Now, Heathrow Reveals New Travel Essentials Strategy To Improve Passenger Experience, Here Is All You Need To Know

Published on July 16, 2025

Heathrow has revealed significant improvements to its retail offer, introducing a new Travel Essentials “strategy”, which focuses on enhancing the shopping experience for all customers. In collaboration with major retail partners WHSmith and Lagardère Travel Retail, this new approach is set to redefine the airport’s retail environment with an elevated, high-quality blended offer for essential items. This will cover things like news, books, health and beauty, all in one location in different terminals.

And it is a response to the great feedback we have had from thousands of pax on what retailers can do to support time-poor travelers. In order to offer passengers greater convenience and accessibility, the new retail format will mean that passengers have easy access to all their travel essentials in one place, enabling them to shop more easily while at the airport.

This new approach is expected to feature heavily in not only an improved customer journey, but the wider tourism offering. By enhancing the shopping experience at the world’s busiest airport, Heathrow is establishing itself as a major stop for tourists and travelers looking for a seamless travel experience that extends beyond just flights and lines at security.

Tourist Experience Improvement: Single Universe shopping Destination

Inspired by current retail trends and the needs of today’s savvy voyager, Heathrow’s new retail vision is geared to serving tourists throughout their journey. The collaboration with WHSmith and Lagardère Travel Retail is a driving force behind a wide offering of travel essentials, ranging from lastminute purchases to more relaxed and paced shopping occasions.

The RELAY brand will be presented by the existing travel retail operator at Heathrow ​​(Terminal 2) Lagardère Travel Retail in summer 2026 and be available in the UK for the first time. RELAY, the leading operator of travel essential and convenience stores in airports, with a presence in more than 300 airports around the globe, will offer an unparalleled airport shopping experience. Details about the store The new store will sell a range of convenience goods, including books, magazines, snacks, and sundries – all for travellers who need to shop on the go. This is likely to have a major effect on the retailing aspect of tourism in terms of improved access and convenience, that is, necessary conditions for harried tourists.

Moreover, the RELAY store will include a pharmacy, which will allow travelers to conveniently purchase items related to health, such as over-the-counter (OTC) goods and toiletries. With these developments, passengers will experience a new level of convenience as we flip the Heathrow experience and transform journeys for all of our passengers.

More of WHSmith: A Boost for Local and International Travel

Significantly, this new retail strategy sees WHSmith establishing an enlarged presence throughout Heathrow terminals. The brand will run a number of travel essentials stores throughout Terminals 3, 4, and 5, including flagship sites targeting travelers offering them a selection of products to suit their needs. This will include an extended health and beauty range, together with WHSmith’s award-winning food range, featuring Smith’s Family Kitchen.

This extended offer is going to offer great convenience to many good-value customers in a hurry, be it to quickly buy essentials or grab some good food before their flight. The expanded service is expected to be a major boon to international tourists, who often are looking for a quick and convenient stop to purchase essentials or enjoy good food before a flight. With an extensive range of health and beauty items, including snacks and travel accessories, WHSmith is able to cover all their passengers’ needs, whether they are flying domestically or internationally.

The passengers of Heathrow can see even more shopping destinations soon and this will make London’s Airport an even more attractive place to use for tourists. Tourism-related retail has become a larger part of he economy of Heathrow, and these retail updates are serving to position the airport as a key portion of the travel journey — not just a transit point, but also a destination unto itself.

Supporting Local Economy and Enhancing Heathrow’s Reputation

This new form of the retail attraction no doubt will bring economic benefit to the local economy as well as to the tourism industry as a whole. Lagardère Travel Retail and WHSmith are investing in Heathrow to provide enhanced world-class shopping Wander through abandoned workshops and sheds to emerge on to the royal estate that gave Mendip House its name for passengers and tourists alike.

The updated retail selections are designed to bring in more travelers and coax them to ​l​inger longer and spend more while ​in the airport​. With the perquisite of being able to purchase items they need whilst in transit, travelers are more likely to purchase luxury services or novelty travel items that would improve their traveling experience as well and Heathrow’s tourism-generated revenue.

The Long Game: The Future of Travel Retail

RELAY and WHSmith partnerships are only the start of a wider plan to bring about a more seamless and convenient airport shopping experience to the traveller community. Heathrow Retail Strategy: The long term aim “Heathrow aims to become a more tourist-friendly airport, providing a portfolio of products and services that meet the needs of the modern traveller.”

Heathrow’s long-term investment is larger than the goods distributed — it is the experience. MK: The incorporation of flagship stores, the gamut of food and beverage offerings and staple health and beauty products will likely make them more ready and supported during their visits. Travel-­retail related trade is a significant growth driver for airports around the world, and Heathrow strives to provide passengers with all they require prior to their departure.

Championing: The Future of Travel To drive traveler comfort and quality, the retail facilities at Heathrow will lead the way for a future-proof travel experience that will bring people to the country for decades to come. For convenience, luxury or cultural experience, stores selling modernized travel essentials are designed with the traveler of today in mind.

Conclusion: Rejuvenation of the Heathrow Tourist Experience

The new ‘Travel essentials’ approach at Heathrow will revolutionise the airport’s retail offering and transform the experience for passengers travelling through the airport. By working with partners such as WHSmith and Lagardère Travel Retail, Heathrow is making vital items more convenient to access, providing first-class services and guaranteeing holiday-makers get to their destinations with everything they need to keep their journey on track.

Global travel If there is one thing Heathrow is focusing on and is doing well on improving, then it’s the tourist experience and that’s what will continue to make it the preferred destination for international travelers. The new retail concept combines convenience, choice and quality in perfect harmony – the key ingredients to growing Heathrow’s burgeoning tourism sector for decades to come. These collaborations and unique approach to activating space are reshaping airport retail on a global scale.