Airports create unique retail environments. Bored travelers, with little else to do, search for something, or sometimes anything, to buy. For retailers, these demands mean two main things: They can charge nearly any price they want, and they need to develop an assortment that offers nearly everything under the sun. Accordingly, a common type of airport store represents what we can refer to as blended retail, meaning that these retailers stock multiple, disparate categories of goods. By visiting such shops, travelers can easily find a drink, snack, puzzle, book, pillow, postcard, and souvenir, all in one place.

But at Heathrow Airport in London, the retail design has, historically, been a bit different. Most of its shops feature a clear segmentation and specialize in particular offerings rather than containing blended essentials. In some terminals, travelers would need to visit one kiosk for a newspaper, another for coffee, a third for souvenirs for their family, and so on.

Such inefficiencies, especially in one of Europe’s busiest hubs, where many passengers have only quick delays between flights, can prove inconvenient and frustrating, both for consumers who want to shop and for shops that want to take their money. Furthermore, Heathrow recently has experienced exponential growth. The number of travelers has outpaced the capacities of its existing retail infrastructure. Noting these trends, Heathrow’s management began collecting extensive traveler feedback, which indicated that consumers actively sought more centralized retail locations. Next, the airport operators put out a call for blended essential retail designs, with the clear indication that successful proposals would account for large crowds and prioritize efficiency.

The review produced two clear choices for retail operators that would help Heathrow introduce more blended outlets. Namely, it selected an existing partner, the U.K.-based WHSmith brand, to expand its existing operations in the airport. Then it extended offers to a new partner called Relay, a retail brand operated by France’s Lagardère Travel Retail.

The newly introduced, blended stores will be evident across all of Heathrow’s terminals. In Terminal 2 for example, one Relay location will take up almost 15,000 square feet. In a relatively novel introduction, it will include a pharmacy, allowing travelers to pick up cold medicine or personal hygiene products. In other terminals, existing WHSmith outlets will expand their presence, providing more blended retail concepts stores throughout the spaces. For example, the chain hopes to introduce cafes as part of its expansion, featuring hot drinks and baked goods to offer some easy, on-the-go sustenance.

Discussion Questions

1. Would a blended essentials retail store work well in other settings, outside of airports? Which ones?
2. What adjustments would you suggest making to a typical blended retail airport store’s depth and breadth of offerings?

Sources: Kevin Rozario, “Heathrow’s Shift to Blended Retail Is a Big Win for Relay and WHSmith,” Forbes, July 19, 2025; Luke Barras-Hill, “Lagardère Travel Retail UK & Ireland Announces New Leadership Team,” TRBusiness, August 6, 2024; “Heathrow Invites Bids for Blended Essentials Stores Across T2,” DFNI Magazine, June 13, 2024.