Innovation doesn’t just mean the latest tech or digital advancements – it’s about thinking differently, doing differently, and finding new ways to make the shopping journey better.

Interestingly, recent research from the team at M1nd-set explored the relationship between categories and where opportunities lie to drive cross-category collaboration and growth.

M1nd-set’s “Cross Category Collaborations in Global Travel Retail” takes an interesting look at the categories currently shopped together, and how as retailers we can look to leverage and grow this type of shopping behaviour across the wider retail environment.

Here are just a few of the highlights from the report, as identified by ARI’s Global Research & Insights team:

• The average spend among the top five categories ranges from $28 for Confectionery to $117 for Perfumes, with Skincare at second highest at $99, Alcohol at $87 and Tobacco at $55.
• Travellers buy an average of 1.6 categories when shopping in duty free. Both Gen Z and Millennials shop above this average, at 1.8 and 1.7 categories respectively. Another contributing factor to cross-category shopping is location, with Africa, the Middle East and South America proving more likely to purchase from more than one category.
• When purchasing more than one category, just under a quarter of Fragrance buyers (23%) also purchase Confectionery when shopping in duty free. 18% purchase Confectionary and Alcohol, while Tobacco and Souvenirs equate to 15% and 10% when matched with Confectionary.
• Specific pairings act as powerful spend catalysts. When certain categories are paired the average spend increases, for example the average spend on Alcohol increases by 55% (USD $87 to USD $135) when bought alongside Electronics. While this varies by demographic, areas where an uplift in spending are most common are Europe and Asia Pacific.

In an interview with DFNI, M1nd-set’s CEO Peter Mohn stated: