On this page (3 sections)
Where the shops are
The choice is airside, on the first floor past security; landside, before the queue, there is little more than convenience.
Birmingham has one terminal, so there is no which-terminal question to settle first. Check-in and arrivals are on the ground floor, and the shops sit a floor up, past security, along the one departure lounge that every flight shares. World Duty Free is the first thing you meet after the security exit, because you walk straight through it, and the rest of the retail spreads along the concourse towards the gates. Landside, before you go through, expect convenience only: somewhere to grab a meal deal, a paper or a charger, not a browse.
Two things worth knowing before you linger. The shops open around the first flights, so on a dawn departure the essentials will be trading but not every store is open early. And Birmingham is a silent airport, with no boarding calls over a tannoy, so keep half an eye on the departure boards while you shop and leave time to reach the gate. The airport map shows where each shop sits relative to your gate.
The shops, one by one
The essentials, the fashion and accessory names, and tech and luggage, all airside past security.
For the essentials, the anchor is a large WHSmith, billed as Britain's largest airside branch when it opened in 2023, stocking books, magazines, snacks, drinks, travel adaptors and the small stuff you forgot to pack, with a separate bookshop alongside it. A Boots covers medicines, a meal deal and toiletries in carry-on sizes, which is the shop to know if you left the 100ml bottles at home. For food to go and everyday bits there is an M&S Simply Food and a SPAR.
Fashion and accessories are well covered for an airport this size. JD Sports handles trainers and sportswear, Superdry the casual clothing, and Kurt Geiger, Accessorize and Sunglass Hut the shoes, bags, jewellery and sunglasses, the last of those a genuine airport buy before a beach holiday. The luxury and gift end runs through World Duty Free, covered in the duty free guide, where the fragrance and cosmetics sit.
For tech and travel kit, InMotion carries headphones, chargers, adaptors and the gadget you meant to buy before you left, and there is luggage from Samsonite and Tumi plus a Luggage Point counter for a replacement bag or a last-minute case. Between them the shops cover almost anything you realise you need once you are airside, which is the point: this is buy-it-now retail, not a day out.
Saving on airport shopping
Reserve ahead at World Duty Free for 10% off, and treat 'airport price' as a reason to check, not to trust.
The one built-in saving is World Duty Free's Reserve & Collect: reserve online up to 30 days before you fly, collect and pay in store on the day, and take 10% off for booking that way. It works best for spirits and fragrance, where the exact bottle matters and the shop can be busy. Beyond that, treat airport shopping as ordinary shopping. The genuine duty-free saving is on alcohol and tobacco only; since 2021, perfume, cosmetics and gifts carry full VAT like anywhere else, so a quick price check on your phone is worth it before you buy. The duty free guide spells out what is really cheaper and what only looks it.
If you are shopping to fill time rather than to buy, the wider departure lounge has more than shops: the food and drink outlets for a meal, the lounges for a seat with the shopping done, and a spa for a quick treatment. The departure lounge overview ties the lot together.