The Airport Restaurant & Retail Association (ARRA) announces the appointment of industry veteran Andrew Weddig to serve as executive director. Weddig will serve as chief policy, program and administrative officer for the association, working collaboratively with the ARRA Board of Directors, its members, and the broader aviation community on operational, financial and policy matters of common interest to stakeholders. He is charged with promoting sound policies and practices that further the success of airport concessions businesses, and elevate the travel experience. Weddig is recognized for his ability to forge partnerships between operators and the airports and airlines they serve. He brings decades of concessions planning, development and operator experience and is recognized for his expertise and understanding of the industry. He succeeds Rob Wigington who served as the association’s inaugural executive director, helped establish ARRA as a leading authority in airport concessions, and provided invaluable guidance in the early days of the challenging COVID-19 pandemic.
“I am excited for Andy to take the helm as executive director,” said Pat Murray, chairman of the ARRA Board of Directors. “He has been a valuable asset to the association since its inception and knows what it takes to build strong partnerships across the aviation industry. We are appreciative of the work Rob Wigington has done to establish ARRA as the voice of airport concessionaires and thank him for his service and leadership.”
“I look forward to continuing to advance policies that offer greater growth and opportunity to airport restaurateurs and retailers. The association has a talented and accomplished board of directors and boasts more than 60 companies in its membership and is still growing. I am excited to work with the ARRA membership, board of directors, and partners in the airport industry to sustainably enhance the passenger travel experience in years to come,” said incoming ARRA Executive Director Andrew Weddig.
Weddig received a bachelor’s in economics and a master’s in management from Northwestern University. In 1998, he joined Unison Consulting in its airport concessions practice area and was appointed senior vice president, Retail Concessions in 2007. Weddig moved on to join Hojeij Branded Foods as Chief Development Officer in 2017. The company was later purchased by Paradies Lagardère where he continued as senior vice president of Dining Division Development before forming AWeddigConsulting, LLC in 2020.
