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Thursday 14 May 2026 10 T F W A D A I L Y Halil İbrahim Anasoy, Commercial Director, iGA Istanbul Airport, in conversation on the Agora Stage with TFWA Daily Publisher Paul Hogan. Mega hub: The dynamic role connectivity plays in iGA Istanbul Airport’s commercial success A s one of the world’s biggest and fastest-growing aviation hubs approaches its 90 millionth passenger this year, iGA Istanbul Airport is increasingly positioning itself, not only as the preeminent gateway between continents, but as a blueprint for the future of integrated airport retail excellence and passenger experience. That was the clear message from Halil Ibrahim Anasoy, Commercial Director of iGA Istanbul Airport, during a TFWA Daily ‘Deep Dive’ on-stage interview in the Agora amphitheatre moderated by Paul Hogan, Publisher of the TFWA Dailies. The discussion explored how the airport’s commercial strategy is resolutely focused on leveraging its extraordinary connectivity generated by more than 340 destinations, and a route network extending deep into cities across Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia – and soon by non-stop connections to Oceania. The continued network growth is mirrored by the airport’s rapidly expanding infrastructure: a 4th runway in the second half of 2026 and continuing investment which will raise terminal capacity from 90 million to 120 million. In parallel Anasoy explained how there was a clear commercial strategy to continue to drive growth across retail, F&B and passenger engagement, growth which is every bit as ambitious as the dual aviation development and infrastructure expansion plans which would ultimately see the operation of six runways and a second terminal as the airport moves towards its long-term vision of serving up to 200 million passengers. Anasoy highlighted the dynamic role connectivity continues to play: “Last year we hosted 84.5 million passengers and almost 40% of this number were transfer passengers” with Asia-Pacific origin travellers becoming ever-more prevalent. iGA Istanbul Airport continues to use sophisticated data analytics and behavioural insights to understand how different transfer passenger groups interact with the retail environment, and has worked closely with McKinsey to identify and analyse behavioural trends. The result is a highly targeted approach to passenger flow and gate allocation, with retail exposure carefully tailored according to traveller behaviour and spending patterns. “With average transfer times at iGA Istanbul Airport standing at three hours, commercial success absolutely depends on a frictionless journey – passenger comfort and reassurance are critical to driving transactional engagement – and spending.” The airport is investing heavily in digital infrastructure and personalised passenger communication to support that objective. “Let’s not forget that ‘frictionless’ itself means different things for different people, between nations – and between generations for that matter,” Anasoy explained. Gen Z travellers are more flexible and experience-driven, while older passengers may prioritise punctuality, reassurance and convenience. Indeed, retail strategy at Istanbul Airport is increasingly moving beyond transactional shopping towards experience- led engagement. However, Anasoy also highlighted the continued strength of luxury retail performance, noting recent openings of Tiffany and Balenciaga. But Anasoy also asserted that the arrival of such new brands is carefully considered and calculated to add to spend, rather than cannibalising existing business. “Tiffany is not conflicting with Bulgari; it is adding to the turnover.” At the same time, the airport is exploring entirely new retail and F&B concepts designed around convenience, entertainment, and hybrid engagement. One upcoming initiative is a food delivery system called UÇUR enabling passengers to order meals from offers anywhere within the terminal and have them delivered directly to their departure gate. “You will be able to order your meal from an outlet in Pier A and have it delivered to Pier D, a distance of 1km,” Halil İbrahimAnasoy, Commercial Director, iGA Istanbul Airport: “With average transfer times at Istanbul Airport standing at three hours, commercial success absolutely depends on a frictionless journey – passenger comfort and reassurance are critical to driving transactional engagement – and spending.”