Page 22 - TFWA World Exhibit 2023 Special Edition

INSIDER

Spark’s Heidi Van Roon talks about Elevating Travel Retail Careers

Vancouver-based Spark Group, which many cases our roles are under-represented
has been supporting travel retail staffing or stigmatized. This perception needs to
and recruitment in Canada and the U.S. change.
for the past 10 years, is a finalist for the “The reality is that TR careers have
2023 Frontier Award: People and Planet / much to offer if we update what we do
Diversity and Inclusion for its campaign and build a more intentional plan that
called Elevating Travel Retail Careers. ensures top tier candidates for our stores.
The campaign proposes a modernized We want to help amplify this call with
Human Resources framework that rests one message at a time and many messages
on the values of Diversity and Inclusion, over time because I really don’t think this
Equity and Equality as a mission critical will go away. Among the costs that are
agenda for our industry, says company hardly mentioned are the opportunity costs
President & Founder Heidi Van Roon. Heidi Van Roon, Spark Group of attrition, disengaged staff, outdated
“The airport employment brand is President & Founder customer service models and understaffed
perfectly positioned for a more formalized counters, particularly in the categories that
ESG agenda that emphasizes workforce Spark proposes that in order to take good are not self-serve.”
design for top tier talent. It promises care of our customers, we first need to take Spark prepared a four-minute video
to elevate jobs to careers for our work care of our people who are at the front that explains the ideas, the priorities, and
teams that extend societal benefits to our line of the customer experience working a the action plans around recruiting, staffing,
communities while improving the customer bespoke magic into every engagement. and digitalization for a new era of retail. It
experience in our stores,” says Van Roon. Speaking with TMI, Van Roon can be seen on youtube.
“We believe the TR industry has an explains further: This campaign was also a finalist in
opportunity to become the most dynamic “I think especially for North America the 2022 Trinity Challenge that champions
retail experience anywhere if our people it will be essential for the industry to sustainable and innovative industry
priorities are designed and supported more elevate the messaging, the positioning practices in travel retail. The recognitions
intentionally.” and the practices around our employment to date signal that elevated professionalism
Van Roon insists that the new era of offers. In broad strokes we really need to in our stores is on the global radar.
Travel Retail is rebuilding around People move away from a jobs mindset and more For more information, contact heidi.
and Planet priorities. Toward that end, competitively towards a careers mindset. In vanroon@sparkgroupinc.com

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