HMSHost Wins 10 Year $418M Contract at Salt Lake City International Airport to Deliver Top Restaurants for Travelers

Restaurants planned for SLC will surely delight hungry travelers when Salt Lake City International Airport’s redevelopment program is complete and The New SLC opens in 2020. Global restaurateur HMSHost won a 10 year contract valued at approximately $418 million to deliver 12 new dining locations for the 25 million passengers who visit SLC every year. The new restaurants and cafes will offer travelers a wide-ranging variety of experiences, each representing today’s top trends for dining out. All planned locations fall under various joint venture arrangements established by HMSHost with emerging travel dining companies and Utah-based small businesses.

“On behalf of HMSHost and our talented group of business partners, I want to say what an honor it is to be a part of this historic redevelopment project for Salt Lake City International Airport. We thank the Salt Lake City Department of Airports (SLCDA) for selecting our team to serve its travelers as the airport enhances and expands the services offered,” said HMSHost President & CEO Steve Johnson. “The restaurants we will open are at the forefront of innovative dining trends at both the local and national level, and we could not be more excited to provide these great new dining destinations for SLC’s travelers.”

New dining options for SLC travelers will include:

·         Shake Shack is a critically acclaimed, modern day “roadside” burger stand known for its 100 percent all-natural Angus beef burgers, chicken sandwiches, griddled flat-top dogs (no hormones or antibiotics – ever), fresh-made frozen custard, crispy crinkle-cut fries, and more. A fun and lively community gathering place with widespread appeal, Shake Shack has earned a cult-like following around the world. 

·          Panera Bread is the most highly recognized and regarded bakery-café brand in the nation, built upon its forward-thinking product and service innovations and widely acclaimed for its wholesome and craveable made-to-order breakfast, lunch, and dinner offerings 

·          Pizzeria Limone is known in the Salt Lake City region for creating delicious Neapolitan pizzas and its fast service makes it ideal for hurried travelers who want to get a taste of one of the hottest local favorites. The signature pies are baked in custom-designed open-fire turntable ovens in 3.5 minutes, coming out hot with a crust that has bubbled up perfectly around the edges. 

·          White Horse Spirits and Kitchen White Horse Spirits and Kitchen in SLC will be the second location for this popular Salt Lake City’s Main Street ‘hot-spot’ establishment, White Horse Spirits and Kitchen. This contemporary American Brasserie spotlights local ingredients on an eclectic menu, with a noteworthy selection of spirits, draft ciders, local brews on tap, and premium wines. 

·          Market Street Grill is Salt Lake City’s seafood destination restaurant and has been since 1980. Market Street expertly prepares seafood flown in daily from around the world, sourcing and partnering with only sustainable suppliers. The many travelers who have been enjoying Market Street Grill in the existing Terminal 2 will be very excited to learn that their favorite spot has found a home in the airport’s new terminal.  

·          Smashburger is the fast-casual gourmet burger experience for burger lovers, recognized across the country for its mouthwatering signature cooking process. Every Smashburger burger is “smashed” on the grill and seared to seal in the juices, then topped with garden-fresh ingredients and served with signature Smashfries. 

·          California Pizza Kitchen is widely recognized for its delicious food, culinary innovation and seasonal specials. With the opening in SLC, travelers will be able to enjoy trending menu items such as the new cauliflower pizza crust or dig into one of their favorite globally-inspired hand-tossed and hearth-cooked pies such as the Thai Chicken, the Jamaican Jerk Chicken, or the top-selling Original BBQ Chicken.

·          Bruges Belgian Bistro will bring all things Belgium into the Terminal from the Salt Lake City gem, Bruges Waffles & Frites, which started selling traditional Liège waffles, popular in Belgium, on Main Street in Salt Lake City from a vending cart in 2004 and expanded to several trucks and traditional locations since. Travelers will be able to enjoy delicious dessert options such as the popular “Waffle Monster” which is made with vanilla bean ice cream, strawberries, speculoos, and blueberries. Hungry passengers seeking something heartier will be excited to discover the ‘Machine Gun Sandwich’ (as featured on Food Network’s Man v Food) — a toasted baguette stuffed with a secret lamb sausage, frites and Andalouse sauce. Bruges’ hand-peeled frites, burgers, and more provide options for all guests. 

·          SLC Life Market Featuring Creminelli Meats redefines the typical airport “grab and go” dining experience offering a unique combination of convenience, freshness, great taste, and local products. Infused with the energy of SLC Airport, the SLC Life Market will offer freshly prepared sandwiches and salads, along with a wide selection of small bites and snacks to take on board. Also featured in SLC Life Market, will be popular local food purveyors such as Cakes de Fleur, a private Salt Lake City bakery founded by two friends that specializes in creating high-quality cakes from scratch.

·          Starbucks® Coffee is the global leader in gourmet coffee, with inviting stores that provide a comforting place to refresh with one of their signature beverages, baked goods, sandwiches, and snacks – all the things that travelers crave. Three Starbucks stores will open in the new airport.  

