2004 Speakers

Meet GATE ONE’s Distinguished Speakers

President, Tax Free World Association and President, V&S Global Duty Free & Travel Retail

Erik Juul-Mortensen joined Danish Distillers in 1987. In 1996 he was promoted to International Director of the export and duty free division. When Danish Distillers was acquired by V&S Vin & Sprit AB in 1999, Erik was named Senior Vice President and Commercial Director and in October 2001 he was promoted to President, V&S Global Duty Free & Travel Retail. Erik is also a member of the Board of Danish Distillers Berlin GmbH, Berlin, Germany as well as of Frïs Skandia A/S.

Erik has been President of Tax Free World Association since his election in September 1999. That followed 14 years of service on TFWA's Management Committee where he served in various capacities.

Bob Aaronson brought more than 25 years of airport experience to Airports Council International when he was appointed its Director General in 2002. He has managed and developed six US airports, including John F. Kennedy International Airport, La Guardia Airport and Newark International Airport. His tenure with the Port Authority of New York (1981-1989) was preceded by a posting as the top official in the Federal Aviation Administration responsible for nationwide airport standards, safety and development.

From 1989 to 1992, Aaronson was President and Chief Executive Officer of the Air Transport Association of America. In 1993, he became Executive Vice President and General Manager of Lockheed Air Terminal - which became Airport Group International (AGI), one of the first firms engaged in worldwide airport development and operations. In 1997 he established the consulting firm Strategies For Airports, Inc. which subsequently became part of the global Lufthansa Consulting organization and he was appointed its Executive Vice President - Americas.

Read more about Robert J. Aaronson [ PDF, 136 K ]

One year after joining BAA in 1997, Colin Hargrave was named its UK Airports Retail Director, responsible for developing the overall strategy and direction of the UK business, as well as for marketing and managing all commercial activity across the company's seven UK airports. With a total of 1.2 million sq ft of retail space, these activities range from airside and landside shops, to restaurants, cafes, bars, bureau de change and car rental. Together with car park and advertising/sponsorship revenues, the UK airports retail revenue was £743 million last year.

With more than 15 years of senior management experience in luxury goods retailing, Christian Strang today is the Nuance Group's Director Business Development & Corporate Relations Asia Pacific, charged with developing new business in the region and corporate relations with stakeholders/governments. He joined Nuance in 1995 as Director of Finance after five years at Allders International. Nuance's extensive network of travel retail operations includes stores or other retail outlets in Austria, Australia, Canada, Denmark, Greece, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the UK and the USA.

With more than 18 years of experience in the market research industry in UK, Greater China and Asia Pacific, Doris Wong now oversees customized research services for ACNielsen Research. She has considerable experience in customized and tracking studies - especially in the areas of advertising, new product, brand and strategy development. Before joining ACNielsen at its Shanghai office in 1995, she worked for AGB/RSGB (UK), Research International (UK) and Harris Research Center (UK). In 2003 she moved to Hong Kong to become the company's Regional Client Director Asia Pacific for ACNielsen Research.

Throughout his 24 years of service to the Lufthansa Group, Peter Osterhage focused on customer relations tasks, in particular on strategic planning, evaluation and analysis, restructuring of central and decentralized units, contract negotiations, and training. Today he serves as Director of Business Development at Lufthansa Consulting where he also heads the Customer Service Management unit. The practice serves airports, airlines and aviation authorities in the areas of process, commercial, finance and strategy.

Before joining the JCDecaux group in 2000 as CEO of JCDecaux Airports, Isabelle Schlumberger had a well established career in media and communications through the Avenir Havas Media group of companies. She joined them in 1980 as deputy managing director of finance. She later became financial and administrative director of Sky Sites, Mills and Allen et David Allen and then COO of Sky Sites London. At the helm of JCDecaux Airports she manages advertising in 45 airports and oversees the transport activities of the group in Southern Europe, Central and Southern America and South East Asia.

In 1995, Wolfgang Kratzenberg took up the post of president of Expresso Deutschland GmbH, a 50-year-old company specialising in ergonomic transport equipment. Expresso's range of landside and airside carts, dispenser units and related techniques now features the Promerceo Aero, a novel interactive advertising and information media capable of measuring the success of adverting and opening up lucrative sources of revenues to airports and retailers.

After more than a decade at Raven Fox, publishers of the trade magazine Duty-Free News International (DFNI), Martin Moodie launched The Moodie Report e-newsletter and later www.TheMoodieReport.com in joint venture with Sweden's Generation Group. Moodie International provides Generation's editorial services; runs industry conferences and has a publishing division specialising in new media and travel retail. The company also offers consultancy services to select private clients.

Since joining Aer Rianta in 1979, Frank O'Connell has held positions as General Manager-Trading and Group Commercial Manager before being appointed to his present position as Director of Retail. He has acquired over 15 years of experience in the advertising business while holding several art and creative director positions. O'Connell is a Director of the Paris based International Travel Retail Confederation, Chairman of the Travel Value Association of Europe, is co-author of the book "European Airport Retailing, Growth Strategies for the next Millennium" and has written extensively on airport retailing.

