Gideon Toal via LinkenIn
Fort Worth-based Gideon Toal Management Services and R.S. Harris LLC were recently awarded a concession opportunity at DFW International Airport, operating in a multi-entity, for-profit and nonprofit social entrepreneurship partnership designed to address homelessness.
The new store will carry the Bridge Homeless Recovery Center name, The Bridge News & Convenience store, which will offer travel essentials such as fresh grab-and-go food items, electronics, health and beauty products, beverages, and other travel items like pillows, blankets, and luggage locks.
UpSpire, an enterprise under the umbrella of the Presbyterian Night Shelter, will provide the staffing for the retail operation. UpSpire’s services have had an impact on the homeless community through its professional services contracting programs that enable its clients who have experienced homelessness to transition permanently into the general workforce.
The program provides gainful employment, case management support, and job skill development to aid clients during their tenure.
“We are pleased to be awarded this opportunity at DFW,” said Gideon Toal President and CEO Alvin Brown in a statement. “For this first partnership to be here at home will be a driver of economic development in the North Texas area. We plan to use this model for future opportunities with other airports throughout the country to address and have an impact on some of the more pressing social issues.”
According to statistics from worldpopulationreview.com, Texas ranks fourth in homelessness in the country.
Gideon Toal and R.S. Harris both have the designation of being Airport Concessions Disadvantaged Business Enterprise businesses and are minority owned.
Gideon Toal is known for its expertise in the airport lounge and concession management space. The company operates airport lounges at 13 locations in 10 domestic U.S. airports, including Orlando International and Las Vegas International. The company has earned eight prestigious aviation awards for exceptional customer service since 2014.
R.S. Harris operates in Dallas Fort Worth International Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport.
Harris boasts a professional career with experience in all channels of retail management, sales, merchandising, planning, and marketing. With more than 25 years’ experience, he has served in a variety of capacities, including stadium retail operations manager, overseeing 26 locations for the NFL champion team Washington Redskins and as director of retail operations for 13 years with HMSHost.
Harris is a joint venture partner operating The NewStand travel essentials and Wired travel electronics at Newark Liberty Airport in New Jersey, and Travel+Leisure/Great American Bagel Bakery and iPorte travel electronics at DFW.
An added value to this collaboration is to seek small minority-owned businesses as part of the mix that would not normally have access to doing business with the airport concessions market. Rounding out the group in the small business category is Black Coffee, an east side Fort Worth coffee shop near Texas Wesleyan.
Since opening in 2008, The Bridge has evolved into an internationally recognized model for homelessness recovery and has countless examples of accelerating and transforming the lives of people experiencing homelessness. The Bridge, based in Dallas, is the only program in the city open to all homeless adults, providing a safe harbor 24 hours each day. A licensing fee of The Bridge brand will help infuse funds into the homeless recovery support network in the Dallas-Fort Worth area to help get people back on their feet.
According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, social entrepreneurship is a for-profit business model that strives to make a positive impact on either social or environmental issues by partnering with nonprofits.