Toronto Pearson is constantly evolving. Adding new shops and restaurants. Expanding and enhancing services. Providing fun diversions that also bring new revenue. And transforming the passenger experience from simply waiting for the trip to start to feeling that a memorable journey has already begun.
It Pays to Invest in Passengers
Creating a relaxing, enjoyable passenger experience attracts more tourist and business travellers to Toronto Pearson, which benefits the entire region. It also pays tangible dividends that we can reinvest in our facilities to keep pace with growing demand. Our fastest-growing source of income continues to be non-aeronautical revenues (NAR) – primarily generated from parking and ground transportation fees, retail and dining concessions, and rent paid by air carriers for check-in counters and kiosks. In 2017, NAR grew to an all-time high of just over $450 million, up 9.2 per cent from the previous year.
Parking fees currently represent the largest source of NAR at Toronto Pearson, but we expect that to change. For example, as ride-sharing services continue to grow in popularity, we’ll no doubt see a shift in driving patterns and parking usage – along with new revenue from these ground transportation providers comparable to the fees we now receive from limo and taxi operators.
Another area of NAR growth is advertising and sponsorships, which currently generate about $28 million annually – a rate of revenue per passenger that places Toronto Pearson in the top tier of North American airports. We expect that figure to rise as we forge additional brand partnerships and continue to enhance our award-winning digital communications platform.
In 2017, NAR accounted for about 33 per cent of Toronto Pearson’s total revenues. Our objective is to continue increasing that proportion over time. As points of comparison, NAR contributes more than half the annual revenues of Amsterdam-Schiphol and over 70 per cent at Hong Kong International. By leveraging our proven strengths in dining and retail (especially duty-free) – and by pursuing innovative strategies in how we develop and promote our airport to a global marketplace – we’ll be better positioned than ever to keep carriers’ costs down, maximize the value of existing assets and make whatever future investments may be needed to keep pace with demand.
28 new dining and shopping locations opened at Toronto Pearson in 2017: six retailers and five food-and-beverage providers in Terminal 1, and 11 shops and six restaurants in Terminal 3.
#1 In 2017, USA Today readers voted Toronto Pearson the Best Airport Shopping Platform in North America.
Local Food Goes Global
Many of the dining experiences we create at Toronto Pearson are designed to showcase the best of our region to a global audience and entice visitors into further culinary adventures in our backyard. For example, in 2017 we enhanced our Terminal 3 offering with a food hall featuring three restaurants based on established venues in the Distillery District, one of Toronto’s most popular tourist destinations. Passengers get a taste of what’s available in the historic neighbourhood of restaurants, bars, galleries and boutiques, and can enjoy more when they head downtown – or on their next visit.
In a similar vein, the Terminal 3 international departures area is now home to a food truck, Smoke’s Poutinerie, which serves Canadian classics such as poutine on a licensed patio in the pre-security zone. Meanwhile, work has begun on further enhancements to our extensive amenities in Terminal 1, including new dining concepts and luxury retail shops in the domestic departures area, and a range of food-and-beverage options to better serve U.S.-bound passengers.
Learn more about how we keep people, bags and flights moving
Smarter security screening. Reimagined baggage systems. Innovative retail and dining options. Our top-quality airport experience is built on collaboration, sustainable choices and human-centred design.