At Taipei’s Taoyuan Airport, It’s Hello Kitty for the Girls, Glenlivet for the Boys

Airport retail has made massive strides over the past twenty years, with some like those in the Middle East practically becoming destinations in themselves. According to recent numbers from The Travel Retail Business (TRB), travelling consumers increased their average spend between 3-12-percent, with the top ten airports cashing in on $9.2 Billion. No, that’s bottled water, but the lucrative Duty Free market.

On a recent trip to Taiwan, it was clear why Taoyuan International Airport wasn’t included in that Top Ten list, but we couldn’t help but be amused by EVA Air’s special Hello Kitty Check-In zone, located in the airport’s Terminal 2.

At Top, EVA Air recently launched it’s Hello Kitty service to Los Angeles, featuring special cabin services like Hello Kitty meals. Below, a Kiosk at Taipei Airport’s Terminal 2.

It’s well known that for Asians, the Pink Pussy is catnip, and EVA Air has capitalized on that with a long partnership with the Sanrio cartoon. The airline recently relaunched it’s custom Hello Kitty airplanes and last September, began offering flights to Los Angeles.

Terminal 2’s Hello Kitty Check-In zone is designed to offer fans a bespoke experience, with Kitty-head computer consoles and replete with displays of all kinds of has Hello Kitty travel products, including toilet paper with Miss Kitty’s likeness all over it.

At the EVA Air Hello Kitty Check-In zone, displays showcase branded products such as toilet paper with the Sanrio character’s face.

Meanwhile, just past security and past what seems like miles of skin whitening product displays, is the complete opposite genre of target marketing, with The Glenlivet Whiskey’s homage to all things manly and aristocratic. Here is what marketers like to call an “interactive experience,” however it was woefully empty when we came upon it.

In a wasteland of dull retail is The Glenlivet pop up designed to showcase the brand’s heritage and encourage travelers to sip whiskey and play billiards. No one seemed to be game.

The space design references the classic pub or member’s club, and is dominated by a full-size billiards table and (faux) fireplace. Whiskey is served by uniformed hostesses. Still, nearly every passerby glided past it and the thimbles of free booze. More than likely they were looking for a restaurant, which at this Terminal, were in very short supply. Missed opportunity? I would have definitely stopped in for a pairings menu.

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