As air travel picks up during the post-COVID recovery, JFK International Airport’s Terminal 4 launched New York’s first digital marketplace for duty free shopping.
The new e-commerce venture, announced by JFKIAT, which operates Terminal 4 (T4), enables travelers flying through the terminal to purchase duty-free items online before arriving or while waiting for departure at their gate, dining at the terminal or visiting one of the terminal’s premium lounges.
“JFKIAT has continued to innovate T4’s offerings to ensure our customers have a seamless experience from curb to gate, and we are proud to partner with Inflyter and DFS Group to launch one of the first duty-free marketplaces in a U.S. airport terminal,” JFKIAT President and CEO Roel Huinink said. “In the wake of the pandemic, it is critical for our customers and employees to feel as safe as possible, and ensuring contactless experiences is an important component to rebuilding confidence in air travel. As we begin to see more passenger traffic return, we are pleased to offer a new way for our customers to enjoy a premium shopping experience at T4. We look forward to more of our retail partners joining this new platform as well.”
Purchases will be delivered directly to the gate and passengers will receive their items just before they enter the aircraft. The digital marketplace enables a contactless and fully digital purchase process, creating a safer and more seamless experience for customers and employees.
“As consumers intend to continue their online shopping behavior post-pandemic, we are delighted to have partnered with JFKIAT to deliver an e-commerce platform that will offer passengers the convenience of being able to shop duty-free online whenever they want, and not just at the airport,” Inflyter Founder and CEO Wassim Saadé said. “What is of particular significance is that this digital marketplace will showcase multiple retailers enabling JFKIAT to pioneer one of the first fully integrated, online and offline premium shopping experiences in the United States.”
Since the beginning of the pandemic, JFKIAT took immediate action to ensure high levels of safety within the terminal, staying in close contact with the CDC and government agencies, increasing and enhancing cleaning routines throughout the building, and implementing safe practices for processing flights and passengers arriving from affected areas.
With the launch of its new campaign, JFKIAT has innovated beyond standard air terminal practices in order to look ahead to the future, seeking to address anxiety, ensure the highest level of safety practices, and leverage cutting-edge technology to prepare T4 for the next normal of air travel.
“At DFS, we continually seek to offer our traveling customers a first-class shopping experience,” DFS North America Managing Director Martin Matthews said. “With the Inflyter app and e-commerce site, our customers now have another way to enjoy exclusive, local and limited-edition products that can only be found at DFS.”
The offering is JFKIAT’s latest move to enable a contactless customer experience.
In 2019, JFKIAT launched AtYourGate at T4, giving customers the ability to order food and beverages on the AtYourGate app and have items delivered to their gate. With the launch of the digital marketplace, JFKIAT also plans to expand the offering to include other retailers within T4 to provide customers with a wider range of products to shop.
