Host secures Oakland duty-free contract

Lorna Strickland

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Oakland International airport has awarded a number of retail and catering contracts to HMSHost, including the airport's duty-free concession

HMS Host has won the tenders for food and beverage and duty-free outlets at Oakland International Airport. It beat five other bidders including Spanish retailer Areas, which has contested the airport's decision according to local reports. The news follows Host's win in the Miami speciality tenders, announced earlier this week (click here to read the story on RavenFox.com).

Host's contract covers 15 food and beverage locations totalling about 21,188sq ft (1,970sq m) and 16 retail locations covering about 8,415sq ft (782sq m), including one duty-free shop. Host's proposed retail concessions include Oakland Zoo, Children's Fairyland, Cody's Books, Oakland Tribune, Vella's Locker Room, Everett and Jones, Peony, Palm One, Sony Style and Zoom.
 
Catering facilities will include Silver Dragon, Max's Eatz, A.G. Ferrarri Foods, Otaez, Fentons Ice Cream, Lois the Pie Queen, See's Candies, Koi Palace, Heinhold's First and Last Chance Saloon, Burger King, Chili's, California Pizza Kitchen, Starbucks, Chevys Express, Pyramid Alehouse, Famous Famiglia, Gordon Biersch, Tully's, Seattle's Best Coffee, Auntie Anne's and Pizza Hut.
 
Rival retailer and caterer Areas USA has argued that Host's financial projections will never be achieved and were based on passenger spending assumptions not seen at any airport in the US.
 
Areas, which pledged to incorporate local caterers to run 51% of its concessions, questioned why the port would not give the contract to a firm willing to hand more than half of its retail outlets to minority-owned firms. But airport director Steve Grossman told InsideBayArea.com that Host International's projections were "not out of line with what other companies projected".
 
Host will be present at the airport with a two-year interim contract alongside a ten-year contract to operate the majority of food, beverage, retail and duty-free concessions in terminals one and two, which is estimated to generate $117m in revenue for the Port of Oakland.