ARI, the retail business of State airports operator DAA, has won a contract with its partners to manage duty-free shops in New York John F Kennedy International Airport’s busiest terminal, in the Irish company’s first US venture.
ARI, its partner International Shoppes and a group of local enterprises plan to invest $50 million (€43 million) on the duty-free and retail concessions in JFK’s terminal four, which handles 28 million passengers a year.
The group recently won a long-term contract to manage nine outlets with 2,500sq m of retail space across the terminal from its operator, the Schiphol Airport-owned company, International Airport Terminals (IAT).
The deal is part of International Airport Terminals’ $1.5 billion plan to overhaul the terminal, which is JFK’s busiest. It is the first such contract that ARI has won in the US, according to the Irish company’s chief executive, Ray Hernan.
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ARI already manages duty-free and travel retail businesses in 26 locations across 12 countries, including Canada, and had been aiming to get into the US for some time, Hernan said on Thursday.
“It’s another flag in the ground,” he added. “We operate in a very competitive landscape and these wins do not come easy.”
ARI and its partners cut the ribbon on the new venture in JFK on Thursday. Hernan noted that they had just weeks to prepare for the official opening after winning the contract.
The business turns over $100 million a year. ARI and International Shoppes have a brief to reshape the retail businesses to reflect New York City and its vibrancy and diversity, Hernan explained.
“Terminal four is the gateway to New York for many people and it’s their last experience leaving the city,” he pointed out.
The consortium will spend about $50 million on this over a period of years, Hernan confirmed.
While the JFK business is significant in its own right, Hernan says ARI hopes the deal will give the Irish business a platform from which it can win further contracts in the US.
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International Shoppes, which is joining forces with ARI in JFK terminal four Retail Partners LLC, is a New York-based duty-free and luxury retail business that works with high-profile global brands and small businesses.
A group of local enterprises, known as designated business entities, are joining the partnership. Many are from Queens, the New York borough where JFK is located.
They include: Neir’s Tavern, one of the oldest pubs in the US; Ben Crump Enterprises, a company founded by civil rights attorney Ben Crump; and Byrd Retail Group, which has years of experience in JFK and Queens, along with several others.
DAA deputy chief executive Nick Cole said ARI’s contract win was “no small feat”. He added that it extended ARI’s North American presence from Canada to the United States, and planted a flag for both that company and DAA.
