Women In Travel Retail+

TFWA Cannes – Annual Fundraising Event
2019-10-01 17:30 (Europe/London) | By the Business Centre and Hotels desk on Level 1 at the Palais des Festivals
All WiTR member and ladies of the travel retail and duty free industry are invited to join us at our annual fundraising event. Join us for a glass of prosecco, thanks to Follador. There will be a silent auction, business card draw and other surprises on the evening. Please remember to bring €20 for the business card draw! See you there!

Career progression female leadership in the Spirits industry
2021-05-25 | Zoom

Conducting business in China – Hainan 1 year on how to successfully adapt to change
2021-06-07 | Zoom

Refocus on You & Making the Most of Your Skills
2021-07-14 | Zoom

Sustainability
2021-09-15

Finding your purpose, Leading with purpose
2022-03-08 | Zoom

Ethos Farm Visit – Tudor Dynasty
2022-04-05 | Hampton Court Palace
On April 5th WiTR members braved some inclement weather to visit Hampton Court Palace, courtesy of Ethos Farm, and learn more about the Tudor dynasty and it’s (in)famous king – Henry VIII. The Palace had been transformed from a country house to a magnificent palace by Henry’s Lord Chancellor, Cardinal Thomas Wolsey.
The stunning Ethos Farm premises is just outside the Palace Walls. We met there and enjoyed a convivial glass of bubbly and a light lunch while Josie Barton, co-founder of Ethos Farm along with Sally Alington, regaled us with the history of the Palace, and the story of Henry VIII and his six wives. This was no simple story-telling. Josie is passionate about history, and in particular with Tudor dynasty, and we were blown away by her talk, illustrated with beautiful artwork images from the era. Her ability to entrance us partly explains Ethos Farm’s success in telling brand and customer stories, and we concluded that Josie has a future career presenting documentaries on TV!
Inspired by Josie, we set off for the Palace, visiting the vast kitchens where state banquets were prepared as well as fare for the hundreds of staff who worked at the Palace, followed by the State Apartments before leaving trough the magnificent gardens. We didn’t have time to explore fully the Georgian part of the palace but all felt that we would want to return to explore further – perhaps on a less blustery day!
A huge thank you to our Ethos Farm friends and hosts!

WiTR Breakfast Meeting in Dubai
2022-04-07 | Vida Creek Harbour Hotel,Dubai
To kick start the return of in-person meetings, a mini- WiTR breakfast meeting was arranged last week at the newly opened Vida Creek Harbour Hotel in Dubai, which was attended by several WiTR members. The breakfast coincided with the visit by UK-based Jennifer Dixon, VP – HR, Pernod Ricard who was joined by her colleague Neha Jabber, Marketing Manager – Gulf & India. With Jennifer in attendance, along with Mona Al Ali, SVP – HR, Dubai Duty Free, the discussion inevitably turned to HR issues for women in general and those in the industry in particular. Topics discussed included the challenges of Emiratization, maternity benefits and the need for a reintroduction into the workforce for new mums, as well as recent corporate directives that put women at the centre.
Commenting on the morning, Sinead El Sibai, SVP-Marketing at Dubai Duty Free and WiTR Middle East representative said :”It was great to have an in-person gathering again after such a long period of time. The meeting was triggered by the visit by Jennifer from Pernod Ricard who wanted to meet up with some women in senior positions in the region and to get some insights into their working lives. I certainly learnt a lot by the lively discussions that entailed and am keen to keep the conversation going.”
The WiTR breakfast was hosted by Pernod Ricard. “Thanks to Pernod Ricard for giving us the impetus to meet in person again and In the coming weeks I will be reaching out to the regional database and will plan a series of further gatherings for WiTR members,” added Sinead.
Pictured at the breakfast from left to right: Leila Ben Kacem, Customer Marketing Manager – Middle East and Asia/Pacific, Mondelez, Sharon Beecham, SVP – Purchasing, DDF, Mona Al Ali, SVP – HR, DDF, Jennifer Dixon, VP – HR, Pernod-Ricard, Carla Lewis, Area Sales Manager GCC, JTI, Sinead El Sibai, SVP – Marketing, DDF and Neha Jabber, Marketing Manager – Gulf & India, Pernod Ricard

