New food and retail experiences at Düsseldorf Airport: Lagardère Travel Retail launches a range of new concepts

International food trends, regional culinary culture and modern travel retail concepts: Düsseldorf Airport and Lagardère Travel Retail Germany are setting new standards for the travel experience. Step by step, new worlds of experience and indulgence are emerging, offering travellers a significantly expanded range of options. This is based on the comprehensive master concession that Lagardère Travel Retail Germany secured following an international tender for large sections of the retail and catering space at the airport.

With the official opening of the new concepts on 4 May 2026, Düsseldorf Airport and Lagardère Travel Retail Germany have set a significant milestone in the further development of the site. For Lagardère, the project is also one of the key openings in the German airport market.

The new retail and dining concepts are transforming the terminal areas and boarding gates into a vibrant hub for dining and shopping, offering a truly enjoyable experience. Everything is on offer, from a quick snack before boarding to a relaxed meal in a restaurant.

“The new restaurants and shops send a strong signal: Düsseldorf Airport is moving another step closer to its goal of becoming one of Europe’s best airports. We are creating an environment that inspires, surprises and offers our guests genuine moments of enjoyment. Together with Lagardère Travel Retail Germany, we are deliberately focusing on a high quality of stay and on experiences — because we are convinced that an excellent airport must offer precisely that to its passengers, guests and staff,” explains Lars Redeligx, Chairman of the Management Board of Flughafen Düsseldorf GmbH.

For Lagardère Travel Retail, too, this development marks an important milestone: “Düsseldorf Airport is of great importance to us in several respects: it represents a major win in Travel Essentials, further strengthening our leadership in this business line, and reinforces our position as a key player in Dining. At the same time, airports like Düsseldorf — as key regional hubs — are leading the way in innovation, making this project particularly relevant for us,” says Lucio Rossetto, COO Europe and North America of Lagardère Travel Retail.

“Düsseldorf Airport is one of Germany’s most significant airports. With the new stores, we are creating a diverse portfolio of international brands, innovative dining concepts and strong local offerings here – thereby redefining the travel experience for millions of passengers,” says Jochen Halfmann, Managing Director of Lagardère Travel Retail Germany.

Travel retail with new store formats

Alongside the expansion of the food and beverage offering, the travel retail range is also being expanded. Several new RELAY stores will complement the existing portfolio at the airport. This opening represents an important step in the continued development of RELAY, the leading Travel Essentials brand, and reflects the brand’s commitment to enhancing the traveller experience. It also illustrates RELAY’s ability to adapt its formats to different travel environments and customer needs, while enriching the offer beyond traditional convenience retail. Building on recent initiatives such as the HAY! mascot launched last year, RELAY continues to evolve its offer with a focus on strengthening relevance and service for travellers.

RELAY offers travellers a curated range of newspapers, books, snacks, drinks, travel essentials and convenience products, all tailored precisely to the needs of those on the move. In addition to a wide selection of German and English-language literature, but travellers can also look forward to readings by local authors in future.

Food concepts bring international trends to the airport

The expansion of the food and beverage offering is at the heart of the new experiential zones. Several new concepts are bringing international cuisine, urban food trends and regional specialities to the airport – including brands and concepts making their debut in Germany:

The new culinary highlights include:

EL&N London: The world-famous lifestyle café from London is renowned for its exquisite patisserie, creative coffee specialities and iconic store design. With its distinctive look and social media appeal, EL&N brings a taste of London’s café culture to the airport.

Popeyes: Popeyes® brings over 50 years of Louisiana culinary tradition to Germany. Rooted in bold Cajun and Creole flavors, Popeyes® offers a unique New Orleans–style menu featuring the iconic Chicken Sandwich, spicy Chicken tenders and other regional favorites.

bona’me: The successful restaurant concept from the Doğan family of founders stands for modern Oriental cuisine with open kitchens and freshly prepared dishes. The blend of East and West creates a unique culinary experience.

Papa Pepe: Here, the Italian way of life takes centre stage: inspired by the Amalfi Coast and the streets of Naples, Papa Pepe serves pizza, pasta and arancini in a relaxed market hall atmosphere.

Rheinbissen: Rheinbissen gives regional culinary culture a permanent home in Terminal A. The concept offers a modern take on classic Rhineland dishes, combining local tradition with an international audience.

The new concepts will offer travellers a significantly wider range of culinary options in future: from international street food and café culture to regional specialities from the Rhineland.

Further stores already planned

The development of the new food and retail experience zones at Düsseldorf Airport will continue in the coming months.

In addition to the concepts already opened, eight further travel retail locations are planned – including additional RELAY stores as well as new concepts such as Affenbande and Discover. A particular highlight is the future RELAY Café, which, with its innovative hybrid format combining travel retail, press and books with a café offering, brings shopping and enjoyment together in one place.

Through the comprehensive redevelopment of the site, Düsseldorf Airport and Lagardère Travel Retail are pursuing a shared goal: to position the site in the long term as a modern food and retail hub at the cutting edge.

About Lagardère Travel Retail
As one of two business divisions of the Lagardère Group, Lagardère Travel Retail is one of the world’s leading companies in the travel retail sector, with over 4,970 shops specialising in travel essentials, duty-free & fashion, and foodservice at airports, railway stations and other transport hubs. Spanning 51 countries worldwide, the company generated annual revenue of €7.6 billion in 2024. With our pioneering culture, we create bespoke offerings and experiences that make travel more enjoyable. We leverage our world-class global expertise and local knowledge to forge value-adding partnerships for our stakeholders: landlords, brands, travellers, employees and local communities. We are actively committed to a sustainable future for travel retail and foodservice by pursuing a comprehensive CSR strategy. With our dedicated teams, we cover all areas where we, as a company, can exert influence and make a difference.
Lagardère Travel Retail operates over 230 stores in Germany through its three companies – Lagardère Travel Retail Deutschland GmbH, Lagardère Travel Retail Deutschland Foodservice GmbH and Marché Mövenpick Deutschland GmbH – at 9 airports, 35 railway stations, 7 zoos and 3 US military bases: In travel retail, with a wide range of well-known brands such as Relay, Hub Convenience, Tech2go, L’Occitane and Discover.
In the foodservice sector, Lagardère Travel Retail develops innovative catering solutions and operates under the brands Marché, White Monkey, Natoo, Zigolini, Panda Express, Coffee Fellows, Dean&David, Burger King, Natsu, Paulaner, as well as the two food courts at Frankfurt Market Hall and Nuremberg Market Hall. lagardere-tr.de/de
www.lagardere-tr.com ● @LagardereTR

About Düsseldorf Airport
With 21 million passengers in 2025, Düsseldorf Airport is the largest airport in North Rhine-Westphalia. Over 60 airlines operate flights from here to more than 160 destinations in 50 countries. Located in one of Europe’s strongest economic regions, with over 18 million inhabitants within a 100-kilometre radius, Düsseldorf Airport plays a vital role in meeting the mobility needs of the public and the economy in North Rhine-Westphalia and the south-eastern Netherlands. Furthermore, as the largest employer in Düsseldorf, the airport provides a significant boost to employment in the region.