Page 181 - North American & Caribbean Cruise Traveller

Industry Insider:
North American & Caribbean Cruise Duty & Tax Free Retail 2015
9.2.2 CHANNEL DIFFERENTIATION
The on-board and on-land Duty / Tax Free services are often grouped together as part of the same channel due to both being associated with cruise retail. However, retailers and brands should consider the on-land offering as very different from on-board services and differentiate away from the on-board offering as much as possible to provide a fresh cruise retail experience for the traveller. This is illustrated by several key shopping behaviour differences:
 Although the most purchased category both on-board and on- land, souvenir purchasing is more prominent on-land than onboard (49% vs. 41% on-board)
 Souvenir purchasing also plays a much greater role in gift item suitability, with 51% purchasing a gift due to it being a good souvenir of the country visited compared to just 38% purchasing a gift for this reason on-board
 Not being able to get an item at home is a more promient purchase driver on-land than onboard (25% vs. 19%)
 Planned purchasing is more prominent on-land than on-board (75% on-land vs 63% on-board)
 A higher incidence of regular brand purchasing is apparent on- land compared to on-land (63% on-land vs. 56% on-board)
Priority should be placed on differentiating the on-land channel from the on-board channel as well as other non-cruise Travel Retail experiences the traveller may encounter at other points during their trip. However, on-land store operators should also look to differentiate from other on-land stores the traveller will experience during their cruise.
The very nature of the Caribbean region, i.e. numerous locations all with a unique identify and culture, presents a key opportunity to drive this. Retailers should look to offer a greater range of location specific products and specialties in addition to exclusive promotional activity. Brands can support this through offering location specific items or packaging. Furthermore, stores should be designed to reflect the location to drive interest and make the store an extension of the holiday experience rather than just a retail opportunity.
The very nature of the Caribbean region presents a key opportunity to drive differentiation from the on-board Duty & Tax Free offer as well as other port stores the traveller may experience during their trip
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