SFO pop-up concession makes access to small businesses easier

In September 2013, the San Francisco Airport Commission approved an innovative new concept at the San Francisco International Airport (SFO): a “pop-up” concession programme, tailor-made for small businesses to gain access to the Airport, with move-in ready fixtures provided to reduce the initial start-up construction costs that challenge many small businesses.

Ten years on, the Airport’s Pop-Up Retail Program continues to achieve its goal of making SFO more accessible to small business owners. Today, the San Francisco Airport Commission awarded a specialty retail lease to Chalo, LLC, a small business owned by Danielle An, which currently operates one of the pop-up concession locations located in Terminal 3. An will be the fourth graduate of SFO’s Pop-Up Retail Program to be approved for award of a specialty retail lease at the Airport.

“SFO’s Pop-Up Retail Programme has been a win-win since its inception,” said Airport Director Ivar C. Satero. “It gives small businesses greater access to retail opportunities at the Airport, while introducing travelers to concession concepts that truly surprise and delight. My thanks go out to our SFO concessions team for creating a program that, ten years later, continues to achieve its goal.”

The first pop-up concession opened at SFO in January 2014 in the renovated Terminal 3, Boarding Area E. Since that time, eleven small businesses have operated concepts in the move-in ready spaces. In many cases, their products continue to be offered at other Airport retailers, another success factor of the program.

SFO first created an office for Small Business Affairs in 1982. This pop-up concession program was yet another addition to SFO’s robust programs to increase small business participation.

For more about SFO’s efforts to support small business, visit: flysfo.com/business/small-business-development.