Paul Topping joins Heinemann Asia Pacific Heinemann Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., subsidiary of duty free retailer and distributor Gebr. Heinemann, has announced that Paul Topping will be added to the list of directors of the company. Topping joined the company in the role of the Director (Special Projects). The other directors are Patricia Poon (Director Business Development), Carol Luu (CFO), Julia Baumann (CCO) and Max Heinemann (COO). Steffen Brandt is the CEO of Heinemann Asia Pte. Ltd. Topping has over sixteen years of experience in the travel and domestic retail trade in Asia. Steffen Brandt, CEO of Heinemann Asia, said, “We are delighted to have Paul in the team. Given his experience, energy and knowledge of the region, he will assist us on developing our strategy and footprint in Asia.” In response. Topping said: “Having admired Heinemann and their business approach for over twenty years and now seeing their appetite for Asia, I am very honored to be in the team.”
EU lifts restrictions on LAGs The European Union passed legislation lifting restrictions on travelers carrying duty free LAGs (liquids, aerosols and gels) purchased at non-EU airports and airlines. This legislation came into force on April 29, 2011. The new rules apply to passengers arriving into the EU, Switzerland, Norway and Iceland and then transferring onto a flight to another destination. Under the legislation, from April 29 all passengers traveling into Europe from non-EU airports and then transferring onwards will be allowed to travel without having their duty free LAGs confiscated, providing the goods are packed in an ICAO-approved sealed tamper-evident bag (STEB). The European Travel Retail Council (ETRC) has consistently supported the lifting of the restrictions in principle, provided that the necessary procedures were in place to facilitate passengers who are transferring at EU airports without any delay or inconvenience. However, ETRC has conducted extensive discussions with the European Commission, member states and European airports and it is clear that as things stand, many airports in Europe will not be able to lift the restrictions as scheduled. A number of airports are awaiting delivery of equipment which will allow them to comply with the legislation at a future date. In addition, some member states have concerns about security and are reluctant to change the current rules immediately. Whilst some airports will be in compliance, the overall situation will be very unclear. As an industry we cannot afford for our customers to have products confiscated that are bought in good faith. This causes high levels of customer dissatisfaction and frustration. ETRC strongly urges retailers to maintain the status quo for now and not sell LAGs to transferring passengers upon arrival in the EU. ETRC is closely monitoring the situation and will provide regular updates and further guidance as matters develop. Existing arrangements in place for passengers arriving on flights from the U.S., Canada, Croatia, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur and transferring onwards will continue.
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