Gatwick bosses are celebrating a £40 million transformation of shopping at the airport.

Ten new and “refreshed” stores have opened in the South Terminal to complete the transformation of the retail face of the terminal's departure lounge. The new stores include the largest Zara airport store to date, which joins Snow+Rock, Aspinal of London and Ernest Jones in making its airport debut.

When added to the first phase of the retail transformation, which was completed last August, the South Terminal state-of-the-art shopping area now includes 21 new stores – all opened in line with passenger feedback.

Gatwick Airport Limited (GAL) said there has been a 20% increase in customer satisfaction with the selection of retail outlets available at the airport since its current owners, a group of international investment funds of which Global Infrastructure Partners is the largest shareholder, took over.

The new stores, also including Ted Baker, were selected based on passenger feedback for what GAL called “a more premium and stronger mainstream offering of both national and international brands.”

The first phase of the retail transformation saw the opening of eleven new and refreshed stores, including two airport firsts - Aspinal of London and Ernest Jones – and a 6,500 square foot flagship Harrods store focusing on fashion and accessories.

Spencer Sheen, head of retail at London Gatwick, said: “We are very proud of the completion of the South Terminal International Departure Lounge, which takes airport shopping and the passenger experience to a whole new level. “ He continued: “Our new retail space not only demonstrates our forward-thinking, but also our desire to deliver on what our passengers ask for - be it a luxury department store or a high-street favourite. “And the results we have seen so far speak for themselves as more than 80% of our passengers have rated as ‘excellent’ and ‘good’ the selection of retail outlets available at the airport.”

Kevin Young, marketing director at Snow+Rock, which sells footwear, accessories and clothing, said: “Opening our new store in Gatwick has been an exciting journey from concept through to trading. “The information on flights, passenger numbers and footfall has enabled us to have a strong commercial operation, reacting to the changes in customer type.”

Gavin Wood, head of expansion and development at Dixons Travel, said: “We are delighted after trading at Gatwick for fast approaching 20 years to be part of the development in South Terminal, which is a major transformation from the old departure lounge. “We worked in partnership with Gatwick to create a brand new store which puts customers at the centre. The store was designed to excite and inspire the Gatwick passenger and the feedback has been overwhelming.”

Gatwick’s retail strategy was developed with passenger feedback which showed that 56% of passengers wanted more high street and international brands, 38% wanted a premium department store, and 22% wanted more designer brands.

Ten revamped new stores opened between December 2013 and January 2014 in the South Terminal - Superdry, Fat Face, Snow+Rock, Ted Baker, Zara, Best of the Best, London News, Mango, Joules and Victoria’s Secret.

Eleven revamped new stores opened in August 2013 - Aspinal of London, Ernest Jones, Kurt Geiger, Hugo Boss, Lacoste, Case Luggage, Sunglass Hut, World of Whiskies, Caviar House, Dixons, and Harrods.