Areas, one of the world’s leaders in Food&Beverage and Travel Retail, have named Sergio Rodríguez as the new CEO for the Spanish and Portuguese markets.
Rodríguez has been part of Areas for 24 years. He joined the company in 1996 as a highway business director, and 13 years later, in 2009, he become the general director of Portugal. In 2014, he was put in charge of the Latin American market and in 2015 he took the leap to the United States, first as COO and then as CEO, a position he has held until now and which will now go to Carlos Bernal.
The new CEO of Iberia will report directly to Oscar Vela, the Areas Worldwide CEO and will also be part of the Areas Worldwide Management Committee. According to Vela, the nomination of Sergio Rodríguez “will provide experience, determination and a clear results-oriented direction to the company to develop the solid strategic plan that we are promoting together with PAI Partners”.
Areas, leading operator on the road in Spain and Portugal
Sergio Rodríguez will be the first executive of Areas in two markets where the company is the leading operator of the Food & Beverage and Travel Retail sector. In Spain, the company is present in 562 outlets in service plazas, train stations and airports. Areas is the leading culinary and commercial operator of four of the five largest airports in Spain. The company also manages outlets on the country’s most important highways, such as the AP-7, AP-68 and AP-6, among others, in addition to the largest train stations. The Spanish market represents 25% of the company’s sales volume worldwide and the specific business unit in Spain exceeds 550 million Euros.
Concerning the Portuguese market, Areas provides service to 20 million clients each year in its 136 outlets in the country’s leading airports and highways.
Third leading operator in a sector that moves more than 25 billion Euros
Areas offers services to 348 million customers each year in its more than 1900 restaurants and stores in 12 countries in Europe and America. Areas’ leadership position is the result of a successful implementation of its strategic plan that has allowed it to exponentially increase its size and capacity to generate business. With a unique model based on an attractive, high-quality food and beverage and retail offering, and backed by innovation to create new concepts to adapt to the latest traveller trends and needs, Areas has become the world’s third largest operator in a sector that moves more than 25 billion Euros. With more than 22,500 employees, Areas restaurant and store outlets are present in 89 airports, 82 train stations and 225 service plazas in Europe, the US and Latin America.
About Areas
Areas is one of the world leaders in food & beverage and travel retail with €1,900 billion in turnover in 2018/2019. Each year Areas welcomes 348 million clients to its 1,928 outlets in 12 countries in Europe, the USA, Mexico and Chile.
As the caterer of choice in the travel and leisure markets, focusing on quality for more than 50 years, Areas is present in transportation hubs large and small across the world (airports, train stations, motorway service plazas), as well as in exhibition centers and leisure parks. Building upon a culture of operational excellence, Areas draws on its in-depth understanding of travelers’ needs and the most extensive range of catering concepts on the market to offer the perfect blend of ingredients for each of its 950,000 daily customers to savor.
For more information: http://www.areas.com
Areas on Twitter @Areas / @Areas_ES
Instagram: @areas.es
Media contacts:
Víctor Palacio – v.palacio@romanrm.com
Carla Buj – c.buj@romanrm.com
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