Board Advisor · Operating Partner

I help businesses grow, transform and create lasting value.

Strategic advisory for growth, transformation and value creation.

I partner with companies, entrepreneurs, investors and tier-one consulting firms in moments of change — where a hands-on approach creates value quickly.

Andrea Belardini
30+
Years in C-suite & leadership
65
Markets of operating exposure
€1.4bn
Largest P&L owned end-to-end
4,400
People led at largest scale
Advisory

Where I create impact.

Working with Entrepreneurs · Companies · Tier-one consulting firms · Investors
01

Growth & transformation strategy

Define strategic priorities, transformation agendas and practical value-creation roadmaps with a strong bias toward execution.

02

Commercial acceleration & operational excellence

Redesign commercial models, customer propositions, retail formats and consumer experiences, category strategies and revenue-growth levers.

03

Investor & business due diligence advisory

Support investors, boards and M&A processes with business due diligence, commercial review and value-creation perspectives.

04

Retail, consumer & travel ecosystem expertise

Bring senior operating perspective across consumer, travel retail, airports, concession-based businesses, retail networks, and beauty & pharmacy retail.

05

Board & executive advisory

Act as a senior sparring partner to CEOs, entrepreneurs and boards on strategic choices, organisation, execution and leadership priorities.

06

Digital commercial models

Advise on loyalty, retail media, data-enabled commercial models and digitally enhanced customer engagement.

Profile

A career built in global travel retail and infrastructure — driving change to meet consumers’ evolving needs and create new opportunity.

I am drawn to situations that demand complexity, change or transformation — and where leadership can create measurable value quickly.

Over more than thirty years I have led consumer-facing businesses across three industries — business travel, airport infrastructure and travel retail — in both private-equity and publicly-owned environments. I have managed end-to-end P&Ls of up to €1.4bn, alongside €7bn in shared P&L, and teams of up to 4,400 people across 65 markets.

What has stayed constant is a focus on three things: driving growth through innovation and a better customer experience; improving the bottom line through operational excellence and relentless execution; and building strong, aligned organisations with a long-term mindset.

Selected transformations

  • Re-engineered the operating model of a business-travel agencies network, introducing its first digitalised service centre.
  • Conceived the breakthrough design and commercial concept of Fiumicino Airport’s Terminal 3 concourse — later realised as a benchmark airport experience at European level.
  • Redefined the operating model, branding and core duty-free proposition of a European travel retailer while launching new specialty retail formats, ahead of a successful exit.
  • Managed post-merger integration of three travel-retail businesses — Dufry, Nuance and World Duty Free — into one operating model and culture across Asia and the Middle East.
  • Reshaped the commercial and digital model of a global travel retailer for a post-pandemic world.

Most recent roles

  • Global Chief Commercial Officer, Dufry AG (now Avolta)CHF 8.5 bn global travel retailer · Switzerland
  • CEO — APAC, Middle East & East Europe, DufryHong Kong
  • CEO Europe & Global CCO, The Nuance GroupSwitzerland
  • EVP Commercial, Aeroporti di RomaItaly
  • VP Operations, Carlson Wagonlit Travel (Accor Group)Italy / France

Currently on the board of

  • Hippocrates HoldingLargest pharmacy retail network in Italy
  • Maison 21GNiche perfumery, Singapore
Contact

Let’s discuss what’s next.

andrea@abelardiniadvisory.com
ConnectLinkedIn →
Based inBäch, Switzerland