Airport Experience® News - Post-Conference Issue 2025

Above: The room was packed for the highly anticipated Airport-Operator Relationships panel at the AX Conference.

ENVISIONING NEW MODELS AXC Panelists Discuss Ways Airports, Concessionaires Can Partner For Growth

As labor costs increase, consumer trends shift, and RFP opportunities overwhelm, concessionaires and airport operators alike are sweeping away outdated practices and seeking new ways to effectively collaborate, experts revealed at AXC 2025 during the panel titled “Airport-Operator Partnerships – A New Way Forward?” Michael Mullaney, associate vice president of aviation consulting firm Landrum & Brown , moderated the discussion. He opened by quoting business author Marshall Goldsmith: “What got you here, will not get you there.” “We need to rethink the foundation of the airport operator partnership,” Mullaney said, “not just move some furniture around in the same old room… Tomorrow’s passengers are demanding different things.” F&B Dominates as Retail Declines Andrew Weddig, executive director of the Airport Restaurant & Retail Association , presented AXN Factbook data tracking 46 airports over 13 years to illustrate changing spending habits. Food and beverage

BY JOHN QUINNIES

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AX NEWS MAY 2025