"Airport Travelers Look for Name Brand Retailers, Online Access, Entertainment"

Sunday, September 22, 2002

Airport Travelers Look for Name Brand Retailers, Online Access,
Entertainment
The Orlando (FL) Sentinel


At least once a week, Chris Warhurst, a telecommunications salesman,
says goodbye to his family and wades through the lengthy security and
check-in lines at his hometown airport in Dallas to fly across the
country. 

Because he spends an average of three days a week on the road, Warhurst
tries to squeeze in last-minute shopping, haircuts and other business
while waiting in various airports. It's the only way the 34-year-old
husband and father can manage his life back in Texas. 

"When I'm at home, I want to maximize my time with my family. I prefer
to take care of personal errands while waiting at an airport," said
Warhurst, who got a haircut at Orlando International Airport during a
recent, two-hour wait for a flight home. His previous haircut had come
during a pause at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport on his way out
of town. 

As early check-in times and other security measures force business
travelers like Warhurst to spend more time in airport terminals, the
demand for on-site amenities and services is growing. 

Catering to business travelers is not new, of course. Shoeshines, for
example, have been available in most airports for decades. And post
offices, banks and name-brand restaurants are now mainstays of many
terminals. But passengers are asking for even more ways to kill time. 

Take these comment cards collected between April and June at Orlando
International: When asked to suggest new services, passengers said they
wanted "an arcade with high tech games,""more Internet access,""more
food concessions and a movie theater" and "live entertainment."

Although some of the requests -- the movie theater, for instance --
would be costly additions, the Orlando airport has already taken steps
to expand its range of services. For example, while travelers can't duck
into a theater, they can rent DVDs and a portable digital player from
InMotion Pictures, a new business with counters in two of the airport's
four airside terminals. 

Construction crews are also working on phase one of a three-year
expansion and renovation that includes new shops and services in the
main terminal. 

A Borders Books & Music with in-store coffeehouse is scheduled to open
in December. The airport has also discussed adding an office-supply
store, such as Staples. 

"We feel that anything we can do to alleviate passenger stress is in the
best interest of the airport," said C. William Jennings, executive
director of the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, which oversees the
facility. 

As the nation's 15th-largest airport, Orlando International already
offers everything from 11 Internet kiosks and 210 data ports to Profiles
Hair & Color Salon, where you can get a one-hour therapeutic massage for
$60 or a French manicure for $30. 

"Business travelers, in particular, have unique and varied
needs,"Jennings said. "They aren't necessarily looking for a hot dog or
cold sandwich stand. . . . They want an environment that's calming and
quiet, where they can relax and get some work done."

The airport also has a Hyatt Regency hotel, a full-service Bank of
America and various retailers, including large souvenir shops run by
Orlando's Big Three theme parks -- Walt Disney World, Universal Studios
and SeaWorld. 

Collectively, the airport's share of all the food, retail, service and
hotel income generates almost 22 percent of its annual revenue. 

Of the 28 million or so passengers who pass through the Orlando airport
each year, 50 percent are on a leisure trip, 30 percent are traveling on
business and 20 percent are doing both. They each spend an average of
two hours of "dwell time" at the airport as they arrive or depart, said
Carolyn Fennell, director of public affairs. 

"Part of running the airport is about anticipating their needs," she
said. 

That's why the airport offers shops with the kinds of merchandise that
travelers forget to pack or buy, such as sunglasses, scarves, ties and
souvenirs, she said. That's also why business travelers who forget to
pack computer disks or highlight pens might be interested in an
office-supply store.

Not all of the airport's amenities are work-related or even publicized:
The Hemisphere Restaurant, on an upper floor of the Hyatt, has its
tables facing east, toward several wide, bay windows -- perfect for
watching space-shuttle launches from Kennedy Space Center, 50 miles
away. 

Jennings said the airport is in the market for another casual-dining
restaurant chain on the main floor of the terminal. 

Christine Wirthwein, who runs a Buffalo, N.Y., company that markets
retirement communities, prefers to eat and shop at airport businesses
with recognizable brand names. Reputable chains take the guesswork out
of finding a nice meal or something worth buying, said Wirthwein, who
travels every month on business. 

"My time is precious," she said during a recent stop in Orlando. "It's
just easier to shop and eat at places I know."


 Do you have an opinion about this story?
Share it with other readers in our CAA Discussion Forums

http://www.californiaaviation.org/cgi-bin/dcforum/dcboard.cgi?conf=DCConfID8

*****************************************