Voodoo And Female Warriors Spice Up Lagardère’s Retail Offer In Benin

One of the world’s top duty-free retailers, Lagardère Travel Retail, has tied up a deal to run the master concession at Benin’s Cotonou Cadjehoun International Airport, serving the biggest city in the country, Cotonou. The concession—which promises to showcase Benin’s culture—will be operated by a joint venture starting next year.

While the retail business at the airport will be small—the airport is expected to process just over 500,000 passengers in 2023—it expands Paris-based Lagardère’s African footprint. The traffic forecast for this year is roughly equivalent to 2019 levels, but how much growth is likely in the coming years is uncertain.

Nevertheless, with a reliable local partner, the deal could lay the groundwork for expansion elsewhere. Since 2017, Lagardère Travel Retail has been actively expanding in West Africa where the company was already in Senegal, Gabon, Mauritania, Gambia, and soon Benin.

Lagardère Travel Retail COO for the EMEA region and chief transformation officer, Frédéric Chevalier, said: “We have significant growth ambitions for the African continent and these new operations in Benin will consolidate our position as a leading travel retailer in the region.”

The agreement, signed with state-owned Société des Aéroports du Benin (SAB), covers the operation of key commercial components at the airport including arrival and departure duty-free shopping, a convenience store, and food and beverage (F&B) outlets at Cotonou International Airport. The exact length of the master concession was not disclosed but, in a statement, Lagardère Travel Retail said that it is a “long-term” contract.

Day-to-day operations will be managed through a joint venture called Lagardère Travel Retail Keyla which is co-owned by Lagardère Travel Retail and Beninese company Keyla Distribution, a distributor and retailer in West Africa.

A three-pillar strategy

Lagardère Travel Retail, part of the €6.93 billion ($7.33 billion) turnover French publishing-to-retail giant Lagardère, says the contract win vindicates the company’s longstanding adherence to the three pillars of duty-free/fashion, travel essentials, and F&B. This model is “especially suitable” for mid-sized international airports according to the company.

CEO Dag Rasmussen told me: “We have been challenged on our model in the past, but this holistic approach allows us to really understand the traveler wherever they are spending money at the airport. The borders are blurring between business lines so you need to think even more about the passenger today.”

The model also works well for master concessions by covering all bases. This type of concession also increases commercial revenues for both the airport landlord and brands, shortens the break-even point for the retailer, and allows greater flexibility to change the offer as conditions evolve.

Benin’s government has started a renovation and expansion program for Cotonou Airport as it wants to make tourism a driver of Benin’s economic growth and development. The tourism industry is currently the country’s third-largest source of jobs. There are even ambitions to make Cotonou a hub in West Africa. However, Nigeria next door could be a barrier to this goal. Its airports of Murtala Muhammed serving nearby Lagos, and Nnamdi Azikiwe serving Abuja, were both among Africa’s top 10 gateways last year.

Cultural cues

Lagardère said it was busy developing a retail offer that would showcase Benin’s unique culture which combines voodoo traditions; legends of the all-female warriors, the Dahomey Amazons, the inspiration for a similar outfit in Marvel Studios’ Oscar-winning 2018 movie Black Panther; and other folklore. In a comment on social media, LTR said: “We will bring the best of Benin’s culture to travelers, offering unique local products and experiences.”

The retailer has also developed a food concept called the Iroko Bar after the sacred Iroko tree. The bar will be a central focus for passengers passing through the airport and ties in with the government’s aims of boosting its tourism sector which, today, attracts two million visitors annually.

Armand Kpindjo, SAB’s commercial manager, said: “With a refurbished and certified airport, Cotonou aims to offer the best experience to passengers as well as increase non-regulated revenues.”