Airport Experience® News - Pre-Conference Issue 2026

LATEST BUZZ

The Lineup As a result, more than 60 new shopping and dining offerings have already launched or will open across T8 over the next three months in the form of both direct leases and joint venture partnerships between Hudson, HMSHost, OTG , DFA, MERA US, Mezze, M +R Concessions, Villa and independent brands. Offerings include well-known New York favorites like the David Chang-led Peach Palace by Momofuku, Black Tap Burger, Italian market Eataly, taco brand Dos Toros and Alidoro sandwich shop, as well as hyper-local finds like Zaro’s Family Bakery, home decor/perfume/ jewelry retailer Alchemy; plant-based beauty brand Beautiful Amore Skincare, naturopathic boutique Mother Earth Juice Bar; local goods boutique Dear New York; as well as art and accessory store Natchie; Bowery Meat Company, a steakhouse by restaurateur John McDonald and Mercer Street hospitality; and Neir’s Tavern, an historic pub located near the airport. The updated T8 will also include several locations of trusted national brands such as the iPorte travel tech store, multiple Hudson convenience stores, Shake Shack, Dunkin’, a new Gameway video game lounge and the popular work and rest space MinuteSuites. Travelers will also be able to enjoy fare from the newly opened Boroughs Food Hall, operated in joint venture with MERA US and New York City-based Tsion Enterprises , Texas-based Food Cycle LLC and Massachusetts-based South River Partners . The food hall features even more local brands like craft beer bar Cobblestones, Black Star Bakery & Cafe, Japanese cafe Mito, Middle Eastern quick serve restaurant Naya, Guy Fieri-backed Flavortown Kitchen, Brooklyn-based cafe and juicery BKLYN Blend, Bagel Boss and Long Island-based Le Petit Gourmet. Duty free concessions – operated by Dufry (Avolta), Queens-based The Nourish Spot , New York-based Sullivan Hernandez Group , Atlanta-based Kellee Communications and Florida-based Tarra Enterprises , Inc. – include Meatpacking

master concessionaire, we wanted to make sure that the concessions program reflected the best of New York,” adds Parekh. “To achieve that, you have to reach out to local businesses and see who is interested [in launching at the airport],” he adds, noting that the PANYNJ and ASUR Airports LLC joined local legislators in holding sessions for interested entrepreneurs to learn about the opportunities at JFK. “And from the initial interest, you have to verify if they have the capacity and the knowledge and the experience to actually come into the airport and operate or manage a concession because, as we often say, running a food and beverage or retail business off airport is night-and-day from doing the same on the airport.” To ready businesses for operations in Terminal 8, PANYNJ and ASUR Airports LLC offered multiple initiatives designed to support entrepreneurs new to the airport space: the PANYNJ-run Institute of Concessions (IOC), a free, months-long course covering the ins and outs of airport logistics; and the ASUR Airports LLC Small Business Accelerator program, in which the concessions manager funded kiosk and small inline spaces on 12- and 24-month leases to lower the barrier of entry for local entrepreneurs. “ASUR Airports LLC came forward with a fantastic concept – all you need to do is bring in your merchandise, your branding, signage and your point-of-sale system and you become an airport concessionaire,” says Parekh of the program.

Local And First-To-Airport Brands After American Airlines selected JFK T8 Innovation Partners (a joint venture led by ASUR Airports LLC and certified minority-business enterprise (MBE) equity partner Phoenix Infrastructure Group ) to lead the charge, the consortium set out to put together an appealing portfolio of concepts for T8 travelers, says Ashley Hari, ASUR Airports LLC’s leasing director. “In the case of Terminal 8, we focused on creating a New York sense of place that appealed to the masses,” says Hari. “We focused on bringing some mega first to-airport brands as a surprise and delight moment,” Hari continues. “Throughout the merchandising, we sprinkled in local, disadvantaged businesses wherever possible, as a strategic complement to the overall experience.” The JV partners also committed to working with local suppliers. “As airport capital and operational costs are incredibly difficult to manage, we really doubled down our efforts with product suppliers through local artisans and entrepreneurs,” says Hari. “This undertapped market gives small businesses a foothold in the airport without the overhead of the high costs of doing business. We are hoping to see our new suppliers blossom and grow into their own footprints once their products are established.” “As part of our guidance provided to American Airlines as the terminal operator and ASUR Airports LLC as the

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AX NEWS FEBRUARY 2026