The company now operates 130+ stores across travel essentials, duty free & fashion and food service in 20 airports and four railway stations and cultural centres, including the Sydney Opera House and Royal Botanic Gardens.įamily business AWPL operates over 50 travel retail stores in Australia and New Zealand, dubbing itself ‘The Heartbeat of Travel Retail’ in the region. Lagardère Travel Retail then expanded the business to New Zealand in 2011. Newslink Pty Ltd started operations in Australia in 1990, before becoming part of Lagardère Travel Retail in 2001. The customer will be at the heart of everything we do, every decision we make.” The intention of this joint venture is to bring together two great businesses – our heritage, our people, our values – so that we create something special in our region for many years to come. Kouros commented: “The last 18 months have challenged travel retail on a global scale. I look forward to working with Costa, our teams, and our partners to make this exciting proposal a reality.”
By coming together, we can play a leading role in rebuilding and growing the strong and vibrant Pacific travel retail industry through a unique commercial offer and greater innovation. Lesniak said: “I am confident that our planned joint venture with AWPL is great news for our people, landlords and partners as we continue our recovery. Together we are confident that we can dramatically improve our ability to support our landlords’ ambitions and create unique experiences for travellers as we step into this new journey.” “We’re thrilled to have come to an agreement with the AWPL ‘family’, a highly respected partner who not only complements our strengths but also shares the same strong values with us. Lagardère Travel Retail Pacific and Nestlé last month extended the retailer’s exclusive partnership with KitKat Chocolatory by launching a KitKat Chocolatory Mix Your Break range within the Relay store at Cairns Airport’s domestic terminal By joining forces with AWPL, we are bringing the ‘Stronger Together’ motto to life and giving ourselves the best chance to thrive beyond the recovery. Lagardère Travel Retail CFO and Lagardère Travel Retail Pacific COO Luc Mansion said: “The COVID crisis has fundamentally changed market dynamics and opened the door to consolidation opportunities, notably in the Pacific which has been one of the hardest-hit regions. Lagardère Travel Retail Pacific CEO Przemek Lesniak and AWPL Founder and Managing Director Costa Kouros are appointed co-CEOs of the new company.Īll Lagardère Travel Retail Pacific and AWPL staff – totalling 850+ people – will be transferred into the new entity. Subject to final documentation and local regulatory approval, Lagardère AWPL will regroup all operations from both partners in Australia and New Zealand, including duty free, food services, travel essentials and specialty retail. Lagardère Travel Retail and AWPL have operated alongside each other for decades in the region, and share the same values of the importance of people, operational excellence, trust, innovation & long-term vision, the companies said in a statement,
The merger is subject to Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) clearance and will be completed upon that statutory approval.īy joining forces and merging their businesses, Lagardère Travel Retail Pacific and AWPL aim to maximise opportunities in their recovery from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and achieve market leadership to better serve the needs of partners, landlords and travellers in the Pacific region.īy combining their complementary strengths, the partners said they are confident they can deliver a comprehensive offer to all customers using the best elements of an international group and a highly-recognised, local family business. The 50:50 JV, titled Lagardère AWPL, will embrace each company’s operations in Australia and New Zealand including duty free, food services, travel essentials and specialty retail.
Lagardère Travel Retail Pacific and Australian travel retailer AWPL announced today that they plan to form a joint venture, effective from 1 January 2022.