Catering makeover boosts retail sales at Stansted airport

Catering outlets at Stansted airport in Essex have notched up sales growth of nearly 10% following a makeover at Europe's fastest-growing airport.

In the past 18 months nearly all Stansted's catering outlets have been revamped, with the most recent additions located near passport control. Ponti's restaurant and a caf‚ and take-away offshoot called Ponti's Volare, Pret A Manger and Lovejuice, a smoothie and juice bar, have all opened this year.

Airport operator BAA, which runs Stansted as well as airports at Heathrow, Gatwick, Southampton, Edinburgh and Glasgow, reported a 9.5% rise in retail and catering sales to £138m during the three months to 31 December 2003. This adds up to a 3% rise in spend per head to £4.36.

Jo Astor, retail director at Stansted, said: "Grab-and-go has been the key. Eighty-five per cent of flights from Stansted are low-cost carriers, so people often think about what food they can take on to their flights."

She added that increased security measures had had a positive effect on customer spending, as passengers arrived at the airport with plenty of time to spare.

The airport's mix of bars and restaurants catered for a customer profile that ranged from second-home owners to business travellers and young people on short breaks, she said. In the airside concourse outlets include Caviar House and Seafood Bar, sit-down restaurants Garfunkel's, Caffé Uno Presto and Est Bar Est, and take-away outlets Pret A Manger and Starbucks situated next to the gates.

"We're able to choose brands that we know will match our customer profile," Astor said. "We provide the shell and the core - they pay for the fit-out and pay us a percentage of turnover and a concession fee."

To cope with growing passenger numbers, the Government has given BAA the green light to build a second runway at Stansted, which will be served by a new terminal building. The new runway is expected to open in 2014.

Source: Caterer & Hotelkeeper, 12 - 18 February 2004