TFWA World Exhibition 2015 in pictures

The great and good of the spirits world flocked to Cannes last week for the TFWA World Exhibition & Conference. Here’s a glimpse at the glamorous event in pictures.

Here’s a picture of the TFWA World Exhibition & Conference in pictures

Held from 18-23 October, TFWA is one of the foremost trade events in the spirits industry calendar, promising parties, prime networking events and insightful research.

The show’s president Erik Juul-Mortensen said the show had been “completed successfully” despite a fall in visitor numbers and devastating floods along the French Riviera.

Sandwiched by a stylish opening and closing party, the event comprised 10 “villages” of exhibition space spread throughout the Palais, along with a packed conference schedule to accompany the back-to-back business meetings.

Click through the following pages to see the TFWA World Exhibition & Conference 2015 in pictures. Images courtesy of TFWA.

Held at the Palais des Festivals, TFWA World Exhibition & Conference over came damage caused by severe flooding along the French Riviera to miraculously open on schedule. Erik Juul-Mortensen, TFWA president, said: “The board and management of TFWA have been very impressed by the speed and efficiency of our partners and the authorities in Cannes during the clean-up process following the extraordinary deluge and subsequent flooding in the city ten days ago. The MIPCOM show which precedes TFWA World Exhibition & Conference took place as planned last week without any major problems.”

On the opening Sunday of its Cannes show, TFWA hosted a range of leisure activities, including a pétanque and golf tournament, as well as a second, somewhat rainy, charity run along the Croisette.

The show’s Opening Cocktail party got proceedings off to a stylish start, allowing duty free professionals and press to rub shoulders ahead of a busy week.

A superb firework display generously provided by the City of Cannes rounded off the evening with a bang.

TFWA’s Opening Conference is one of the most hotly anticipated aspects of the show among those who want to gain some unique insight into the sector. This year, Generation Research figures revealed that global travel retail wines and spirits sales fell -2.5% in the first half of 2015, with TFWA president Erik Juul-Mortensen claiming the industry is experiencing a “period of intense and lasting change”.

Held every year, TFWA’s Market Watch seminar focussed on travel retail conditions in South Korea – the world’s largest single duty free & travel retail market. According to Generation Research, the industry in South Korea registered sales growth of 22.8% last year, giving it a global market share of 12.3%. Incheon International Airport is estimated to be the world’s leading travel retail location by sales.

The seminar discussed how South Korea’s travel retail landscape has changed considerably this year with the award of new concessions at Incheon and the imminent allocation of lucrative downtown duty free licences in Seoul and Jeju. Is speakers included

SK Walkerhill senior vice president & head of duty free division Mikyong Kwon and Yang Soung-hoon, professor of the division of International Tourism at Silla University in Busan.

 

TFWA is an unmissable event for brands from across a plethora of industries to showcase their products. For spirits in particular, the “sixth continent” is an increasingly important market in which to have widespread access. Click here to see The Spirits Business‘s selection of top products exhibited.

At this year’s Inflight Focus, three experts assessed the present-day inflight sector and its future development. Speakers included: Ana Rita Aragão, inflight sales director for Lojas Francas de Portugal/TAP Air Portugal; Jasmine Li, manager of inflight sales and service development for Cathay Pacific; and Joe Harvey, chief sales and marketing officer for Tourvest Inflight Retail Services.

TFWA introduced a new feature to its seminar list this year, called TFWA Research Workshop. The one-hour TFWA Research Workshop presented key findings of the Association’s most recent research studies, all of which are available free of charge to members. It presented data by Counter Intelligence Retail (CIR) research director, Alison Hughes, showing that average transaction values in the alcohol category stood at US$78, versus a travel retail average of US$140.

The party heart of TFWA, The Scene nightclub, was lively as ever. A favourite haunt of those in search of some inter-industry, after-hours party action featured DJs and mixologists aplenty.

Le Premium Evening is described as the “social highlight” of the week. Closing TFWA, the event presented the perfect opportunity for guests to reflect and finish any last minute networking.

Guests were treated to a sumptuous dinner prepared by award-winning chef Davide Oldani, creator of ‘Cucina POP’, and a show by Cirque Eloize from Montreal, who presented a “blend of music, movement and artistry”.