WiTR organizes workshop for Summit of the Americas that looks at the Future of Work
2022-04-16 | Summit of the Americas
The IAADFS (International Association of Airport & Duty Free Stores) invited WiTR to be one of the content providers at the conference sessions during the 2022 Summit of the Americas, by organizing a workshop session that would have broad and relevant appeal.
The session, entitled Are you ready for the future of work? featured Noella Vincent, a well-known executive coach based in Miami, who discussed some of the biggest trends happening in the workforce today – from the impact of technology to the social function of work and human productivity – all of which have been accelerating under COVID.
Vincent was joined by Jackie McDonagh, General Manager and Director of ARI North America, who discussed the changes that have taken place in ARI’s Canadian stores over the course of the pandemic, and which changes she expects will continue into the future, and Patricia Bona, Vice President of beauty distribution company Essence Corp, who approached the topic from a Human Resources perspective, and talked about some of the hidden challenges within the new work trends. Travel Markets Insider Editor & Publisher Lois Pasternak moderated the session.
Apropos for the audience, Vincent divided her talk into five “borders” to introduce ways one can pro-actively face the new workplace reality, and these borders provided a framework for the discussion.
The WiTR program was the last one on Day One of the Summit, and was attended by a surprisingly large audience. It was quite dynamic with the four of us holding a give-and-take discussion. In a very satisfying result, it seems to have generated quite a bit of discussion afterwards, with several audience members coming up throughout the next two days to say how relevant and valuable they found it. The session also received high praise from IAADFS’ Michael Payne and Rene Riedi, who is Chairman of IAADFS.
In our introduction, we explained that the session topic was an outgrowth of the WiTR webinars that began running during the pandemic.

Lessons from the leadership journey
2022-05-24 | Zoom

How to launch a different category & brand in difficult times
2022-07-11 | Zoom

When guests and shoppers blur how MeTime staycationers are the next travel retail bullseye
2022-07-18 | Zoom
Download the presentation here

From farm to table: Wisdom of a farm girl turned international executive: from rural Germany to vibrant Miami
2022-09-13 | Zoom

Join us at the WiTR networking event at TFWA in Cannes – Tuesday October 4th 1730 – 1900!
2022-10-04 16:30 - 18:00 (Europe/Brussels) | Palais des Festivals
It’s fast approaching the time when many of us will converge on Cannes for the TFWA World Conference and Exhibition.
It’s also time for Women inTravel Retail to meet at its biggest annual networking event. This is the place to be to meet old friends, make new friends and to chat with women at all stages of their careers across the broad spectrum of travel retail from cruise lines to airports, from brands to retailers, our media friends and many more.
This year we return to our usual venue in the foyer of the Palais des Festivals – but with a slightly different focus.
On arrival you will be welcomed with a glass of delicious Chandon Garden Spritz courtesy of Moet Hennessy to start off what we hope will be an enjoyable networking session where you will also hear about WiTR’s 2022 charity – the Hope Foundation.
Since 1999, the Hope Foundation has been committed to ensuring the protection of children living on the streets and in the slums of Kolkata (India). WiTR is specifically raising funds to buy a bus to safely transport women and children from HOPE’s five homes in the city housing 100 children, and a Mother and Childcare unit. Costing in the region of €15,000, the bus will replace the currently used vehicle which is 15 years old and needs to be replaced to comply with Government environmental guidelines to allow it to operate in the city.
This video illustrates the need far more eloquently than I can….
https://youtu.be/QnuNRMhpboI
This year, instead of the past raffle format, participants will be invited to contribute €20 and a business card to be entered into a draw for three prizes which will take place around 1830. Please bring cash! We are a small charity and we can’t accept online payments!!!

We would also be very grateful for any corporate or individual donations; please contact Gerry Munday, Vice Chair of WiTR at gerrymunday2811@gmail.com
Above all, this is your event. We look forward to welcoming you!

From the WiTR team:
Sarah Branquinho (Chair), Gerry Munday (Vice chair), Caroline Buisson, Myriem Chalabi, Sinead El-Sibai, Amanda Felix, Lucy Hillyard, Rowena Holland, Mona Lebrasseur, Erin Lillis, Chandra Mahtani, Lois Pasternak, Nina Semprecht, Joanne Willey

Women in Travel (WiTR) was created in 2006 to recognise the contribution of women to the travel retail industry, past, present and future and as a forum for the women in the travel retail industry. It allows us a privileged medium to exchange ideas, and just as importantly to support people in need who we believe would benefit from our help. From year to year we help different groups or communities (from Haiti to India to Sichuan) to help themselves, with a strong focus on children.

Women in the Workplace from an HR perspective
2022-10-18 | Zoom

Next Gen Customer Engagement in Travel Retail
2022-11-15 | Zoom

WiTR Christmas Quiz
2022-12-07

We are female leaders - Diversity, Inclusion & Equal Opportunities in the Work Place
2023-01-20

WiTR Dinner
2023-02-14 | Hamburg

From Girl Power to A Women in Power
2023-03-07

WiTR & TUMI on International Women's day
2023-03-08 | London
Join WiTR event hosted byTumi
on
International Women’s day – 8. March!
TUMI is kindly inviting all WiTR members and friends to an exclusive event at their fabulous store in London’s Regent Street on 8th March from 1700.
This is, of course, International Women’s Day and you are invited to join us to celebrate the power of women and the journey they take to succeed.
“A Woman’s Voyage” will start at 1700 with drinks and canapes, and although this is primarily a wonderful networking event, during the evening you will have the opportunity to learn some fantastic packing tips and to discover TUMI’s new women’s collections: Voyageur and 19 Degree.
A highlight of the evening will be a motivational speaker who will talk about the path to success.
If that wasn’t enough, there will be a business card draw and a gift bag on departure – and a 20% discount will be available to those swayed by the luxury and quality of TUMI’s products.
The event will close at 1930.
Whether you live or work in the UK, or overseas, you are very welcome to join us.
Please see below the official invite – we kindly ask you to RSVP to Gerry Munday – Vice Chair, WiTR at gerrymunday2811@gmail.com latest 01 March 2023.

