Wall of Fame

In each issue, the Wall of Fame section introduces Dufry employees who have done something exceptional, who pursue a fascinating hobby, or who have experienced something remarkable.

João Victor
Zurich airport (Switzerland)

Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) have an eye for spotting talent. They found a great asset in our Zurich airport colleague, João Victor. In the context of the 2019 Winter Tom Ford travel retail forum, organized in London, Joao was nominated from all Tom Ford specialists worldwide across the Retail EMA region, to represent Tom Ford Beauty as an influencer on social media. The Tom Ford influencer program kicked off some months ago with a number of selected specialists worldwide. After observing and watching, the list was edited down to the five best ones… with our very own Joao on this final list! His selling skills and commitment finally made him the one and we are very proud to see one of our staff members become a success story with one of our most valued brand partners. Congratulations João and keep it up!

Wendy Bulpett, Sharaine Margerum & Sue Whitworth,  
Southampton airport (UK)

Going the extra mile. What does this really mean? Basically, it is about making that little additional effort that massively changes the experience of our customers when in our stores. The following story might be one of the clearest examples you can ever find. One of our customers was travelling out of Southampton last April to visit his father in France, who had recently moved there. However, he forgot something trivial, but very important for him: buying some PG Tips tea bags and a copy of The Times newspaper for his father. Our distressed passenger asked our staff if he would have sufficient time to get back to landside to go and find a shop and then get back to take his flight. In the note this passenger sent us later on, he described what happened next. One of the three female members of our staff that were with this passenger arranged with her daughter to collect the goods and bring them to the airport. The expression on the passenger’s face when he was told the goods were on the way said it all! Offering help – and actually getting the goods airside – made this passenger feel cared for and extremely welcome in our store and in the airport. These three ladies showed a positive attitude to get the job done and ensured an unforgettable experience in one of our stores. Well done!  

World Duty Free UK staff

Would you like to help One Foundation by buying a bottle of water or a jute bag? That’s probably one of the most repeated sentences we can hear at any till in our stores in the UK. However, the potential linked to that simple offer is a bit underrated, when you consider the massive impact generated by each bottle or bag sold. A partnership that started back in 2006 has enabled us to raise over 2 million pounds so far, which has been used to help bring clean, safe water to over 400,000 people in Africa. From April 28 to May 1, eight of our UK colleagues had the chance to join The One Foundation's annual water and sanitation visits to Nairobi, in Kenya and see first-hand the contribution our business makes to the development of much needed infrastructure in seven informal settlements. This includes network extensions and metered water connections, and the improvement of water supplies at both a household and plot level with the installation of public standpipes and water kiosks. Everyone on the trip described it as a life-changing experience and they all came back home with mixed feelings. Proud of the work that’s being done, overwhelmed by the heartwarming welcome of Kenyans at the schools and communities visited… but at the same time with the urge to keep helping because there is still so much to do. We are sure that the eight of them, Joseph Fernandes, Alex Taylor, Elizabeth Donnarumma, Craig Culshaw, Dean Johnson, Holly Airey, David Budd and Kathryn Kindness, returned back home motivated, full of pride and wanting to share their experience with everyone.

Andreas Sziedat, Central Services Team Leader,
Basel (Switzerland)

Andreas Sziedat, Central Services team leader based at Basel headquarters, keeps everything running smoothly at the offices in Basel and Zurich. Andreas is responsible for the facility management, the receptionist and cleaning teams, the cafeteria catering concept and the company cars. He also takes care of the setup of new offices, office moves for employees, space planning and logistics for company events. During the seven years Andreas has been working for Dufry, he was part of the team that organized the major office move in 2013 to the current Dufry Headquarters in Basel and handled the negotiation for the extension of the lease agreement and for the sublease of two office floors to external companies. Andreas manages the relationships with the office landlords in Basel and Zurich, the subtenants, maintenance and catering companies. He learnt during his time in hotel training how to be consistently friendly, polite and respectful, but at the same time assertive and determined, both towards service providers as well as towards internal employees and management. Andreas loves his very diverse role, especially the contact he has with teams and contacts internationally. His credo is to fulfill requests and solve problems in a fast, efficient manner. On top of all this, Andreas is studying real estate economy to widen his understanding of the real estate business. Andreas enjoys spending his time off with his wife and one-year-old son. As the son of a professional football player who played in the German club of Hertha BSC, his hobby is of course football!

Ana Maria Ascarate, Sales assistant,
Carrasco Airport (Uruguay)

Having worked for the company for over 25 years at Carrasco Airport in Uruguay should give Ana María enough credit to be in our World of Fame.Never­theless, it is her love and passion for the work and her positive outlook that she radiates to all those around her that have won her a place on this occasion. A highly respected member of the team, no one exemplifies the values we aim to see in the new generations more than she does! She is a true ambassador of the core pillars of ONEDUFRY: care, showcase and efficiency. Thank you Ana María for your life-long dedication and the customer-focused attitude you demonstrate each and every day!

Francisco Javier Velasco, Sandra Martínez and Borja Sánchez,
(from left to right)
Madrid office (Spain)

It was completely by chance that we discovered we have the Roger Federer of ping-pong – or table tennis – amongst us! In the context of the Sponsorship of the ATP Tennis tournament, Mutua Madrid Open, the Dufry Madrid office organized an informal table tennis competition to celebrate the event. With 48 participants in the singles and doubles categories, Francisco Javier Velasco in the singles competition, and Sandra Martínez and Borja Sánchez in doubles, were crowned as the first Dufry Madrid Table Tennis champions. Even though the competition was tough and there were no easy matches, our champions proved themselves ready and able to go all the way and are now waiting to take on rivals from other Dufry locations. Are you up to the challenge?