Airport Experience® News - Post-Conference Issue 2024

moderated the panel on maintaining a strong and vibrant ACDBE program. “We’re starting to see all of these attacks against affirmative action. We really have a significant challenge. He urged attendees to take the threats seriously and his panelists have already begun taking steps to do so. Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) works hard to ensure that existing joint venture partnerships are fair for ACDBE partners and encourages them to bid as operators when it makes sense, said Tamela Lee, vice president of business diversity and development, adding that the airport’s outreach efforts into the community, through partnerships with local Chamber and other business organizations are extensive. The airport also recently created the Small Business Enterprise Concessions Program, which works closely with the airport’s concessions department, to identify opportunities across its large span where small businesses can operate on their own. “We’ve been successful working with concessions and identifying small businesses that can own and operate 100% as a prime concessionaire,” she said. “So, I kind of feel like the original intent of the whole concession program was to introduce women and minorities to the concession program” and then move them toward operating on their own. “We are moving in that direction,” Lee said, adding that minority participation at DFW has reached 46%. Gonzalo de la Melena, founder and CEO of Emerging Airport Ventures and vice chair of the Airport Minority Advisory Council’s Government Affairs Committee, celebrated airports like DFW, Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) , San Diego International Airport (SAN) and Denver International Airport (DEN) for the effort they put into providing opportunities for small businesses and creating meaningful protégé relationships. De la Melena agreed that the programs are being challenged “across multiple points of attack” and told attendees to begin reframing the conversation.

and financial changes to their RFPs post Covid. “You need to ask yourself, why are we doing this?” said Wolfe, “and if the answer is, ‘because we’ve always done it that way,’ that generates an opportunity for some discussion.” Carlos Ruiz, director of commercial management, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) noted that his team has also made substantial changes in moving away from a traditional RFP process. In doing research on how other airports navigate their concessions agreements, Ruiz recommended more communication and more dialogue so that both sides get the concessions program they want. Discussing the balance between local and national concepts, both concessionaires and commercial managers agreed that neither is a one-size-fits-all solution. “Local only works in certain environments,” said Kasali, as he noted that time-strapped travelers prefer national-brand QSRs while local brands thrive with leisure passengers. Wolfe added that at SLC, “we are a lot more interested in the brand’s authenticity — making sure that it represents the community.” When it comes to construction, concessionaires and commercial managers emphasized a need for more careful planning ahead of concept installation to avoid unnecessary costs and increase sustainability. And while concessionaires and commercial managers were still parsing out how to reconcile the specifics of MAG contracts, all parties agreed that a legacy model was no longer the answer and that lease lengths could also be revisited. “If you

Above: Carlos Ruiz of Cincinnati/ Northern Kentucky International Airport noted that his team has made substantial changes in moving away from a traditional RFP process.

have a concept that’s no longer cool, or no longer in business…there could be lease clauses [dictating] how we can alter that concept over time,” said Murray. There’s a need for both sides to really listen to each other about everything from pricing realities to more flexible contract provisions, the panel concluded, especially as profitability variables evolve “at light speed,” said Wolfe. Added Sheriff: “We keep having conversations…we’re colleagues, we all want to run great programs and we all want to be profitable.” ACDBE Program Challenges While concessions overall are in a state of evolution, The Airport Concessions Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Program (ACDBE), and its predecessor, the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program, are fighting for survival. The programs have met with resistance in the past, but with the makeup of the Supreme Court and the divisiveness of modern-day politics, industry veterans like Warner Session, founder and principal of the Session Law Firm , said the challenges facing the programs today are probably the strongest ever. “There’s been just a flurry of lawsuits across the country,” said Session, who

47

AX NEWS APRIL/MAY 2024