fragrance

TRP Travel Retail Style Index: January 2021



Helena Rubinstein gold leaf hand massage CDFG Sanya

Welcome to the latest travel retail column for DRG by Alison Farrington aka The Retail Planner (TRP).

As the first update of the New Year, we kick off with a brief look at the new laws for duty free here in the UK, as well as some positive retail news from China.


1/ SEE EU LATER.
This month, there will undoubtedly be much Brexsplaining going on as travellers come to terms with the cancellation of tax-free shopping refunds for luxury fashion purchases in the UK. As of 1 January, the government has abolished the VAT Refund Scheme for non-EU travellers in the UK, meaning that shoppers from overseas can no longer claim their tax back on luxury purchases when they return home, unless the goods are shipped separately from the traveller (cost prohibitive). Meanwhile, the good news is that duty-free shopping is back for travel between the UK and EU (for alchohol and tobacco only), which means a Brexit bonanza for fans of the booze cruise. (more…)



Shop the post: Jo Malone Christmas collection 2020



Jo Malone Christmas Collection

There once was a time when Christmas wasn’t Christmas without the ‘Jo Malone Christmas in July’ extravaganza in the JML Townhouse. From the year they built a mini skating rink in the house, to the time Jonathan Saunders reimagined everything in candyfloss pink and green, you could never quite predict what the festivities would look like. (more…)



Five-buck Byredo candles are coming (*kind of)



Ben Gorham X Ikea Byredo Osynlig candles

This has to be one of the most genius post-Covid launches I’ve seen.

Byredo’s Ben Gorham has teamed up with IKEA to produce a line of scented candles in rustic-chic ceramic holders, which will sell for as little as £5. If there’s one thing we cherish now, it’s things that make our homes feel secure and comforting. Candles were one of the unsurprising successes of lockdown, with Perfumer H reporting an uptick of its hand-poured cult candles at the height of the pandemic and start-ups like Good Candles popping up out of nowhere. (more…)



TRP Travel Retail Style Index: October 2020



Cartier Maillon de Cartier watch 2020

Welcome to a new travel retail column for DRG by Alison Farrington aka The Retail Planner (TRP)

As global travel picks up again, we look at the business and shopping trends of the travel retail world. In particular, the beauty, fashion, accessories, and watches & jewellery categories, dipping into the product exclusives and digital strategies that often launch in Asia and give the rest of the world an idea of innovations coming soon.

WHAT’S THE FUTURE FOR DUTY FREE SHOPPING? A major story this month, the entire travel retail industry is reeling from the latest government news that duty free is set to be abolished in the UK for everything bar alcohol and cigarettes from 1 Jan 2020. (more…)