Airport Experience® News - ACDBE & Small Business Issue 2024

traveling…” Lam says they paid attention to details, noting what products people were touching, looking at, carrying and sitting with. They’d show up at 4 a.m. and stay until midnight. “It was our investment, we wanted to make sure [we did it right],” she says. “The early days were challenging but also an opportunity for us to learn.” Once Bambuza opened and began to grow its footprint in airports, Lam began to reassess certain practices that may have worked on the street but were arduous in airports. “ I remember we tried to support and buy from many vendors, but the reality is it’s a lot to manage on a daily basis with deliveries,” she recalls. Other changes included streamlining menus to reflect the limited kitchen spaces in airports, and the expansion of the offer to include certain grab-and-go items – sandwiches, salads, fruit cups, etc. – to appeal to time challenged travelers. Those weren’t part of the original plan. “We tried some things that didn’t work so we changed to a very simple offering,” she says. “We recognized we need to learn and evolve.

AT A GLANCE NAME OF COMPANY: Bambuza Hospitality Group HEADQUARTERS: Portland, Oregon FOUNDER(S): Katherine Lam, Daniel Nguyen

YEAR OF ENTRY INTO AIRPORTS: 2015 NUMBER OF AIRPORT LOCATIONS: 9 AIRPORTS: PDX, SEA, SNA, SLC (opening soon), SMF (opening soon)

CONCEPTS OPERATED IN AIRPORTS: Bambuza Vietnamese Kitchen & Bar, Ninth & Pike Artisan Kitchen and Embarqué Whiskey Grill. The company also operates partner brands including The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and Sambazon. FUTURE PLANS: Bambuza Hospitality Group plans to continue its expansion in airports, with ongoing regard and gratitude for the industry colleagues and friends who have contributed to the evolution of the company.

Moving Forward Bambuza Hospitality Group has expanded significantly since its first airport location nine years ago. The company has eight airport locations – operating as Bambuza Vietnamese Kitchen & Bar, Ninth & Pike Artisan Kitchen and Embarqué – at PDX, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), and John Wayne Airport (SNA), and will soon open in Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC) and Sacramento International Airport (SMF).

The company also operates partner brands including The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and Sambazon. And, it continues to operate on the street, with The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf in Lake Oswego and Hiep Hung Asian Market in Clackamas, both suburbs of Portland. Unlike many ACDBE-certified firms, Bambuza’s locations are 100% owned and operated. The company doesn’t partner with primes or other operators, nor does it license the brand for others to operate in airports. “We take it one airport at a time,” Lam says. “All I can say is that at this point I enjoy it, and my team supports and helps me to grow. I would never say no, but at this point we are still blessed that we are able to grow our own.” Future plans call for continued growth, with an appreciation for all the effort it took to make it this far. “We were very blessed with this opportunity in the airport, not only in the fact that the airport took a vote of confidence in us as a small business operator, but also that many people along the way have become friends. They are truly available and are side by-side with us, they help us, support us and validate our plans, our thoughts and our ideas. “I am very grateful for those friends and those decision-makers that really believe in us as a small business owner,” Lam continues. “They believe we can execute and operate and compete with the big companies, and I’m very grateful for that.”

Left: Embarqué Whiskey Grill opened at SEA last year, expanding the range of proprietary brands from Bambuza Hospitality Group

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AX NEWS JULY/AUGUST 2024