Best regards
Sarah Branquinho (Chair) and Gerry Munday (Vice Chair)
on behalf of the WiTR steering committee: Aude Bourdier, Myriem Chalabi, Sinead El-Sibai, Amanda Felix, Lucy Hillyard, Rowena Holland, Mona Lebrasseur, Erin Lillis, Chandra Mahtani, Lois Pasternak, Nina Semprecht, Jo Willey

IAADFS Summit of the Americas - Meeting
2023-04-16 - 2023-04-19 | IAADFS Summit of the Americas

WiTR Meetings - TFWA Asia Pacific Exhibition & Conference, Singapore
2023-05-07 - 2023-05-08 | TFWA Asia Pacific Exhibition & Conference, Singapore
Women in Travel Retail (WiTR) members and friends are invited to meet on Tuesday May 9th at the TFWA Asia Pacific Lounge from 1730. A special area has kindly been reserved by TFWA for us to catch up with old friends and make new connections at the first ‘normal’ post pandemic TFWA Asia Pacific event
WiTR’s membership is growing and members are welcome to bring others interested in joining to this event – don’t forget your TFWA badge!
We are delighted to announce that celebrated actor, producer, writer, humanitarian and stand-up comedian Maitreyi Karanth with be joining us for the first half hour before leaving for a gig the same evening.
Maitreyi is the founder of the KOMA KARANTH FOUNDATION, WiTR’s charity for 2023. You will not fail to be moved by her story and what she will tell us about the community that she – and we – are helping
The KOMA KARANTH FOUNDATION’s mission is to build a KOMA community in the impoverished municipality of Gloria, Oriental Mindoro (Philippines), providing homes, education, old age community centres, medical support and support for single women as they strive for self-sufficiency. WiTR’s project will be to raise funds of at least €15,000 which will cover the cost of building three homes for the community. We’ve got off to a good start with a donation from The MoodieDavitt Report, and another personally from Martin Moodie.
To date the KOMA KARANTH FOUNDATION has built 24 homes, an old age community centre, a tutoring centre for children, provided solar streetlights, drilled water wells and connected it by pipe and pump up to the mountain into water tanks for the tribal community of 26 families. The Foundation also provides transport for these tribal children to go to school and provide their lunch at school. They have also built and equipped convenience stores for single mothers to own and earn, as well as a cake shop, tea shop etc.
We look forward to a good turn out and to hearing how you have all fared since we last met.
With very best wishes
The WiTR Steering Committee: Sarah Branquinho (Chair) and Gerry Munday (Vice Chair), Sinead El-Sibai, Amanda Felix, Lucy Hillyard, Rowena Holland, Myriem Chalabi, Mona Lebrasseur, Erin Lillis, Chandra Mahtani, Lois Pasternak, Nina Semprecht, Jo Willey, Caroline Buisson

How to Succeed as a Female Executive in the Middle East
2023-05-16

WiTR+ & Joe & The Juice
2023-06-30 17:00 - 19:00 (Europe/London) | Joe & The Juice, 8 Berkeley Street
Women in Travel Retail+ is delighted to announce another exclusive networking event hosted by Joe & The Juice and the Blueprint Partnership – open to all WiTR+ members and friends.
The event will be held at the Joe & The Juice London store (8, Berkeley Street) on the 30th of June from 1700-1930, where attendees can enjoy a delicious range of pastries and non-alcoholic cocktails and juices.
Sarah Branquinho, WiTR+ Chair, says: “Many thanks to Joe & the Juice and the Blueprint Partnership for their support of WiTR+. Our last event in London was a great success and we look forward to another fun and productive evening.”
Places are limited to 50 so please RSVP to Gerry Munday at gerrymunday2811@gmail.com by 16 June at the latest to secure your place.

Modern Leadership "Wake Up Call" for Business
2023-07-11

Summer in the City with APTRA
2023-08-01
Thank You APTRA and WiTR for showcasing komakaranthfoundation.org. I was overwhelmed with the support and platform to represent our work and team. Thank You Sunil Tuli and Erin Lillis for organising this fantastic event! The Asia Pacific Travel Retail Association (APTRA), in partnership with Women in Travel Retail+, drew more than 80 members of the travel retail community to its Summer in the City networking event in Hong Kong. Also speaking was KPMG Head of Consumer and Retail ASPAC Anson Bailey, who shared his perspectives on the latest travel and travel retail trends.

WiTR+ Charity Event
2023-08-02 11:30 - 13:30 (Asia/Singapore) | Changi Experience Studio

Women in Cruise Retail - through the lens of a generation
2023-09-12

WiTR+ Meetings - TFWA World Exhibition & Conference, Cannes
2023-10-03 | TFWA World Exhibition & Conference, Cannes
Photos taken by Grant Pitchard
