Rob Marriott, recently appointed to the position of Chief Executive Officer at Aer Rianta International Middle East (ARIME), has over 30 years’ experience in retailing. He joined ARI in 2019 as CEO of Muscat Duty Free, where he was responsible for delivering a world-class travel retail experience at the new Muscat International Airport.
Rob has a proven track record in developing and delivering long-term strategy, driving global retail operational excellence, and leading teams to success. Prior to joining ARI, Rob held leadership roles at Morrisons and Safeway in the UK.
Rob is passionate about giving every colleague the opportunity to fulfill their potential, and about removing barriers to advancement. In the UK, he chaired the Women in Business forum and recently supported the Omani Women’s Day at Muscat Duty Free.
Since joining the business, Rob has firmly embraced ARI’s ethos of collaboration, agility and determination to create a bespoke sense of place for its customers, brands and partners. He is renowned for his customer-centric approach and determination to enhance the traveller experience through successful partnerships.
As the Chief Executive Officer, Dr Khalfan Al Shueili heads Oman Aviation Services and its five subsidiary companies: Oman Ground Handling, Oman Aviation Catering, Oman Air SATS, Oman Sales & Services (Muscat Duty Free) and Oman Aviation Hospitality. With two decades’ experience of senior executive roles including eight years in aviation, Dr Al Shueili is an expert in collaboration, design, engineering, integration, construction of mega-scale projects in Oman, the United Kingdom and United States.
In February 2018, Dr Al Shueili joined the OAG Group and became the CEO of Oman Aviation Services. Prior to this, he was the CEO of Al Sedrah Real Estate, a subsidiary of Golden Group of Companies – a portfolio of five hospitality projects including Rotana, Accor and Movenpick valued at over OMR 150 million. Between 2011 and 2017, he was the General Manager Operations Readiness at Oman Airports Management Company, where he successfully led and launched the openings of new airports in Muscat, Duqum, Sohar and Salalah. He worked with the Ministry of Manpower for design, development and implementation of various types of projects for seven colleges in technology worth over OMR 25 million.
In March 2019, Dr Al Shueili became a member of the Board of Directors for the International Air Cargo Association (TIACA).
Recently, Dr Al Shueili graduated with the prestigious National CEO Program (3rd Cohort) organized by the Diwan of the Royal Court. In 2015 he attained a PhD in Architecture in Urban Sustainability from the Mackintosh School of Architecture, Glasgow University in the UK. Dr Al Shueili received his BSC in Architectural Engineering and MSC in Civil Engineering from Drexel University in Pennsylvania, USA.
Rita Chidiac joined Japan Tobacco International (JTI) in Lebanon in 2011, taking on responsibility for its corporate affairs and communications activities in the Middle East and Levant region. In 2016 she joined JTI’s Worldwide Duty Free team based in Geneva. A year later she relocated to Dubai, where she manages JTI’s corporate affairs and communications activities covering Africa, CIS and the Middle East region.
Prior to joining JTI, Rita worked as Political Analyst for the United Nations Development Program and for the Minister of State for Administrative Reform in Beirut.
In April 2019, Rita was elected to the Board of the Middle East and Africa Duty Free Association (MEADFA).
Rita studied international affairs and diplomacy and holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Notre Dame University in Lebanon.
Julie Lassaigne became Secretary General of the European Travel Retail Confederation (ETRC) in February 2019. In this role, she manages the day-to-day running of the organisation and represents it both externally and towards its members.
Julie first joined ETRC in 2013, taking on responsibility for managing some of the key challenges affecting the duty free and travel retail market, including the provision of product information to consumers, alcohol policy, air passenger rights and transport security.
Prior to joining ETRC, Julie gained extensive experience working for public affairs consultancies in Brussels with clients in the aviation, food and sport sectors.
A French national, Julie holds a Master’s degree in Political Science and Communication from the Institute of Political Science of Bordeaux.
Karl Marnane is Sales Director of Butlers Chocolates. He joined the company over 20 years ago and has been instrumental in driving the brand’s growth and increasing its global presence in both travel retail and domestic markets. Based in Dubai for the past eight years, Karl has an inherent understanding of the dynamics of the Middle East market and brings a wealth of experience to travel retail.
Founded in 1932, Butlers Chocolates is Ireland’s premier family-owned firm dedicated to the craft of exceptional chocolate making, and the brand has listings in over 60 airports around the globe. The company’s chocolates are created using sustainably sourced cocoa under the Cocoa Horizons Programme.
Butlers opened its first retail store in 1989 on Dublin’s prestigious Grafton Street. The shop was the foundation for the company’s very successful retail and café concept, Butlers Chocolate Café. There are now over 30 Butlers Chocolate Cafés in Ireland, including Dublin Airport, as well as franchises in Dubai and Riyadh Airport.
Karl, who currently resides in Dubai with his wife and three sons, is a graduate of University College Dublin and holds an MBA from the University of Warwick. He was recently elected to the board of APTRA.
