Irish whiskey has been quietly building momentum in the increasingly important global travel retail channel. But while the category shows promise, the data reveals a story of under-utilised shelf space, uneven brand visibility and regional blind spots - all of which point to the potential for smarter, more targeted strategies to elevate Irish whiskey’s role in the GTR offer.Competitive but fragmentedGlobally, Irish whiskey is present in travel retail through over 100 different expressions across 20 brand owners, yet its shelf presence remains modest.On average, airport stores carry 18 Irish
The 2025 priorities for Irish whiskey in global travel retail – Market Intel
With strong consumer appeal and rising momentum domestically, the Irish whiskey category is well-positioned to scale up – but only if the retail strategy catches up.

Garry Stasiulevicuis is MD of ShelfTrak, an AI-powered business that transforms data into actionable insights by analysing store-level execution across the leading 50 airports and 70-plus stores.
For more details, visit www.shelftrak.com


