Airport Experience® News - ACDBE Issue 2026

AT A GLANCE NAME OF COMPANY: Procurement Concepts, Inc. (PCI) HEADQUARTERS: San Diego, CA OWNER(S): Harold “Gil” Johnson and Gale Johnson

on supplementing their partnership roster. “[As with] any ACDBE trying to expand their portfolio, you introduce yourself to other primes,” says Johnson of the process of growing their reach. After working to secure partnerships with additional concessionaires like High Flying Foods, Duty Free Partners and WHSmith North America , the Johnsons turned their attention to pushing themselves creatively, opening The District Market, a shop within-a-shop boutique at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) showcasing products from the city’s most well-known neighborhoods. “It stimulated the industry, because you see district markets in a lot of airports now,” says Johnson, “but that concept was originally developed with MRG ( Marshall Retail Group ) in San Francisco, and we were fortunate enough to be one of their first ACDBE partners.” Becoming An Asset Johnson emphasizes that PCI’s partner relationships have fueled much of the firm’s growth. “My primary objective with my partners is not to embarrass them and not to get them in trouble,” says Johnson, citing the balancing act required for ACDBEs to manage the challenges of buildout and operating costs. “You have to execute, because if you execute, then you become an asset to the prime, as opposed to a liability — [and] therefore, when they are looking for people in other venues, they will come to you because you are a reliable source.” Partners like Roderick McOwan, chief development officer at WHSmith North America, would agree. “When you think about a partner of distinction, I think about [PCI’s] involvement over the years – engagement, questioning, challenging yet respectful – which is how we try to act as [a] partner as well,” says McOwan. That’s the Gil that we know from a business partnership perspective.” PCI, Johnson mentions, has also weathered industry changes outside of its business relationships, including the ongoing uncertainty over ACDBE policies enacted by the federal government. “There is a misnomer that the ACDBE program is a handout… and this could not be any further from the truth,” says Johnson. “The purpose of an ACDBE program is to allow people

YEAR OF ENTRY INTO AIRPORTS: 1991 NUMBER OF AIRPORT LOCATIONS: Five

AIRPORTS: San Diego International Airport (SAN), San Francisco International Airport (SFO), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Palm Springs International Airport (PSP), Denver International Airport (DEN) CONCEPTS OPERATED: See’s Candies; Hallmark; The District Market; various travel, news, gift and bookstores NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES: Eight full-time, although through its partnerships and joint venture operations, PCI helps oversee teams operating across multiple airport retail and dining locations nationwide. FUTURE PLANS: PCI continues to focus on strategic and sustainable growth while building the next generation of leadership within the organization.

like us to get into the industry because it is so capital intensive,” he adds, noting that from his perspective, the program should instead serve “to grow organizations and give them the skill levels [so] they will grow into being competitive. The ultimate goal is for us to be competitors to the prime contractors,” adds Johnson, “but we need a stepping stool to reach the top shelf.” Johnson wants PCI “to grow for the sake of success,” he says, noting that the company plans to add to its portfolio through further standalone and large-scale concepts. “I have seen some companies in our industry, in my opinion, grow too fast,” he notes. Uncontrolled growth “is as bad as no growth at all, because uncontrolled growth will kill you too,” he adds, noting that “if you don’t have the backbone to support what you’re trying to accomplish, that’s catastrophic. We want to be careful that we strategically grow and that we can support what we say we’re going to do. Execution, to me, is very, very, very important [in] that we don’t over commit.” Johnson has taken to focusing on succession planning as a means of ensuring that PCI’s growth remains sustainable as he transitions into a consultant role. “The Gil [and Gale] that we don’t necessarily see is the legacy work [they are] doing in the background with their long-standing employees and their family as they seek to transition to the next stage in their life between professional and personal,” says WHSmith’s McOwan. “Our growth strategy is to continue the legacy, but also recognize when it’s time to step back,” adds Johnson, noting that they are in the process of adding a new chief operating officer to the team. “[I’ll] still be around, but more as a consultant. That next generation now will become the person that’s ‘the boots on the ground,’” he adds.

Above: Johnson wants to expand Procurement Concepts, but he’s cautious about growing too quickly. The company currently has operations in five airports.

So what will he do once he steps back from a heavier hand in operating PCI? “My wife and I travel,” says Johnson. “I’m pretty active in the community – the San Diego city government and church are the things that keep me out of trouble,” he laughs. And while others may become “the face” of PCI, “I still work daily in the business,” says Johnson, “but I try to do it more as a consultant, and allow our team to grow, and allow them to make some mistakes, because it’s the only way that they’ll learn.”

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AX NEWS JUNE 2026