Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson is Delta’s hub and the busiest airport in the world. (Photo by: Jeff Greenberg/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Jeff Greenberg/Universal Images Greoup via Getty Images
Specialist travel retailer, Hudson, has plans for 20 new travel convenience and specialty retail concepts—including two hybrid stores—at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in Atlanta, consistently the world’s busiest air gateway. This amounts to a 50% hike in stores.
Hudson, which has over 1,000 stores in airports, commuter hubs, landmarks, and tourist locations across North America, has been awarded two 10-year contracts to open the new stores in four concourses and the domestic atrium at the Delta Air Lines hub.
The 20 stores will span more than 19,000 square feet and will open amid an expanded partnership with ATL Skypointe, the official retail and dining program of the airport. They will add to the 40 locations currently run by Hudson.
The wins “reflect success in securing two distinct retail packages through competitive proposals, each in collaboration with local, certified ACDBE partners,” according to a statement from Hudson.
Airport Concessions Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (ACDBE) is an initiative implemented by the Federal Aviation Administration designed to ensure that socially and economically disadvantaged businesses (such as those that are minority-owned and women-owned), have fair opportunities to compete for airport concession contracts.
Hudson—part of Switzerland-based global travel retail giant Avolta whose sales in North America have been flat this year, will open new stores in Concourses T, A, B, and C, and the domestic atrium from early next year. Among the 20 stores, there will be additional locations for familiar brands such as luggage maker Tumi, skincare house Kiehl’s, and heritage apparel maker Johnston & Murphy.
Hudson’s proprietary concepts such as tech store iPorte and Simply Beauty will also be present. A dedicated SoAtlanta store will blend national brands including sunglasses, apparel, and cosmetics with local items, while two new Ink by Hudson bookstores will include picks by local independent bookseller 44th & 3rd, a black, family-run store founded in 2017 by Warren, Cheryl, and Allyce Lee in the historic West End neighborhood of Atlanta.
Hartsfield-Jackson champions local businesses
Leaning into ACDBE, Hudson will also engage 200 local small businesses, including Atlanta Beltline Marketplace, bringing together a collection of travel convenience stores created exclusively for Hartsfield-Jackson. Some of the retail brands are Maple and Magnolia, Atlanta Beltline by Hudson (a hybrid with Costa Coffee), Westside Co., Atlanta Magazine, UrbanOak by Hudson (partnering Starbucks), and Shellis News.
Other retail units from Hudson will highlight Atlanta’s noted role in the civil rights movement at Atlanta Reflections, and pay tribute to the city’s Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCU) heritage at Legacy ATL. Hudson will operate the new locations with six local entrepreneurs and certified ACDBE partners.
Hartsfield-Jackson’s senior deputy general manager Tyronia Smith said that Hudson’s new offer “marks an exciting new chapter in our concessions program.” She added: “Atlanta Airport is building a concessions program that reflects the diverse desires and needs of its global audience.”
As the world’s busiest airport, Hartsfield-Jackson processed more than 108 million passenger in 2024, up 3.3% year-over-year. The new contracts represent a growth opportunity for Hudson, and its parent Avolta, and the extra footprint will help to offset a currently difficult North American airport retail market.
In the first half of 2025, the Delta Air Lines hub saw a 1.5% rise in aircraft operations but a 2.1 2.1% fall in passenger traffic to 52.1 million, driven chiefly by a fall in domestic travel of 3%.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/kevinrozario/2025/08/19/hudson-leans-into-diversity-with-retail-wins-at-atlantas-hartsfield-jackson-airport/
