Italy’s Autogrill enters Turkey, UAE markets

ISTANBUL- Hürriyet Daily News

Autogrill is slated to open its first restaurants at Istanbul’s Sabiha Gökçen Airport. DHA photo

Italy’s Autogrill has signed its first contracts in Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, striking deals to open airport restaurants through its HMSHost unit that it expects to generate 125 million euros ($153 million) in sales.

The contracts include opening 13 outlets in Istanbul in a deal worth an estimated 100 million euros in sales over its 10-year span, and four outlets in Dubai worth an estimated 25 million euros over five years, Reuters reported July 19.

The company said in a press release that it was expanding its activities in new markets by establishing itself at the Istanbul and Dubai international airports. Autogrill first plans to open a location at Istanbul’s Sabiha Gökçen International Airport on the Asian side of the city.

“Sabiha Gökçen has been one of the fastest growing airports over the last four years. In 2011, it moved around 14 million passengers (up 18 percent) and will reach a capacity of 25 million passengers by 2023 following further extensions,” a press release from the company said.

Turkey, as an emerging market that bridges Europe and Asia, has seen robust growth in recent years and is expected to grow by around 3.3 percent in 2012, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) estimates.

The Turkish economy surged 8.5 percent in 2011, the fastest growth rate in Europe, posting a record current account deficit of 10 percent of its gross domestic product.

More than 50 million passengers passed through Dubai International Airport in 2011, the fourth highest for airports by international passenger traffic, the statement said.