ASUTIL and m1nd-set launch B1S recovery monitor to support return to growth

Latin American duty free association ASUTIL is among the first of the regional associations to partner with Swiss research agency m1nd-set to adopt m1nd-set’s recovery monitor and share insights with its members.

mind-set is supporting the industry’s return to growth with traffic and shopping behavior insights from its data tool Business 1ntelligence Service (B1S).

According to m1nd-set, the quarterly monitor reports will be provided free of charge to all interested regional trade associations, so members are able to view a summary of the key traffic trends and relevant shopper trends for the top nationalities travelling through their respective regions.

The Q1 report for Latin America reveals that international departures from the region fell by more than 68% between 2019 and 2020, from 115.7 million passengers to 36.7 million in 2020. The growth is expected to be steady from 2021, with a 38.5% increase in outbound traffic. 2022 will be e ven more positive, with a forecast of 74% growth and 88 million departures. The 2019 traffic levels will be reached and surpassed in 2023, when outbound flights are forecast to grown by 37.5% reaching 121 million departing passengers.

The B1S LATAM recovery monitor highlights shopper insights from the region’s top four traveling nationalities: from the US, Mexico, Brazil and Argentina. The monitor shows key trends for each nationality pre-Covid and the post Covid shopping intentions. One positive finding is tht just under three quarters of travelers from the region say they plan to travel again within the first six months after restrictions are lifted. However, among these returning travellers, three out of four indicate that they will reduce both their business and leisure-related travel, compared to pre-Covid.

About 6 out of 10 travelers from the region cut expenses and spend less on a daily basis since the Covid pandemic, while 55% spend more time watching videos and tutorial online, (ie. On YouTube.) Around one quarter would opt to shop online for their duty free and pick up at the boarding gate or on arrival if the service is offered. The majority (64%) of shoppers will not be concerned about interaction with sales staff and will continue to engage with sales advisors, albeit taking precautions.

Jose-Luis Donagray, Secretary General at ASUTIL added: “ASUTIL endeavors to provide regular and relevant insights to our members through our events and insights. There has seldom been a greater need for data as now; all stakeholders in the region will be keen to understand how both traffic and shopping behaviour will evolve in the weeks and months ahead. We have worked with m1nd-set for almost a decade and this partnership approach is testimony to their continued strong work ethic and sincerely appreciated by all of us at ASUTIL”.

m1nd-set owner and CEO Peter Mohn commented: “We have been working very closely with all the major regional trade associations for many years now, so we feel it is important to show our solidarity with them and their members in these difficult times. Positive news of the vaccine being rolled out in a growing number of countries is spreading optimism and we are seeing a significant spike in demand for the B1S recovery data among many of our major clients, as they plan ahead for the coming months.”

For more information on the post-Covid recovery research, please contact m1nd-set: info@m1nd-set.com