Duty-Free’s Largest Brands Association, TFWA, Courts Travel Retailers

TFWA is hoping to reshape its Asia-Pacific regional show with retailers showcasing F&B concepts at Marina Bay Sands. (Photo by Annice Lyn/Getty Images)

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Tax Free World Association (TFWA), the Paris-based organizer of the two biggest exhibitions/conferences for the $74.1 billion international duty-free business, is actively courting airport retailers/operators to participate as exhibitors at its Asia-Pacific regional show in Singapore in May (10-14) at Marina Bay Sands. The event precedes the association’s global show in Cannes, France in the fall.

TFWA, not to be confused with the Texas Food & Wine Alliance, is essentially a worldwide brands association focused on the duty-free and travel retail channel. Its membership includes a who’s who of luxury marques from Bally and Chanel to Dior, Ermenegildo Zegna, and Salvatore Ferragamo, as well as more mainstream labels across core categories like confectionery, liquor, and beauty. Many of them choose to exhibit at its main exhibition and conference in Cannes, typically with a waiting list for spare or returned exhibition space.

In line with rapid changes in the industry since the Covid pandemic—notably the strong shift to food and beverage (F&B) in airports, and more recently to blended or hybrid retail-dining formats—the association is pivoting in the same direction. It increasingly see itself not just as a trade show, but a business platform designed for learning, connection, and experience.

Data from an ACI World Airport Economics Report shows that between 2019 and 2023 the share of non-aeronautical revenue from retail concessions slipped from 27% to 20%. In growth terms this meant that retail concessions contracted by 18% and duty-free concessions collapsed by 34%, whereas F&B soared by 8%, only outdone by car parking at 18% (see chart below).

Between 2019-23, F&B growth far outpaced that of duty-free concessions and retail concessions.

ACI World

That’s the global picture, but given that airports in Asia-Pacific derive 43% of their total revenue from non-aeronautical streams, well above the international average of 37%, a bigger focus on F&B seemed inevitable especially as spending has shifted away from duty-free to dining. This year’s TFWA Asia-Pacific show reflects the trend and is a test-bed for several new concepts, key among which is Taste of the World.

Gastronomy and hospitality take a bow

The gastronomy-led space will explore global food, beverage culture, and hybrid retailing through an experience-driven format, something that major airports—and even smaller ones—are investigating. The area will feature live demonstrations, show-cooking, brand activations, and beverage-led concepts, and may also have some luxury brand cafés, which airports like Qatar’s Hamad International have pioneered.

Chef Akira Back (right) with Thomas Anderson and Laura Whitmore at the London VIP celebration of a Michelin star at his Mandarin Oriental restaurant, Dosa, almost a year ago. (Photo by Dave Benett/Getty Images for Akira Back London)

Dave Benett/Getty Images for Akira Back London

TFWA said in a statement: “The growing convergence between gourmet experiences and travel retail particularly appeals to Gen Z and Millennial audiences, who demonstrate strong engagement with food‐led brand storytelling.” Among the targets are high-end establishments like Lenôtre and Pierre Hermé which are present at airports with fresh, non-packaged goods.

The move is a major departure from standard brand displays. The space is also designed to act as a central point of engagement for attendees to the exhibition and, as an added attraction, Michelin-starred Korean-American chef Akira Back—whose prestigious restaurants now span 31 locations including the Prince of Wales Hotelan Art Deco gem in Paris—will make an appearance discussing how to create memorable travel experiences using culinary creativity.

No sign-ups so far

Another major departure is TFWA’s attempt, for the first time, to bring in airport retailers/operators to exhibit their F&B ideas and concepts within Taste of the World. Surprisingly—with three months to go to the Singapore show, and all the industry talk about mixing retail and F&B—travel retailers have yet to be convinced.

Alessio Crivelli, TFWA’s VP marketing, who has been in discussions with some of the biggest retailers, told me: “The interest is huge from both brands and operators, but we have no sign-ups yet. This is a medium-term project and we will leverage the work we’ve done in the past month for 2027. We are playing against time (this year).”

This is despite the biggest travel retailer in the world—Avolta—espousing the virtues of integrating F&B into general travel retail environments. The company says this “creates dynamic spaces that enhance cross‑selling opportunities and offer travelers a seamless, relaxed experience.” Avolta operated 53 hybrid outlets worldwide at the end of 2024.

It may take some time to power up TFWA’s Taste of the World concept.

TFWA

Due to its untested nature, sign-ups for Taste of the World may be last-minute and subject to tough negotiations. However, TFWA says it is committed to the food format even if it takes a couple of shows for it to take off. Franck Waechter, the association’s managing director, said: “Taste of the World is a long-term project, not a one-shot. It reflects what we are seeing in terms of F&B’s importance in non-aeronautical revenues at airports.”

This makes sense based on the ACI data above, and another recent 2025 airport retail study from global real estate giant Newmark, which has an airport arm. Based on an extensive review of EMEA airports, U.K.-based Newmark executive managing director Simon Black, said on social media: “The era of travel retail is giving way to the era of travel hospitality. Operators now shape the passenger journey. More than 70% of retail and F&B offers in airports are run by specialist travel retailers, not the brands directly, signaling a market where execution, flexibility, and adaptability outweigh pure brand presence.”

More defined focus on product categories

Also new at TFWA’s May show for the first time, will be an overhaul of the way brands exhibit. The association plans to mimic how airport duty-free retail stores are laid out with the exhibition space organized around category-focused ‘worlds.’ This should help retail buyers find brands more intuitively. Confirmed worlds include beauty, fashion/accessories, wines/spirits, and confectionery/fine food, plus a standalone 1,300-square-meter area for innovation/tech, including future retail concepts.

So far, 160 exhibitors have confirmed their participation at the TFWA Asia-Pacific event, slightly behind on the same period in 2025. They include L’Oréal, SK-II, Estée Lauder, Shiseido, Lacoste, Paul & Shark, Skechers, Travel Blue, Lego, Swarovski, EssilorLuxottica, Brown-Forman, Suntory, Moutai, Mondelez, Nestlé, Mars and Lindt.

TFWA’s push into gastronomy, hybrid retailing, and category‑led exhibition design reflects a broader realignment in the airport economy, where hospitality is starting to overtake traditional duty‑free as the engine of growth. Whether retailers ultimately embrace the association’s invitation to showcase their F&B concepts in Singapore remains to be seen, but the direction of travel is unmistakable.

Airports worldwide are reimagining themselves as experience‑driven commercial hubs, and TFWA is positioning its platform—and its community of global brands—squarely at the center of that transformation.