GOLDEN HOUR DEPARTURES

Executive Summary

Golden Hour Departures is a limited-edition travel retail collection by Le Specs, inspired by the golden age of 1970s air travel. Strategically positioned at the intersection of nostalgia and sustainability, the collection speaks directly to the evolving values of Millennial and Gen-Z travellers, who are driven by emotional connection, style credibility, and purpose-driven brands.

Primary research, including a national consumer survey and multiple moderated focus groups, revealed that 83% of respondents associate travel with emotional experiences such as freedom, escape, and meaning. At the same time, 72% shop during airport layovers, seeing airport retail as a moment for indulgence and memory-making.

Designed as both a product and an experience, Golden Hour Departures invites travellers to slow down, explore, and connect. The collection integrates 1970s-inspired eyewear silhouettes with cutting-edge sustainable materials, presented through immersive airport activations and tactile storytelling. More than sunglasses, each purchase becomes a moment of expression grounded in design, driven by emotion, and elevated by intent.

Concept Overview

Rooted in both consumer data and cultural insight, Golden Hour Departures reinterprets 1970s aviation style through a modern, conscious lens. Focus group participants widely described the 70s as a time of “freedom, parties, and self-expression,” but also cautioned that retro alone is not enough: “I love the silhouettes, but the 70s thing feels a bit played out.” The collection answers this tension by blending nostalgic shapes, such as oversized square shields, foldable aviators, and lounge-ready cat-eyes—with future-facing materials including recycled aluminium, bio-acetate, and Nuatan®, a compostable biopolymer.

Rather than emulating the past, Golden Hour Departures reframes it. The sunglasses are accompanied by physical postcards, a tactile nod to analogue travel memories yet enhanced with optional digital layers, such as 70s-inspired playlists and AR try-ons. This hybrid approach responds to participants' desire for both emotional keepsakes and modern functionality: "Gen-Z want authenticity. I'd love a postcard to keep as a memory."

The campaign will unfold in airport pop-ups styled as retro departure lounges. This immersive space invites exploration, social sharing, and memory-making where we invite our customers to post vintage designed postcards to loved ones via our retro post box which is a central feature of the installation, that will allow consumers to take, write and send postcards and then share them on social media, acting as free marketing.

Designed not just for purchase, but for pause, Golden Hour Departures transforms the duty-free zone into a cultural experience anchored in optimism, elevated by design, and reflective of a generation looking for meaning in motion.

Product Range

The Golden Hour Departures collection depicts the optimism and quiet glamour of 1970s aviation travel into a set of nine distinctive eyewear silhouettes. Designed to be bold yet wearable, each piece balances form with practical versatility, which was a key driver of purchase identified by 63% of surveyed consumers. The range is intentionally collectible, reflecting the era’s spirit of individuality and self-expression, with a focus group participant noting: "I’d want to collect them, especially if each pair connects to a story or place."

Colour Pallette

The palette, moss green, cosmic blue, burnt orange, ash black, and vintage tortoise shell, was directly informed by visual preference data, where warm, retro tones ranked highest for emotional appeal.

Materials and Finishes

While the design language of Golden Hour Departures is rooted in 1970s nostalgia, its material choices reflect contemporary environmental concerns. Research shows that 67% of surveyed consumers would pay more for sustainable eyewear, with focus group participants repeatedly expressing interest in innovation that feels both “genuine” and “functional.”

The collection features a selection of smart materials that align with these expectations:

Rilsan® bio-based nylon – Lightweight, flexible, and renewable
Recycled aluminium – Durable, aviation-referential, and low-impact
Bio acetate – Luxurious feel, biodegradable
Nuatan® – A compostable, modular material praised by eco-conscious consumers for its innovation

As one participant noted, “It’s not enough to say something is sustainable. It needs to feel different, by being lighter, stronger, or more flexible and be part of a story.” This informed the selection of materials that not only perform functionally but also align with Le Specs’ values-led identity.

Point of Sale & Retail Experience

Golden Hour Departures will launch in high traffic airport locations through retro-inspired pop-up installations designed to disrupt routine and invite emotional connection. The immersive design of a 1970s departure lounge complete with golden lighting, curved seating, and vintage travel postcards are posted to loved ones in a retro post box, a central feature of the installation, that will allow consumers to take write and send postcards and then share them on social media, acting as free marketing, was positively validated in focus groups.

