A mix of restaurants that will appeal to the growing number of Asian and Middle Eastern travelers, along with expanded and relocated duty-free stores, are on tap at Dallas/Fort Worth International (DFW) as the airport continues its revamp of concessions in its international Terminal D.
“Ten years ago [when Terminal D opened], we didn’t have the connectivity we do today,” Ken Buchanan says, speaking with ARN at the World Routes Development Forum in Chicago. DFW’s executive vice president for revenue management notes new or expanded service from carriers such as Emirates, Qatar Airways, Etihad Airways, Qantas and others, and says that, given that concessionaire leases are expiring next year, the airport has an opportunity to better serve the shifting traveler demographics.
The request for proposals for Phase 2 of the project is expected to go out in October or November, he says, and about 20 food and retail locations will be involved in the RFP, although packages haven’t been determined.
Phase 2 will include six duty-free locations: three main stores and three satellite locations. Buchanan says duty free will move front and center in the terminal, moving from its current location at the mezzanine level. Space devoted to duty free also is increasing by about 20 percent.
The goal, Buchanan says, is to bring duty free to the forefront as much as possible, capitalizing on the shopping habits of DFW’s international travelers.
“We probably won’t have the walkthrough stores because of the configuration in the terminal, but they will all be adjacent to or in the flow of traffic,” Buchanan says.
He envisions some stand-alone stores for “affordable luxury” brands, and higher end options will be housed within the larger duty-free store. The airport will be seeking a single duty-free operator.
Restaurant concepts also will change, Buchanan says, with “more vegetarian, more halal, more Asian, more Mediterranean,” along with Mexican and Tex Mex and other concepts.
Buchanan was at the conference as part of a team sent by DFW to woo airlines from around the globe. Although his duties don’t include air service development, the commercial activities at DFW are “part of the total package we present to airlines,” he says. DFW was among several North American airports exhibiting at the conference.
