For some, it’s the highlight of the journey. For others ,its just another trolly coming through the plane. It’s of course, the in-flight tax-free shopping. For KLM flyers however, this is coming to an end.
KLM Boeing 747-400 pushing back from Chicago O’Hare – You’ll have until January 2020 to buy duty free onboard with the airline. Image, Economy Class and Beyond
Duty Free/Tax Free sales will end during July 2019 on European Flights, and January 2020 on intercontinental flights.
The airline blames on-line shopping, as well as completion from airports, who can offer larger ranges than what can be carried aboard a trolley or two.
KLM follow a lot of the US-based carriers who have given up on Duty Free/Tax Free shopping
The airline is considering what other “Travel Retail” they could offer
In Quotes
Miriam Kartman, Executive Vice President, KLM Inflight Services states
“Because the current sales process no longer meet today’s customer requirements, we have decided, after extensive deliberation, to bring this to an end,”
. “As a result, passengers on our European flights will no longer be able to buy tax-free articles on board from July 2019 and from January 2020 on our intercontinental flights.”
Not unexpected
In Flight Retail has always been a challenging concept – and in the past it worked when there was a minimal chance to price compare. As we move into an age where the consumer can click and collect something, the need for duty-free is slowly vanishing.
Even if people like me pick out the odd thing from the catalogue every now and again.
I maintain this is the best €5 I’ve spent all year.
But with galley space a premium these days, there maybe better ways of doing it – a good example is Finnair with their order ahead service.
As such, we maybe seeing the end of the traditional duty-free service as it was – and maybe the beginning of something more creative when it comes to in-flight shopping
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