Abu Dhabi Airports reveals F&B providers

Abu Dhabi Airports has announced that Emirates Leisure Retail (ELR), HMSHost International, Lagardère Capital, and SSP have been awarded the concessionaire contracts for Abu Dhabi Airports’ Midfield Terminal Building (MTB).

"The F&B offering at the MTB will challenge the very perception of F&B retailing in an airport environment thus far and will set the benchmark for dining concepts moving forward. Bearing in mind the wide demographic that we will be catering to, we are thrilled with the pioneering, avant-garde approaches that we have been able to gather together under one roof,” said Abu Dhabi Airports.CEO H.E. Eng. Mohamed Mubarak Al Mazrouei. 

Over 80 concessionaires submitted more than 250 brands to Abu Dhabi Airports when the process began in April 2015. Bidders were required to produce ideas that would put an emphasis on enhancing passenger experience above all else.

“The four main concept pillars that we outlined for the bidders were: experiential dining – adding experience to the occasion; customisation – giving customers the chance to interact and be involved with the end product; casualisation – providing familiar yet outstanding dining environments, whilst offering a wide menu selection; and personalisation – present brands that resonate with diners and make a personal connection.

"In addition, we challenged bidders to capture the essence of Arabian hospitality. The winning concessionaires were those that had demonstrated their ability to deliver on the vision behind it all: providing spectacular ideas that will translate into sensational experiences, and exceeding the expectations of our business partners and customers alike,” Al Mazrouei added.

ELR currently operates over 260 F&B outlets (including 75 at 13 airports) with growing operations across the Middle East and Australasia. 

HMSHost International creates shopping and dining for travel venues as part of the Autogrill Group. Through its HMSHost International division the company has F&B operations in 18 European and another 21 airports across the Middle East, Asia and Pacific, and is responsible for bringing more than 250 brands to market.

Lagardère Capital is a joint venture between Lagardère Travel Retail, a division of Lagardère Group, and Abu Dhabi Capital Group. Lagardère Travel Retail operates 4,000 stores across travel essentials, duty free and food service in airports, railway stations and other concessions in 30+ countries worldwide.

In food service in particular, the company operates 780 outlets in 17 countries in 73 airports. Abu Dhabi Capital Group is a private institutional investment house based in Abu Dhabi, having investments across various asset classes, industries and geographies.

SSP Group has 50 years of experience in running F&B outlets and currently services international airports across 30 countries, including Beijing Capital International Airport in China, Zurich Airport in Switzerland, and John F. Kennedy International Airport in the US, with more than 30,000 employees.

Serving one million customers every day, SSP Group carries more than 300 brands around the world.

When the MTB is complete Abu Dhabi International Airport’s (AUH) overall capacity will reach 45 million passengers a year. In 2015, a record 23.3 million passengers used AUH as their origin, destination, or transit point.