Lagardère Annual Results: a comment from Dag Rasmussen, CEO Lagardère Travel Retail

Today Lagardère Group has published its annual results and I would like to take this opportunity to share a few highlights about Lagardère Travel Retail’s performance. 

2019 has been another strong year for us, driven by the good performance of our existing operations, the addition of four new markets to our global network and the successful integration of our two  latest acquisitions: Hojeij Branded Foods (HBF) in the US in 2018, and International Duty Free (IDF), the leading travel retailer in Belgium, in 2019. The acquisition of IDF has consolidated our position as a leading travel retailer. 

The full media release for Lagardère Group’s annual results is available for you to read here.

• We consolidated our number one position in Travel Essentials with strong sales dynamic on existing stores  thanks to our constant anticipation and adaptation to customers’ needs, and the successful expansion of our network in Gabon and Turkey. 

• In Duty Free & Fashion, we have continued to work on improving both retail concepts and product offering in key categories to adapt to different profiles of travelers. This has generated positive trends in both the stop ratio and average spent per passenger. 

• Our Foodservice division has passed the €1 billion mark in managed sales, doubling its revenues in just three years. This is testament to our efforts to build our leadership position in this activity. Our expertise and solutions have been widely recognised by the industry with 8 FAB awards won this year, making us the most-awarded Foodservice company in Travel Retail.  

Undeniably, the Covid-19 health crisis is creating headwinds for all players in our industry but our three business lines strategy and global footprint ensure the resilience of our model in the face of such events. We are also confident that the long-term fundamentals underpinning future growth are still in place. More individuals are hungry for international mobility and this leads to a steady growth in both air and rail traffic. With a culture of innovation and local empowerment, a commitment to deliver operational excellence and the close partnerships we have with landlords and brands, Lagardère Travel Retail is uniquely placed to continue its growth in 2020 and beyond.