Aer Rianta International (ARI) has announced the appointment of Renat Rozpravka as Chief Executive Officer of Muscat Duty Free. 

He succeeds Rob Marriott, who ascended to Chief Executive Officer of ARI Middle East (ARIME) earlier this year.

Rozpravka, who began in his new post this month, joins from Dufry India and Sri Lanka where he has held the role of General Manager since 2019.

In addition to Dufry, Rozpravka has worked at DFS Group and Marks & Spencer spanning China, United Arab Emirates, India, Sri Lanka, Australia, and the UK.

His customer-centric ethos coupled with operational and strategic expertise will stand him in good stead to enhance Muscat Duty Free’s operations, according to the Dublin-headquartered travel retailer.

Rob Marriott, CEO at ARIME, said: “I am delighted to welcome Renat Rozpravka into his new role as CEO of Muscat Duty Free. He brings a wealth of global and regional retail and travel retail expertise to Oman and is well placed to drive the continued recovery of the business in the wake of the pandemic.

“Having held the role myself for three years, I am especially excited to see Renat further strengthen our partnership with Oman Airports and elevate the superior and bespoke retail proposition at Muscat Duty Free as CEO. He will lead a world-class team who have done a phenomenal job at crafting a premium, seamless customer experience.”

ARI leaders convene in Dublin

Rozpravka added: “I am thrilled to join the team at ARI Middle East and Muscat Duty Free as Chief Executive Officer. I hope to further enhance the world-class offering in Oman, focusing on the exceptional customer experience and unrivalled offering for passengers travelling through Muscat International Airport.

“I am excited for this next chapter and look forward to immersing myself in the business and driving further growth in the region.”

In related news, senior leaders from across ARI’s global retail estate gathered in Dublin on 18-19 October for the ‘Connecting for Future Success’ conference.

The two-day event, held at the famed Aviva Stadium, was led by ARI Chief Executive Officer Ray Hernan and marked the first time that the wider senior team have convened in person since prior to the pandemic.

Dynamic and thought-provoking discussions took place on ARI’s future strategic plans around the themes of collaboration, strengthening partnerships and pursuing new growth opportunities, with contributions from m1nd-set, Tourism Economics, Pernod Ricard, The Estée Lauder Companies and The Moodie Davitt Report.

As part of the programme, attendees were updated on the latest initiatives taking place around ARI’s refreshed Customer Value Proposition (63 initiatives actioned since its strategic development in 2020) together with a preview of the company’s new brand strategy.

Ray Hernan, Chief Executive Officer, ARI, commented: “After a challenging two years for the industry, it has been hugely rewarding to have representatives of all our locations gathered under one roof to discuss how, collectively, we will drive our business forward.

“We are confident that our business is best placed to further enhance our current offerings and we are focused on several new opportunities for strategic growth. I would like to thank all our colleagues who have travelled from across the world to join us for these past few days – you can always expect a céad míle fáilte at ARI.”

For more on ARI, click here to read the TRBusiness Top 10 International Operators report.