Planar LED Video Walls Increase Retail Sales at Airport Duty-Free Stores in Brazil

Dufry AG is a Swiss-based travel retailer that operates nearly 2,200 duty-free and duty-paid shops in airports, cruise lines, seaports, railway stations and central tourist areas in 60 countries worldwide. In 2010, former Dufry COO José Carlos Rosa was driving through Rio de Janeiro, Brazil when the brightness and dynamic movement of an LED display on the exterior of a gas station caught his attention. From this, an idea was born: an LED display could provide the same visual impact on the façade of Dufry's duty-free stores.

Launching the 'living façade' project

Rosa's insight inspired an initiative in Dufry's Brazil operations to explore how digital display technology could be used at airport branches for advertising, more efficient communications and to bring a more modern look to the stores.

This eventually led to the launch of the 'living façade' project at the Dufry duty-free store in Terminal 2 of Rio de Janeiro's Tom Jobim International Airport, featuring the installation of a Planar 4mm LED video wall. Created by marketing coordinator Fernando Botelho and Dufry's then marketing manager André Mafra, the initial goal of the project was to use the video wall to target travelers arriving on international flights.

First, Dufry collected data over a six-month period to develop a profile of travelers according to each incoming flight, learning what those customers tended to prefer in the store. Then, depending on the flight that was landing, Dufry used the video wall to highlight products that had shown to be the most preferred among those travelers, excluding the products that were already best sellers.

By reinforcing flight-specific customer preferences — apart from those that were already popular — Dufry could focus on the products that demonstrated the greatest potential for sales growth.

The campaign was highly successful. Dufry saw a considerable increase in retail sales among the products that were featured on the Planar LED video wall.

Expanding the project

Following the success of the first installation, Dufry began expanding the 'living façade' project to other duty-free branches and has integrated Planar LED video walls at seven7 total retail locations in airports across Brazil, including those in Rio De Janeiro, São Paulo, Campinas and Curitiba.

At each store, Dufry's team identifies the best location for a video wall based on visibility, attractiveness and maximum viewing time. To drive customer engagement, digital content and video are shown to support campaigns, promotions, and events. The installations include curved designs to take advantage of the most appropriate retail location and maximize viewing impact.

Engineered to last, the Planar LED video walls provide Dufry with reliable performance for around-the-clock operation. "The robust and secure assembly of the video walls protects the equipment from damage and ensures continuous operation over the long run," said Luiz Oliveira, country marketing core assistant. "The costs, time and resources that are required to shift from static communications to digital signage are justified by the cost returns. The overall benefits make each investment in a Planar LED video wall more than worthwhile."

Dufry is now looking to add more Planar LED video walls to other stores as part of a new campaign concept named "New Generation Stores" which targets greater interaction between customers and the brand using technology devices.