International airports are hot channels for luxury retailers

In the U.S., retailers of luxury goods, from alcohol to high-end bags, could have found the antidote to a declining format for shopping malls. Perhaps the elixir is found at airport terminals, where cash-rich spenders have plenty of non-active time to waste. For the first time last year, Estée Lauder (revenue of US$13.7 billion in 2018) generated higher revenue at airports globally than at North American department stores such as Macy’s or Nordstrom. This compares with 10 years ago, when North