The City of Chicago has released the details of Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD)’s latest large-scale concessions and retail RFP. The Midwestern airport is soliciting a total of 112 retail and food and beverage concepts across Terminals 1 and 3.
The ORDerUp! RFP seeks 75 food and beverage concepts, 34 retail concepts and three duty-free concepts across 146,000 square feet of terminal space. The City of Chicago has established a 32% ACDBE participation target, and 10% of available concessions space will be reserved for small businesses, with an additional incubator program planned to enable small first-time businesses to enter the airport space.
Requested concepts include multiple quick-serve restaurants (QSRs) with chicken-focused, burger, sandwich, “build-your-own” sushi, noodle, Mexican, Latin, Chicago-themed and Mediterranean concepts for several concourse food halls; multiple full-service bars and premium coffee concepts; smoothie and boba cafes; a casual full-service restaurant with a full bar and American fare; grab-and-go markets; a regionally-themed or artisan specialty retail store; news and convenience concepts; sunglass retail concepts; game and entertainment retail concepts; Chicago sports-themed retail concepts; and specialty candy retailers among others across 13 food and beverage packages, seven retail packages and one duty-free package. Proposals are due by January 15, 2025. New concepts selected will open in phases, with officials estimating that the first concepts could open as soon as 2027.
“Today’s announcement of the new concession contracts offers another opportunity for Chicago to invest in the diverse people and communities that make our city a premier travel destination,” said Mayor Brandon Johnson. “O’Hare is a welcoming jewel of Chicago, and together, we continue to prioritize new opportunities for that spirit to shine. We are creating additional space for Chicagoans from every neighborhood to operate businesses while at the same time offering world-class amenities to travelers.”
“Airport concessions offer opportunities to build generational wealth and create fantastic employment opportunities for Chicagoans of all ages,” added Chicago Department of Aviation commissioner Jamie L. Rhee. “I want to encourage diverse firms of all sizes and backgrounds to participate in this competitive bid process and help us build the future of O’Hare with concessions that showcase the culture and hospitality of Chicago.”
