Airport pulls covers off $50m revamp

The airport's remodelled retail area centres on the tree-like structure known as Pou Manawa. Photo / Ollie Dale

Auckland International Airport has unveiled a $50 million retail revamp after two years of work and is promising there will not be any signs of construction activity during next year's Rugby World Cup.

"There'll not be a single orange cone or barricade during the World Cup," said airport chief executive Simon Moutter at the unveiling of the new duty-free area yesterday.

Parts of the airport have resembled a construction zone during the past two years with extensive modifications and constant building around the international terminal.

There would be some further shop fitout in the "airside" international duty-free and retail area for departing passengers and some more work on bars and food outlets in the public side of the terminal but this would be finished before the World Cup kicks off on September 9.

It was also expected the 263-room hotel in the carpark outside the international terminal would be open by July.

The new airside retail area includes luxury outlets and has as its centrepiece an impressive tree-like structure that branches out to a fabric-covered frame likened by Auckland Mayor Len Brown to the Starship Enterprise.

The structure, known as Pou Manawa, is lit up with images depicting flight and voyaging.

The old 1980s-vintage retail area was dated and shops blocked the view towards the airfield. It is now more spacious with floor-to-ceiling windows.

Speciality outlets available in the airport for the first time include Apple, Mac cosmetics, Swatch watches and adidas. JR Duty Free and DFS opened two revamped duty-free stores inMay.

Retail revenue makes up almost a third of total turnover but took a 9 per cent hit during the last financial year, falling from $105.3 million to $95.8 million.

The airport blamed disruption caused by the building activity and a Commerce Commission requirement to reinstate two duty free operators following the exit of Regency Duty Free.

The company has said some disruption is still to be expected during the current year but the impact would be more modest and benefits of completed works would lift spending.

Auckland Airport's general manager of retail, Adrian Littlewood, said that with 13 million international passengers through the airport, it was busier than any of New Zealand's shopping malls.

An improved shopping environment would encourage travellers to linger longer and spend more. At present they dwell for between 40 minutes and 45 minutes on average.

While New Zealanders and Australians accounted for most of the hundreds of millions of dollars in turnover through the airport shops, he said, the biggest spenders per person were Asian travellers.

Pou Manawa

* An illuminated fabric-covered 9m-tall structure.

* Designed by Ignite Architects.

* Pou means post or pillar, manawa means the heart of a person or seat of affections.

* Cost not revealed - part of a $50 million project.