Retail Magic: Hudson Group, Earvin 'Magic' Johnson and Partners Win Four Retail Packages at LAX

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J., Oct. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- An ownership team comprised of four local Los Angeles companies, plus premier travel retailer Hudson Group – and anchored by the power of Earvin "Magic" Johnson – has been selected by Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) to refresh the retail concessions program in four terminals of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). In addition to Hudson Group, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Dufry, AG of Basel, Switzerland, the partners include Magic Johnson Enterprises, Concourse Ventures, The Zaman Group and Soto & Sanchez.

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The award includes some 21 news, gift, book and specialty retail stores, totaling 20,716 sq ft of prime selling space in Terminals 4, 5, 7 and 8.

LAWA Executive Director Gina Marie Lindsey said, "These new retail concessions will add some well-established consumer brands and bring some of LA's most distinctive businesses to LAX, the City's front door to millions of people traveling through the airport."

Speaking for the ownership team, Earvin Johnson noted, "I've flown in and out of LAX many times over the years, and like many people, I've thought that my home airport's retail concessions program had a lot of unrealized potential. I am proud that my company now stands on the threshold of unlocking that potential. My partners and I have created a great lineup of retail brands and concepts for LAX. Our plan is a long-term commitment to transform the airport's current retail concessions and turn LAX into a vibrant, modern retail destination to rival any airport in the world."

According to Hudson Group President & CEO Joe DiDomizio, "This is a large and important competitive win for our company. We are indebted to our great local partners and our brand partners, and look forward to working with all of them for many years to come in LAX. Likewise, we are grateful to the Mayor, the City Council and the LAWA board and staff for their confidence in our team. It's all here for LAX: world-class newsstands, bookstores and specialty retail shops. All with universal consumer appeal that showcases the style and spirit of Los Angeles, the Entertainment Capital of the World."

Newsstand brands included in the proposal are: Hudson News, CNN Newsstand Los Angeles, I Love LA, LA Times Newsstand, People News, Entertainment Weekly News and E! News. Bookstore brands include Hudson Booksellers and Vroman's, a local LA bookstore. Specialty retail concepts include a bevy of brands with local appeal: Rip Curl, See's Candies, The Mattel Experience, Kitson, NBC Universal Studios, Bartels' Harley-Davidson, Hollywood Bling, a trendy fashion boutique called Hollywood Style, and a new sports concept, Magic Johnson Sports. Luxury retail brands include Hugo Boss and Sunglass Hut.

About Hudson Group: Hudson Group, the largest duty-paid travel retailer in North America, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of international duty-free travel retailer Dufry AG (DUFN) of Basel, Switzerland. The company operates some 600 newsstands, bookstores, cafes and premier specialty retail shops in 70 airports and transportation terminals in the United States and Canada, and additional newsstands in 11 more countries around the world. The combined Dufry/Hudson entity oversees over 1,100 stores in 41 countries and 148 airports and terminals. For more information, visit www.hudsongroup.com  and www.dufry.com.  

About Magic Johnson Enterprises: Magic Johnson Enterprises, formed in 1987, serves as a catalyst for community and economic empowerment by making available high-quality entertainment, products and services that answer the demands of ethnically diverse urban communities. Through investment, partnership and consultation, Magic Johnson Enterprises has a portfolio of companies that strategically work together to reinforce the organization's focus on serving emerging, multicultural communities. Learn more at www.magicjohnsonenterprises.com

About Concourse Ventures: Led by President Dale Mason Cochran since 1998, Concourse Ventures operates retail concessions in airports in various partnerships with Hudson Group across the U.S. Ms. Cochran's team currently operates retail concessions in Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, Memphis International Airport, Denver International Airport, Boston Logan International Airport, San Francisco International Airport, Newark Liberty International Airport and JFK International Airport.

About The Zaman Group: Since June 2009, The Zaman Group, led by President Karim Zaman, has operated a highly successful retail concession in Terminal 7 of LAX. Mr. Zaman has had 10 years of prior airport concessions experience as owner of The Payphone Company, a full service public communications company that provides payphones, inmate phones, site administration, prepaid calling cards, and Internet kiosks to major accounts nationwide and eight airports, including Los Angeles International and Chicago O'Hare International. In 2010, The Zaman Group was named Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week Retail Firm of the Year by the Los Angeles Minority Business Opportunity Center of Mayor Villaraigosa's Office of Economic Development. 

About Soto & Sanchez: Soto & Sanchez Investments has operated two I Love LA gift shops in the Los Angeles International Airport since 1994. Since 1998, the company's principals have been 50% owners in Pacific Gateway Concessions at San Francisco International Airport, and since 2000, they have been in a 6% joint venture partnership with Duty Free Shoppes at LAX. The owners (two sisters and a brother) grew up working in their family's two grocery stores in East LA, and have parlayed that experience into a multi-million dollar enterprise. The company is 100% Hispanic owned, with 67% of it controlled by women. The owners of Soto & Sanchez have spent the past 15 years in airports creating a company built on the strong foundation set by their parents and still deeply rooted in the LA community.

SOURCE Hudson Group