 sales data, respectively. Of 10 leading North American airports surveyed by AXN, F&B was the dominant category at each, typically accounting for half or more of total concessions revenue. The exception was John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), which generated 46.2% of concessions revenue from F&B, up from 41.4% four years prior. F&B share for the nine other airports ranged from 50.8% at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to 68.5% at LaGuardia Airport (LGA).

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AX NEWS FEBRUARY 2025