Cartier has marked the history of style with watch models such as “Tank” or “Santos”, the famous “Trinity” ring or the “Juste Un Clou” bracelet.
Today, the French Maison opened its largest single-brand Travel Retail store at Istanbul Airport in partnership with joint venture Gebr. Heinemann, Unifree Duty Free and ATÜ Duty Free.
Situated in Area 4 from the airport, the “Luxury Watches & Jewelery Zone”, the boutique covers 130 square meters. Here in “Luxury Hill”, it is located close to other monobrand stores of international luxury brands such as Bulgari, Bottega Veneta, Celine, Christian Dior, Fendi, Gucci, Hermès, Louis Vuitton, Prada and Saint Laurent, complementing perfectly the unique shopping experience for travelers.
Shining like a precious jewel and visible from afar
Visible from afar, the spectacular 12-meter high façade. Shining like a precious jewel itself, it is designed with three-dimensional luminous elements shimmering like gold. The spacious entrance with display cases displaying the highlights of the watch and jewelry collection invites passengers to explore the elegantly furnished boutique. It offers a full range of the House with watches and jewelry as well as leather goods and a selection of perfumes and sunglasses. Cartier’s signature red color accents the light marble floor as well as the walls and furniture. An “Icon Bar” with the brand’s most famous pieces is placed in the center.
Jan Richter, FAWJ Purchasing Manager at Gebr. Heinemannsaid at the opening: “We are proud to partner with Cartier in our Istanbul Airport luxury market. The Maison is one of the top 3 luxury brands in the world. It represents legendary watches and jewelry that are passed down from generation to generation.”
Perfect complement to exclusive brands at Istanbul Airport
The high standards of exclusivity and creativity are also evident in new product lines such as “Clash De Cartier” and contemporary interpretations of classics such as “Santos”, which are also very appealing to a younger segment of buyers. “The Cartier monobrand boutique perfectly complements our offer of exclusive brands in Istanbul and will delight travelers. We thank all parties involved for their excellent cooperation,” continued Jan Richter. “As part of our strategy for the FAWJ category, we are strengthening our collaboration with the world’s leading luxury brands. Cartier is part of the Richemont group, one of our key strategic partners for this.”
Nicolas Martin, Managing Director Turkey & Levant at Cartier, underlined: “We are delighted to open Cartier’s largest boutique in Travel Retail with our valued partner and operator ATÜ Duty Free at Istanbul Airport. At Cartier, we continually strive to establish a presence in Turkey and look forward to being part of every traveler’s journey at this key international airport.
Ersan Arcan, CEO of ATÜ Duty Free said, “As ATÜ Duty Free, we are happy to cooperate with one of the most valuable brands in the world, ‘Cartier’. We consider the presence of an important brand such as Cartier, which is one of the first names that come to mind when it comes to elite brands globally, at the airport of Istanbul as an essential retail development. We continue to expand our portfolio by maintaining our knowledge and experience in the field of luxury, as we are one of the pioneers of Travel Retail. Our goal is to offer a privileged customer experience to our passengers by continuing our product and brand collaborations in the retail field, in addition to our domestic and foreign Duty Free shops and our special concept stores.
The luxury segment has proven itself
At Istanbul Airport, Gebr. Heinemann, together with ATÜ Duty Free and its partner brands, has created a luxury marketplace with single-brand boutiques and new multi-brand concepts that bring the ambiance of international department stores to the airport while setting new standards in Travel Retail. The joint venture caters to Istanbul Airport’s cosmopolitan audience with passengers from, for example, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates or Kuwait and, above all, global luxury travelers and millennials.
“The luxury segment has proven to be extremely resilient during the Covid-19 crisis. Due to the intrinsic and lasting value of a precious jewel, it attracts buyers. At Istanbul Airport, which was open then many other airports were closed, luxury brands performed above average,” says Jan Richter.
Contract negotiations with Cartier were initially halted by the pandemic, but finalized in 2021. The construction phase that followed went exactly as planned, reported Metin Yaldiz, Senior Sales Manager Middle East and Turkey at Gebr. Heinemann.
“We are delighted to have now completed the boutique and proud to have ATÜ Duty Free and Cartier as strong partners on board for the special shopping experience at Istanbul Airport.” And he underlined another peculiarity: “The store is a LEED-certified store. This certification standard developed by the US Green Building Council stands for “Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design”. This is another way for the new Cartier boutique to impose itself at the airport.
The joint venture of Gebr. Heinemann, Unifree Duty Free and ATÜ Duty Free operate a total retail area of 53,000 square meters at Istanbul Airport and are also responsible for running the center.
