After building a career abroad for over a decade, driven by the ambition to “understand what the world is like out there” and to gain experience, Cláudia Carvalho returned to Portugal at the end of 2021. After leading marketing at the paint brand Dyrup, she embraced the “unique opportunity” to create the Portugal Duty Free brand from A to Z.
The Portugal Duty Free brand, the result of a joint venture between ANA – Aeroportos de Portugal and Ireland’s Aer Rianta International (ARI), has been operating in Portuguese airports since 2022. “They handed me a rough draft from a creative agency and said, ‘Here it is, this is Portugal Duty Free, now do whatever you want with it,’” recalls the Marketing Director in an interview with +M.
Cláudia was thus responsible for defining and positioning the brand’s internal and external communication. Around 700 employees at the time (today 850) were transferred overnight to a new company through the joint venture, which meant there was “a lot to do in terms of communicating company values.”
But Cláudia also had the rare opportunity to develop the brand’s positioning from scratch. “It was a real gift, to be able to create the brand from A to Z. This work came to fruition this year, after two and a half years with the company. We now have a clear brand identity, external communication, and have just completed the full renovation of all stores,” she says.
Portugal Duty Free, owned by ARI and ANA|Vinci Airports and managing more than 30 stores at airports in Lisbon, Porto, Faro, Madeira, Ponta Delgada, Santa Maria, and Horta, is built on “a strong narrative anchored in Portuguese identity and the essence of the national brand, setting it apart from other Duty Free stores across Europe.”
“One thing that defines us, even in our name, Portugal Duty Free, which then becomes Lisbon Duty Free, Azores Duty Free, Madeira Duty Free, and so on, is our personality. We now have a much larger section dedicated to Portuguese products, and we really want travellers to feel that our stores are different from any others in Europe,” Cláudia explains.
This distinction also lies in a portfolio designed to develop local suppliers. “Some suppliers are exclusive to us and have grown alongside us, which makes us very proud,” she adds.
“For example, we have a Port wine cellar featuring around 230 references. We’re probably one of the best Port wine cellars in Portugal. Through this kind of offer, we allow travellers to truly connect with Portugal’s sense of place, and we’re very proud of that.”
When it came to renovating the stores, covering a total of 10,000 square metres, the goal was to capture the essence of Portuguese identity and create a memorable retail experience for passengers.
“Airports have a completely different, much more complex dynamic. We have to express all the brand’s values clearly through the passenger experience. The stores must be consistent, but also adapted to each region, with that reflected clearly in their design,” she explains.
In Lisbon, for instance, a replica of Tram 28 was installed inside the store, while the Faro store features a surf van. “From now on, it’s about celebrating our stores as living odes to Portugal and its many regions,” Cláudia says.
The next step is increasingly digital. “We’re an airport retailer, but we know we need to move toward digital platforms, enabling customers to click before their trip and collect in-store. That’s one of our short-term goals, along with expanding our digital brand presence, especially on social media,” she notes.
After earning a degree in Economics, Cláudia began her career at Pepsi Portugal, before moving to Madrid to reposition LG in the Spanish market. She later returned to Portugal to work at Johnson & Johnson, then moved to Milan, where she became Group Brand Manager at Prénatal. She continued her career in the food retail sector with Grupo Pam, before leading marketing and communications at Italchimica, also in Italy.
The Covid-19 pandemic made her question whether she had already gained the experience she sought, and whether it was time to return to her roots. That led her back to Portugal to head Dyrup’s marketing department before joining Portugal Duty Free.
Born in Cascais, Cláudia now lives in central Lisbon with her eight-year-old daughter. “Because of my professional background and having lived in big cities, Lisbon now fits me perfectly,” she says.
“I love feeling the city’s heartbeat. When I returned to Portugal after ten years in Italy, I found a very different Lisbon. Before, when visiting on holidays, I saw it only briefly through a family lens. Even now, after moving back in 2021, I’m still rediscovering the city,” she adds.
In the cities where she lived abroad, there was no beach, so returning to Portugal allowed her to reclaim what she loves most: the sea. “Wind, rain, or sun, there isn’t a weekend when I don’t go to the beach. It’s part of who I am, the beach is my reset button,” she says.
A passionate traveller, she believes that “discovering new cultures does extraordinary good for the soul.” While she enjoys exploring Europe, her real fascination lies with Africa: “It’s where I find deeper perspectives that bring me closer to what’s essential.”
She leads a healthy lifestyle, doing walks and two early-morning workouts per week. “When you have children and a busy life, you have to find what works for you, and this routine does,” she says.
Cláudia describes herself as an ambitious professional, shaped early on by her education at Nova University Lisbon, which she says “opens your eyes and pushes you to aim higher.” Her upbringing also taught her “that there’s more beyond borders, and maybe that borders are something we should try to erase.”
“The greatest challenge has been finding the perfect balance between ambition and lifestyle. When you reach your 40s, I’m 41 now, you start to think about how to align professional ambition with a healthy, balanced life. Portugal gave me that,” she reflects.
Today, she feels she’s in a “very special position,” doing what she loves and feeling “incredibly lucky to work in a company where I could build something from scratch, with creative freedom, while still being in Portugal.”
“The biggest challenge was making decisions that didn’t compromise my ambition but gave me balance between professional and personal life,” she concludes.
Cláudia Carvalho, in her own words
1. Which campaigns, one national and one international, would you have liked to create or approve? Why?
Internationally, I’d highlight Oliviero Toscani’s campaigns for Benetton, which broke so many taboos in the 1990s with themes that are still relevant today. He was a brilliant, ahead-of-his-time mind who used marketing as a creative revolution.
Nationally, I’d highlight “This is Art” by Turismo de Portugal, a perfect blend of tradition and modernity. A simple, emotional narrative with global impact, clearly showcasing the connection between Portuguese art and culture.
2. What’s the toughest decision for a marketer?
Having to cut or scale down projects we know could drive sales during tougher business moments.
3. What’s always top of mind for you?
Excellence.
4. The ideal brief should…
Be just a starting point, one that the agency listens to, interprets, and elevates. That’s true partnership, and it’s rare.
5. And the ideal agency is one that…
Is 100% empathetic with the client and brings new ideas we hadn’t thought of.
6. In advertising, is it better to play it safe or take risks?
Take risks. Word of mouth is the true value of communication.
7. What would you do with an unlimited budget?
An unlimited budget isn’t enough! The real value lies in the team that conceives and executes it.
8. Advertising in Portugal, in one sentence?
Portugal is now on par with the best in the world, so I’d say: “Pure pride.”
9. Brand building is…
Creating and positioning the Portugal Duty Free brand from scratch. In 2022, it was a draft; today, it’s a strong consumer experience that elevates the “Portugal” brand.
10. If you didn’t work in marketing, what would you be?
An architect, a childhood dream that stayed behind, because the world of brands and business never stopped fascinating and teaching me.
Source: Sapo
