Meet the Coffee Table Committee at Duty Free Philippines. These are the amazing people who worked around the clock over the past few weeks with me and The Moodie Report production team (heroic sub-editor Jon Elphick and top-notch designer Ray Heath) to produce ‘Duty Free Philippines 25 Years – Aquino to Aquino’, a coffee table
Events
Entering the conference theatre of the absurd
Tell me please that this in some way makes sense… Chinese company GIS Events and Ink of the UK announce the first ‘China Travel Retail Event’ to take place in Shanghai on 24-25 July, 2012, and thereafter annually. Days later (though, to be fair, after “around ten years” in development) TFWA announces the association’s first
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Miscellaneous
The thrill of travel retail in Oslo
I’m in Oslo this week for the 21st ACI Europe Trading Conference & Exhibition, one of the key annual gatherings of the airport commercial world. And refreshingly, I’m also back in one of my favourite duty free regions: the Nordics. Many of the travel retail stores in this part of Europe still exude real excitement,
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Miscellaneous
Meeting Madonna
They say you should never meet your heroes. Well, sometimes they say wrong. For this writer, meeting Madonna last week in New York City, at the launch event for her debut fragrance Truth or Dare, was an unrivalled “pinch me” moment, in a 16-year travel retail career that has contained a whole host of amazing
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Events
The way we were
In researching our forthcoming Coffee Table Book to celebrate Duty Free Philippines’ 25th anniversary – ‘Duty Free Philippines 25 Years – Aquino to Aquino’ – I came across many old industry photos that present compelling and often poignant memories of the past quarter century. By coincidence I entered the travel retail industry the same year
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Miscellaneous
Podding along at Heathrow T5
“Be careful what you wish for,” my favourite aunt used to caution. At long last I think I know exactly what she meant. Yesterday, for the first time ever, en route to NYC for today’s Truth or Dare by Madonna fragrance launch, I was upgraded. But contrary to what you might think, it didn’t actually
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Events
Swimming, running and riding The ‘Moodie-thon’
Word reaches The Moodie Blog of some extraordinary efforts being put in around the world for the second Moodie Multi-National Marathon, due to take place between 15 and 18 June. As reported, teams of six from travel retail companies will each run one-sixth of a marathon (7.03km), with members being able to take part anywhere
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People
An audience with Simon Chiang – a most amazing man
Meet Ever Rich Group Chairman and CEO Simon Chiang, one of Taiwan’s – and travel retail’s – great philanthropists. I had the absolute privilege of chatting with him this week in Taipei at Ever Rich Duty Free Shop Corporation headquarters, along with his charming and engaging son Kevin (below) who is Vice President of the
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Miscellaneous
Hitting new heights on Hong Kong Airlines
I’ve started writing this Blog from 34,000 feet, 1,000 miles out of Hong Kong. I’ve set up my most innovative Moodie Report bureau yet – onboard Hong Kong Airlines 875 out of Hong Kong International Airport en route to London Gatwick Airport. I’m two hours into the flight and I tell you something – this is
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Airports
Hong Kong International’s hearty feast
I’m at Hong Kong International Airport about to trial aviation newcomer Hong Kong Airlines back to London Gatwick. It’s a 13 and a half hour flight but they told me at check-in that they have wi-fi onboard! Magnifique!! Or is it? I have to say I the only time I get decent sleep is
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Airports
The waiting game continues in Hong Kong
From my temporary Hong Kong Bureau on the 21st floor of the Harbour Plaza Metropolis in Kowloon, I’ve got a good view of Hong Kong harbour and the amazing skyline that encircles it. Everyone I’ve met here has had the same subject on their mind – the fate of the core category tenders at Hong
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People
Making a Taipei connection
My whirlwind tour of Asia continues, after arriving in Taipei, Taiwan post a couple of tremendous days in Singapore for DFS’s superb Master of Spirits II event. I flew out of the always excellent Changi T3 (more about that experience in a subsequent blog) into Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport T2. I’m here to meet one
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Airports
A DFS Master class
DFS promised “an ensemble of significant fine, rare and extraordinary spirits, wines and Champagnes”. And boy, didn’t they just deliver… Blogging in the early, still jet-lagged hours of the morning after the (extraordinary) night before, I’m still buzzing about what I experienced at Master of Spirits II at the Grand Hyatt in Singapore. For any