Concessionaire SSP has released a new whitepaper addressing trends across the travel hospitality industry. Analyzing the geopolitical factors, societal shifts and changing environmental concerns that drive traveler behavior, the report notes a few emerging observations. In the wake of the increasing replacement of human interaction with technology, customers desire multi-sensory experiences that go beyond the transactional and foster connection in their airport experiences, with SSP citing as an example concepts like the Sky Gamerz restaurant at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), where customers can engage in multiplayer video games. And while customers value an interactive, human-led experience, they also simultaneously value technology that is efficient and user-friendly, the report adds, citing SSP’s Order@Table and self-serve kiosk capabilities.
Travelers continue to prioritize health and well-being airport amenities, a trend that the concessionaire has responded to by incorporating its “Better Choice” menu initiative. The report notes that due to rising costs of travel and inflation customers continue to prioritize value in airport amenities, to which SSP notes that it has implemented a mix of value-oriented and premium brands across its portfolio. Additionally, customers continue to seek out brands that prioritize sustainable practices and align with their values, a trend that SSP has responded to by setting a goal to reach zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040. Travel timing and trip purposes have also evolved in a post-COVID-19 landscape, the report concludes, with “bleisure” and leisure trips outpacing business travel and customers more frequently choosing to travel outside of typical holiday peak seasons.
“We are the food travel experts – and that expertise must be underpinned by a profound understanding of how the travelling consumer thinks and behaves. To deliver fantastic experiences wherever we operate, we stay close to our customers’ evolving demands and what needs to be done to help our clients meet those needs,” said SSP’s group chief operating officer Jeremy Fennell “In the fast-changing post-COVID world, the pace at which trends have emerged has accelerated at an unprecedented rate, meaning keeping abreast of change and reacting to it quickly is an even more demanding process. Across our business, we run a spectrum of some of the most comprehensive studies within our industry to identify and track emerging trends as well as map the regional differences in these shifts. And of course how we use knowledge we have gathered is crucial. Here at SSP, it’s the foundation of our planning, and we use it to create innovative brands, on-trend menus, and inspiring environments that delight passengers today, and will continue to delight them in the future. This is how we achieve our purpose of being the best part of the journey.”