With nearly 20 years of retail experience, Syed Ahmad Syed Salim was appointed Chief Executive Officer, Malaysia Airports Niaga Sdn Bhd or ERAMAN MALAYSIA in 2002. Also known as "Eraman", this wholly owned retail arm of Malaysian Airport Holdings Berhad operates 40 retail outlets and 21 food and beverage outlets in Malaysia's airports. Through his experience with downtown retail operations, duty free operations as well as airline inflight sales, Salim successfully formed strategic partnerships with exclusive merchandisers for international brands such as Bally, Burberry, Tie Rack and Lanvin.

Before joining the venerable King Power Group in 2003 as General Manager Merchandise & Operations, Sunil Tuli had accumulated nearly 15 years' experience as an executive in the travel retail industry. Before running his own Singapore-based consulting firm for a year, he worked with Weitnauer (now Dufry) Singapore as its Managing Director in Singapore, with responsibility for all Asia Pacific operations.

Before joining International Currency Exchange in 2002 as its Head of Business Development, Mark Crowson served Thomas Cook Currency Exchange for 23 years in a range of high-level posts. With his extensive knowledge of the foreign exchange business, he has established many contacts within the airport, financial services and travel sectors.

Nigel began his advertising career in the media department at Allen Brady & Marsh (then one of the UK's largest agencies, but later absorbed into the Lowe Group). He followed this with 10 years at Collett Dickenson Pearce in London; latterly as a director of European operations and working closely with Japanese equity partner Dentsu.

This ultimately led to him being invited, in 1993, to join Dentsu, Young & Rubicam. He managed the agency in Hong Kong for just over 3 years, and was active in developing DY&R's regional clients throughout Asia-Pacific, as well as leading successful regional pitches for clients such as AT&T and Shell in China.

He moved to Europe in 1996 with Young & Rubicam to manage what was then their newest global account, Ericsson Mobile Communications, out of Stockholm, Sweden. It soon became Y&R's fastest growing as well as one of their most profitable global accounts.

He returned to London in 1998 where he joined Lowe & Partners Worldwide; and in early 1999 he led the successful global pitch for HSBC. Nigel ran the HSBC business globally from 1999 to early 2004 when he was made Regional President of Asia Pacific.

Managing Director and founder of the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation in 1990, Peter Harbison is one of Asia Pacific's most respected aviation strategists whose clients include airlines, airports, government agencies, start-up aviation businesses, and aviation suppliers. His experience includes privatisation and project management, passenger and freight supply chain analysis, regulatory review, feasibility, policy and strategy studies. Over the past 25 years Peter has worked in the Australian Department of Aviation, the International Civil Aviation Organisation and the International Air Transport Association. He chairs a regulatory reform group for IATA and several industry and tourism groups in Australia.

As President and CEO of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA), Peter de Jong oversees a range of commercial services that enhance the growth, value and quality of Pacific Asia travel and tourism for the benefit of PATA members. Founded in 1951, PATA is the recognised authority on Pacific Asia travel and tourism. It provides marketing, research and educational opportunities to nearly 100 government members, state and city tourism bodies, over 55 airlines and cruise lines, and hundreds of travel industry companies. In addition, thousands of travel professionals belong to 70-plus PATA Chapters worldwide.

As Vice President Business Development, Lars Crone is responsible for developing Select Service Partner's airport food and beverage activities around the world. He brings more than 20 years of airport experience to the leading global airport food and beverage operator. Before joining SSP in 1997, he worked with Swissair's Gate Gourmet and held previous management positions with airport/airline companies in seven different countries.

As Commercial Director for the Hong Kong Airport Authority, Hans Bakker oversees all commercial aspects of one of the world's busiest airports. Hong Kong Airport's passenger terminal houses SkyMart, a world-class retail and catering facility offering a huge variety of shops, restaurants and cafes. The needs of travellers were carefully considered during all design phases which is why it was chosen the World's Best Airport in 2003 by 1.7 million travellers.

As Head of Retail for Sydney Airport, Bob McFadyen has extensive Sydney Airport and retail management experience and an international reputation for leading a strong commercial team delivering benchmark retail products. Most recently, he has spearheaded the major redevelopment of Sydney's International Terminal in preparation for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games and made a key contribution to the successful privatisation of Sydney Airport.

Mrs Tomlin is the Assistant Chief Executive (Planning) of the Singapore Tourism Board (STB).

Prior to joining the STB, Mrs Tomlin was an Associate Director with international management consultancy Arthur D Little where she advised leaders of large organisations in both the public and private sectors.

Representative public sector clients in Singapore included the Ministries of Defence, Manpower, National Development and the Environment, and statutory boards such as the Jurong Town Corporation and the Economic Development Board. Among her private sector clients were Chan Brothers, Raffles International, Abacus and Thomas Cook. In Malaysia she advised, among others, the Prime Minister's Office and the Ministry of Science, Technology and the Environment.

Read More about Monica Tomlin [ PDF, 60 K ]