LITHUANIA. Gebr Heinemann, through and wholly-owned subsidiary Travel Retail Vilnius, has opened two Heinemann Duty Free & Travel Value shops in the Schengen terminal at Kaunas Airport. A third shop in the Non-Schengen terminal will open in August, meaning the company will manage total retail space of 370sq m at the location. The company already runs duty free stores at Vilnius Airport and makes its debut in Kaunas with these outlets.
Attending the inauguration on Wednesday were Kaunas Airport Director Bruno Kaspar, Gebr Heinemann Co-Owner Claus Heinemann, Gebr Heinemann Executive Director Distribution Peter Irion and Gebr Heinemann Area Sales Director Russia/CIS Bernard Schlafstein.
Kaspar said:
“Kaunas Airport is delighted to have Gebr Heinemann – one of the world’s top airport retail operators – taking responsibility for Kaunas Duty Free shops. The construction of a modern walk-through airport retail area in Kaunas and the investment of Heinemann in the three separate airport retail areas, coupled with Heinemann’s long airport experience, will provide our passengers with a high-quality shopping experience. I am looking forward to having a long and fruitful cooperation with Gebr. Heinemann and the Heinemann team in Lithuania.”
Schlafstein added:“Gebr. Heinemann has been operating the Duty Free and Travel Value shops at Vilnius Airport since 2008 and developed a very good cooperation with the Lithuanian airport authorities. We have been through difficult years together, in particular when Lithuanian Airlines stopped its operations in 2009, but were always determined to play an active role in travel retail in Lithuania and are glad to see that the passenger traffic has recovered well.
“We are delighted that our company was chosen to build and manage the travel retail space at Kaunas Airport and convinced that we will be able to offer an exciting shopping experience to travellers. We hope that this new opening in Kaunas will allow us to further strengthen our presence in Lithuania.”
One of the two new Heinemann Duty Free and Travel Value shops at Kaunas Airport, with a third to follow
The three Heinemann Duty Free and Travel Value shops are designed and built as a walk-through concept, said the retailer. For all construction works Heinemann appointed local Lithuanian companies, with 17 employees hired to manage shop operations. They complement the 68-strong team at Vilnius Airport, where Travel Retail Vilnius runs nine stores.
The Kaunas Airport offer features a broad selection of international brands and local goods, notably in the spirits, confectionery and fine food categories. The airport is a regional hub for Ryanair and Wizzair.
