Title: The airline retail industry: a customer's perspective

Authors: Dimitrios Schoinas, John F. O'Connell

Addresses: easyJet Airline Company Limited, Hangar 89, London Luton Airport, Bedfordshire, LU2 9PF, UK. ' Air Transport Department, Cranfield University, Bedford MK43 0QG, UK

Abstract: Airline in-flight retail has been a service offered on-board aircraft since the commercialisation of air travel in the 1950s. The airline retail is a growing industry with global sales accounting for almost $2.7 billion in 2008. As conventional revenue streams come under pressure, airlines are increasingly seeking to maximise ancillary revenue streams to increase profitability. This research explores the factors that influence passengers| expenditure on retail in-flight, while comparing the results with the shopping patterns that travellers exhibit in airport duty-free stores, which constitute airlines| main competitors for retail sales.

Keywords: airline retail; airline sales; airport duty-free; in-flight retail; in-flight sales; passenger expenditure; passenger spending patterns; retailing; ancillary revenue; airlines.

DOI: 10.1504/WRITR.2011.041718

World Review of Intermodal Transportation Research, 2011 Vol.3 No.4, pp.353 - 375

Published online: 01 Aug 2011 *

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