HMSHost operations will be dynamically supported by joint venture partnerships within the Airport Concessions Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (ACDBE) program as follows:

·         HMSHost, Concessions America, Emerging Domestic Market Ventures, and TMG Services: Market Street Grill, SLC Life Market Featuring Creminelli Meats, Pizzeria Limone, and Smashburger.

·         HMSHost and Kind Hospitality: Panera Bread. 

·         HMSHost, Concessions America, and TMG Services: Starbucks and White Horse Spirits and Kitchen.

·         HMSHost, Emerging Domestic Market Ventures, and TMG Services: Shake Shack, California Pizza Kitchen, and Bruges Belgian Bistro.

HMSHost’s current options at Salt Lake City International Airport encompass a selection of popular original and local dining for travelers such as High West Saloon, Greek Souvlaki, and Il Viaggio among others. A list of existing HMSHost-operated locations at SLC is available on the HMSHost location finder map.

Source: Aviation Pros

Port of Seattle conducting disparity study of airport concessions programme at Seattle Tacoma

The Port of Seattle is currently conducting an ACDBE Disparity Study to assess its airport concessions program, analyze the participation of minority-and woman-owned businesses in airport concessions at Sea-Tac; and determine what, if any, improvements are needed to optimize its airport concessions-related contracting processes and business development programs.

Source: CAPA & others

Privatizing Canadian airports: a bad idea (The Centre for Productivity and Prosperity – Walter J. Somers Foundation):

The Trudeau government has been considering privatizing the eight largest airports in the national network since a report was tabled on the future of transportation in Canada, but the idea has not received unanimous approval. While it is certainly attractive in terms of public finances, the prospect has been strongly criticized by different stakeholders, from airlines worried about seeing user fees increase to certain airport authorities who see no benefits for the country. The Centre for Productivity and Prosperity – Walter J. Somers Foundation, wishing to shed more light on this question, has now released a study on the potential impact of this change for Canada. The Centre unhesitatingly concludes that privatizing Canadian airports would not lead to any significant productivity gains.

A broadening trend
According to Jacques Roy, a Professor at HEC Montréal and the author of the study, privatizing airports is an increasingly popular phenomenon, making it easier to understand the issues and assess the benefits and drawbacks in terms of efficiency and productivity. «In 2016, 41% of European airports were owned entirely or in part by private interests, as opposed to just 22% in 2010,» the expert explains.

By analyzing the impact of different governance models at airports around the world, he found that privatization does not guarantee more efficient and effective management. «Based on data from the Air Transport Research Society, which compares the performance of 206 airports and 24 airport groups, we can see that public-sector airports have productivity indicators comparable with those of airports owned entirely or in part by private interests,» he notes. «Looking at these results, it’s hard to claim that private-sector governance would help boost productivity, especially since it is often the best-performing airports that get privatized.»

Canadian performance
In fact, some results seem to show that Canada has made the right choices. «Its largest airports have invested close to $20 billion over the past 20 years to improve their infrastructure, under relatively advantageous credit conditions. It’s not clear that private, for-profit airports would have done better – in fact, the opposite is possible,» Roy maintains.

«Airports are strategic infrastructures for a country the size of Canada, and I feel that it would be preferable for the federal government to remain the owner,» the author concludes. «This consideration should not justify the status quo, however. In the short term, it would be a good idea to review regulatory and monitoring mechanisms to ensure that Canadian airports remain functional and competitive, with respect for the interests of users and communities. In my opinion, Australia has an interesting model, as its largest airports are overseen by an organization that monitors prices and service levels.»

Source: Newswires.ca

GMR Airports Ltd, Terna Groups signs concession agreement for construction of Intl Airport in Greece

GMR Infrastructure Limited on Friday said that its subsidiary GMR Airports Limited and its Greek partner Terna Group have signed a concession agreement for construction of the new International Airport at Crete in Greece.

The concession agreement involves design, construction, financing, operation and maintenance and exploitation of the new International Airport of Heraklion at Crete.

The Concession Period for the project is 35 years including Phase 1 Construction of 5 years, GMR said in a release here.

Greece is one of the leading International tourist destinations, attracting nearly 27 million tourists per annum.

Crete is largest and most visited island in Greece. Heraklion Airport, located in Crete, is the second largest Airport in Greece and has registered traffic growth at a CAGR of 10 per cent per annum over the past three years.

The current airport is facing a severe capacity constraint and will be replaced by the new airport at Kastelli.

The consortium intends to invest over 500 Million Euro for development of the new airport.

The entire project will be funded through a mix of equity, accruals from the existing airport, and financial grant being provided by the Government of Greece; therefore, debt is not required in this project.

Commenting on the development, Mr. Srinivas Bommidala, Business Chairman, Energy and International Airports said, this is GMR Group’s first foray in the EU region and we eagerly look forward to expanding our footprint in the EU.

The signing of the Concession Agreement is a significant milestone in the growth journey of GMR Airports’ and reinforces our leadership position, he said.

The New Heraklion airport project is a landmark PPP project for Greece and it is a matter of great pride for the GMR Group to work on this prestigious project, Mr Srinivas added.

Source: United News of India.