Why cruise retail is redefining customer experience culture

At the crossroads of travel, luxury and experiential commerce, cruise retail is not a niche, it’s a live innovation lab and a customer loyalty builder.

We know 88% of consumers say the experience a company provides is as important as its products or services, according to Salesforce, and retailers are scrambling to create memorable shopping journeys to match. In cruise retail, this rises even higher due to the emotional, leisure, and holiday contexts

And its cruise retail’s unique captive audience and dwell time differential that delivers those opportunities. And converts them.

Almost half (47%) of cruise guests make impulse purchases, and according to Harding+’s own analysis, investing in onboard retail experience drives sales uplifts by at least 35% and often significantly more.

It’s an environment fully focused on customer-centric innovation, and on building brand loyalty and understanding.

Globally this is a sector expected to hit 42 million passengers in 2028, so how do you unlock this category win?

1. Data driven personalisation

This is about precision retail at scale. With access to rich, real-time guest data gathered from multiple sources, distilled learnings can reveal tailored experiences that feel intuitive and not intrusive. This is not one size fits all retail, but that’s the reason the rewards flow.

At Harding+, we continually analyse guest demographics and behaviours vs sales and overlay a broad set of qualitative and quantitative questionnaires annually to ensure we are hard data driven and not just data curious.

For our retail and brand partners, this means living, breathing engagement opportunities are there to grab at every touchpoint, evidenced by the 87% of passengers who say purchase decisions are influenced by onboard brand storytelling.

A win for all data obsessives here.

2. Rethinking the role of the store

Freed from the constraints of traditional formats, the best shipboard stores combine exclusives, storytelling and design agility.

Think pop-ups that evolve with the ship’s itinerary, range drops that reflect local destination culture, and sensory spaces that shift by time of day.

It’s back to the engagement opportunity that drives tangible commercial wins. Today’s cruise guests don’t stumble into duty-free deals as their priority, but seek out immersive brand moments they’ll remember long after they dock.

Use the store as a hub for more: test and learn launches; expert masterclasses or ambassador/founder appearances; or just curated storytelling that offers something above and beyond the high street or online versions of ‘you’.

3. Working with the next wave

Cruise demographics are changing. Families, Gen Z and Millennials are climbing aboard, expecting more personalised, meaningful experiences.

Meaning retail partners and brands should think of cruise retail as a strategic collaboration, not a stock placement. Co-creating product or launch moments, tapping into guest mindsets and developing the bespoke for specific cruises all help build guest loyalty.

Across the 300+ stores we operate on 85 ships, digital first innovation, tech-led experiences and values-led shopping all ride high to fit what is live, energised and changing. The attention-led economy thrives here.

The action?

Cruise retail sits at the forefront of what we all know retail must increasingly become: experiential, data-driven and emotionally resonant. It identifies and offers new paths to meaningful customer engagement in an increasingly competitive landscape. 

Don’t think it’s niche, it’s profitable.

Don’t think it’s about older customers, when it’s increasingly diverse.

Don’t think it’s price first, as it’s experience first.

It’s not about being a support channel, but about strategy that helps build, solidify or test your own ongoing differentials with audiences who want to engage.

Our blueprint for cracking the code, transforming cruise retail into a brand advantage, and reaping the rewards is here. If that is, you want to access the 75% of cruise guests who talk about intent to indulge in shipboard retail.