Enhanced customer experience among airport goals
Passengers travelling through YYC International Airport can expect roaming food trucks and faster security screening in the coming years, as the Calgary Airport Authority turns to a new direction for guest experiences and driving economic growth.
The new vision, dubbed North Star, is a 20-year campaign focusing on enhancing customer experience and highlighting western hospitality.
“North Star is what ancient mariners used to navigate and it was effectively a key compass point that they used to get where they needed to go. It’s not something you can ever reach but it is something that guides you, keeps you safe and makes sure you go the right direction,” said Bob Sartor, president and CEO of the Calgary Airport Authority.
“We talk about effortless and memorable, we talk about hospitality, so if what we’re working on doesn’t touch one of those touch points, then we probably shouldn’t be doing it. So that’s what North Star is all about.”
Sartor said they hope to take the existing 50,000 jobs directly related to airport activity and increase it to nearly 60,000, with the aim of becoming the economic engine of the city.
Calgary International Airport will undergo a redesign, including new colours — red, grey, blue and gold — and patterns that reflect Calgary and the province.
The colour red is intended to reflect the “dramatic landscape,” while the pattern within the red represents the foothills and the Rocky Mountains. Grey is intended to showcase Calgary’s urban landscape and its downtown.
Blue is representative of the mountains, rivers and sky, and is also a nod to the provincial flag, while gold is showcasing the prairies and our agricultural history, the patterns representing wheat and barley while also being a nod to the provincial flag.
The airport authority’s new vision is inspired by the things that make Calgary and southern Alberta unique.
“Even the voice that will help our guests find their way when they look at a map will sound uniquely Calgarian — open, friendly, clear and helpful,” said Sartor.
This new approach will bring new retail and service offerings to YYC, improvements to the processes within the airport and enhancements to the domestic terminal.
Sartor said they want to highlight Calgary’s food and beverage scene, bringing in local breweries and food over the next three or four years to the airport for passengers to experience.
“We are going to be adding what we call pop-up retailers that are going to be electric food trucks that will go into those long concourses so people, if they want to grab a last-minute snack, they ’ll be able to do that,” said Sartor.
“The neat thing about that is it’s almost like a pop-up shop, because you move all these things around the terminal and it creates a sense of newness and excitement as it relates to your food and beverage.”
There will be other high-tech updates, such as having screens on airplanes speak to passengers in their native language when they’re close to arriving at the airport gate.
“People will be able to navigate with their iPhone throughout the airport. You will be able to order food as you’re getting out of your car and we’ll have it available for you at the gate,” said Sartor.
Centralized pre-board screening will also be implemented, along with updated equipment to improve security wait times.
The baggage system in the domestic terminal is also close to being completed, which better connects to the international terminal and its baggage system.
A key factor of the plan, said Sartor, is to have appropriate connectivity between the airport and downtown.
“This includes the addition of an LRT line sometime in the future. Connectivity will be a significant factor in our long-term success,” said Sartor.
Those coming through YYC can expect to start seeing the new updates and changes in 2019.