AS TALLINK GROUP


The Tallink trade fair attracted nearly 2,000 employees to learn about the products from the ferry company’s suppliers on 9-10 May 2017.


entertainment, dinner and plenty of dancing. As such, the first of the two events


concentrated on awards for staff teams on the various boats – albeit with some fantastic ‘Ronnie Scotts style’ vocal-only jazz music. However, it was just fact that the


large crowd did look happier a little later when the DJ appeared with his Michael Jackson collection. During a break from the music,


Tallink also took the opportunity to announce its award winners – a traditionally established annual compere ceremony-style event, which was received extremely well by the staff audience. Various cheers greeted the


winning teams as they took to the stage, who were as follows: Best perfumery team - Baltic Queen perfumery team; Best supermarket team - Silja Symphony; Best retail team - Silja Serenade/Desigual shop; Best restaurant team - Baltic Princess retail team; Best Bar/Pub Team - MS Victoria Starlight Palace Team; and the Best Warehouse Team - Silja Europa.


Asian passenger growth While the majority of Tallink’s passengers are Finnish, Swedish, or of Nordic or Russian origin, an increasing number of non- Europeans now frequent the boats between May and October, with Skjörshammer pointing to Mainland Chinese (mainly flying to Helsinki), South Koreans, Taiwanese and Thai citizens. He said: “About three or four years


ago we saw an increase in these passengers and we even see groups


JUNE 2017


from India. It is clear these visitors see their trips with us as a beautiful way to be introduced to this part of the world on a quick cruise with everything onboard, such as casinos, restaurants, entertainment, shopping etc. “We have also seen a gradual


increase in the Russians coming back and this is happening everywhere now which is good. But they are more careful in the way they spend than before and not so extravagant.” Looking at the customer


penetration levels, Skjörshammer says the impressive ratio today works out to just over two visits per person, per trip and this has been helped by the introduction of walk-through style shops on several boats. Pre-planned purchasing is also


pretty high and while he says most impulse purchases are made by non-local passengers, they can also be spotted comparing prices on phones with those on their shopping lists they carry for themselves and their friends. For his own part, Skjörshammer


says he would like to see more activity in both high and lower end fashion and accessories, as a sector he feels has been underestimated for a long time in travel retail. He also believes operators have to be realistic in the present pressured climate. “We don’t have a huge sales


increase every year and that is not a goal in itself. As long as we are going in a positive direction I think that is good and especially considering the reality of the world as it is at the moment. “A lot of operators are struggling to maintain numbers and I think


“We have also seen a gradual increase in the Russians coming back and this is happening everywhere now which is good. But they are more careful in the way they spend than they were before and not so extravagant.”


Magnus Skjörshammer, AS Tallink Duty Free


we should be very satisfied having slight increases, although I know that doesn’t sound very correct because everybody looks for at least 5% to 10%.” Currently, Tallink and Silja’s main


routes include Estonia to Sweden; Latvia to Sweden; Estonia to Finland; Finland to Sweden and others. Meanwhile, the company is


also watching what contribution its new large Megastar vessel’s ‘Traveller Superstore’ will make on revenues – especially with its dual-floor duty free shopping offer spread over 2,800sq m. Tallink also invested heavily


in several retail upgrades to older vessels last year, as well as more modern online booking and sales systems. «


Tallink Silja shop staff celebrate their awards for excellence in retailing in Estonia at May’s Tallink fair.


TRBUSINESS 17


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