WHAT AIRPORTS REALLY, REALLY WANT The Four Key Pillars. An interview with Lewis Allen of Portland Design
Introduction: By Peter Marshall
This is a thought-provoking interview with Lewis Allen, Director of Environments, Portland Design. One of the industry’s leading strategic thinkers, Lewis outlines how, on the back of the COVID-19 pandemic, evolution is in the air for the airport sector. Whether airports are ‘fast’ or ‘slow’, there are four key criteria which they need to consider for all future strategic decisions.
What is now required is a fundamentally different approach in thinking. One that also entails convincing institutional shareholders that a different path needs to be followed in order to deliver the much needed progress to keep pace with the changing market dynamic as well as meeting the needs of all travelling passengers.
Lewis cites a number of learnings from the high street, too. Essentially it’s all about creating a ‘Spirit of Place’, where airports and their business partners – notably airlines, retailers and brands – can better set about creating what they now need to in this digital age: develop an audience.