Key features include:

Vintage-style departure boards
Iconic 70s music and colour palettes
A retro postbox for travellers to write and send postcards
Branded tactile elements to promote user-generated content

This is backed by data indicating 76% of participants expressed interest in immersive travel retail, and 72% actively browse or shop during airport layovers.

Gift With Purchase (GWP)

Each purchase includes:

A 70s-inspired sunglasses case made from dead stock 70's materials
A collectible physical or digital postcard (designed by emerging artists and designers) sent by Le Specs on the customer’s behalf

The postcards serve as physical mementos and emotional touch points. According to focus group insights, small, meaningful objects when well-designed resonate deeply with Gen-Z: “I’d love a postcard. Maybe even a sticker to put on my mirror or phone.” The opportunity to share these artefacts on social media also turns the GWP into organic campaign content.

Marketing and Communications

The marketing strategy is led by targeted, design forward content that showcases the collection’s balance of past and future.

Email Marketing: Campaigns will spotlight each material story and style, contextualised within the 70s travel narrative.

Social Media: Visually led storytelling across Instagram and TikTok will include:

Influencer collaborations with travel and style creators
Unboxing reels and styling content
70s-inspired playlists tied to each eyewear drop
Branded hashtags like #GoldenHourDepartures to foster community engagement

As supported by both the focus group and survey, 82% of consumers are more likely to engage with a product that tells a story that includes cultural references and sustainable design.

Staff Engagement: Golden Crew

The Golden Crew initiative turns Le Specs retail staff into frontline sustainability ambassadors. A value and purposed based staff initiative, aligned with Le Specs' existing initiative “Take 3 for the Sea” ethos, the program invites staff to participate in weekly environmental clean-ups and share reflections across Le Specs’ retail and digital channels.
Before staff sell a sustainable product from the travel retail capsule, they are encouraged to connect with its purpose. This program will provide engaging learning experiences that make sustainability a lived experience rather than a corporate directive.

This initiative serves dual purposes:

Reinforcing internal brand culture and ESG commitment
Providing customer-facing authenticity and storytelling at point-of-sale
Empowers Staff with Knowledge
Employees feel connected to the mission, not just the product.
Fosters Teamwork Over Competition
Stores work together for a collective impact.
Creates Real-World Change
Sustainability is woven into everyday actions, not just a one-time initiative.
Celebrates Creativity & Collaboration
Staff shape the campaign’s success through their own ideas and engagement.

Strategic Rationale

Golden Hour Departures focuses on shifts in Gen-Z and Millennial consumer behaviour when travelling, where they prioritise emotional connection, aesthetic value, and authenticity in brand experiences. Survey findings confirm that 83% of respondents associate travel with emotional meaning, while 82% are more likely to engage with brands that tell compelling stories. This campaign responds to those preferences through tactile interaction, visual storytelling, and sustainable material narratives, bridging point-of-sale and digital engagement seamlessly.

Relevance to Travel Retail

In airport retail, where dwell time is high but attention spans are short, distinctive design and sensory engagement are critical. Golden Hour Departures reimagines this environment as an immersive 1970s-inspired departure lounge, endorsed by focus group participants as “a time warp” and “instantly Instagrammable.” This concept transforms routine travel into an emotive, shareable experience.

The gift-with-purchase postcard, mailed on the customer’s behalf, offers more than novelty. It introduces a moment of reflection and personal connection. In a transactional space, this act of intention becomes a memorable differentiator.

Why This Direction Works

Golden Hour Departures taps into Gen Z’s desire for nostalgic, emotionally resonant experiences. By framing sunglasses as artefacts of freedom and self-expression, and pairing them with tactile, retro postcards, the campaign merges analogue charm with digital virality inviting both pause and participation.

This approach supports the way Gen Z shops in travel retail: driven by sentiment, storytelling, and collectability. The pop-up’s immersive design increases dwell time, while the campaign’s interactive elements foster user-generated content and repeat engagement. Together, these components elevate Le Specs’ presence in duty-free spaces, strengthening both brand affinity and commercial performance.