Airports of Thailand (AOT) plans to cut the floor space given to duty-free shops in Suvarnabhumi International Airport, moving more sales to pick-up counters and handing part of the area to automated gates.
The airport operator also expects to announce details of a new paid Premium Service for arriving and departing passengers this month.
AOT President Paweena Jariyathitipong said the duty-free model had not performed as well as it should have, so the company would review how it uses the space to match what passengers actually do and want.
Duty-free sales will continue, but more of them will go through pick-up counters, and some of the freed space could serve other airport services, she told Thai PBS.
AOT is still in talks with King Power, its main duty-free partner, about changing how the business runs. Paweena explained that duty-free carries high costs for infrastructure, stock management and logistics inside the airport, so both sides need a deal that works for each of them.
Currently, King Power runs pick-up counters on the fourth-floor departures level after immigration, where travellers collect goods bought in the city or online, according to the company’s website.
The Premium Service will separate users from general passengers on both arrival and departure, and it will be open to investors and any traveller willing to pay, not only celebrities. Passengers will be able to buy single services such as valet parking and golf cart transfers instead of a full package, and AOT is deciding whether to run the service itself or with an international partner.
The AOT president said the service would not earn a large sum compared with AOT’s main income, but it would add a new revenue stream. Infoquest reported that AOT expects to announce the service in November, possibly with partner airports, so that it covers the whole journey.
The changes come as AOT’s fifth Suvarnabhumi master plan sits with the Transport Ministry before it goes to Cabinet.
The pick-up shift is separate from the return of arrivals duty-free shopping, which AOT said in August was still at the feasibility-study stage. Infoquest reported that the Finance Ministry will consider reopening arrivals duty-free and take the matter to Cabinet, and that this space would also work mainly as a pick-up point.
Related news:
- Thailand arrival duty-free shops could return under AOT plan
- Suvarnabhumi Auto Gate to open to 31 more nationalities
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