Qatar Duty Free reveals three leadership appointments as it celebrates 25th anniversary
The fast-growing Qatari company names Ewan Lawson as Manager Corporate Communications; Hanno Hellwig as Head of Procurement – Food & Confectionery; and Caroline Sartory as Vice President Customer Experience.
QATAR. Qatar Duty Free (QDF) today announced three appointments to its senior leadership team.
The retailer said the appointments mark a moment in its 25th anniversary. QDF opened for business just over a quarter of a century ago, on 1 May 2000 at the old Doha International Airport.
Caroline Sartory, who has more than 17 years of leadership experience at leading brands such as InterContinental Hotels & Resorts (IHG), has been named Vice President Customer Experience. For the past 13 years she has held senior roles at IHG, including most recently as Global Brand Director at IHG-owned Voco Hotels.
She will spearhead QDF’s customer experience strategy, elevating the end-to-end journey for passengers and advancing the company’s ambition to continue strengthening its leadership in experiential airport retail.
Hanno Hellwig has been appointed as Head of Procurement – Food & Confectionery. Hellwig brings over 19 years’ experience in the Middle East, most recently serving as Senior Regional Business Manager at Nestlé International Travel Retail.
In his new role, Hellwig will lead procurement strategy and operations for QDF’s pivotal food and confectionery category, further strengthening the offering across both local and international brands.
Ewan Lawson joins as Manager Corporate Communications, bringing extensive global experience from his previous role at Louis Vuitton in Paris, where he managed International Corporate PR.
Lawson will oversee global communications strategy, media relations and brand storytelling, ensuring QDF’s dynamic voice is amplified across all platforms, media and markets.
QDF said the appointments of three such senior leaders to its executive team reflect an ongoing commitment to innovation, operational excellence and exceptional customer experience, all designed to drive continued growth and global success.
Qatar Airways Chief Retail and Hospitality Officer Thabet Musleh commented: “As we mark 25 years of Qatar Duty Free, we remain focused on the future. Caroline, Hanno and Ewan each bring exceptional expertise and fresh perspectives that will be instrumental in driving our next chapter of growth.
“At QDF, our people are at the heart of our success, and this continued strengthening of our leadership team is an important investment in remaining at the forefront of innovation, excellence, and customer experience. I am thrilled to welcome them to the QDF family.”
QDF has a diverse workforce of more than 4,000 people, representing over 78 nationalities, and has tripled its headcount in the past three years.
QDF said the latest appointments underscore the organisation’s ongoing investment in world-class talent and its focus on building a leadership team capable of meeting the demands of a rapidly evolving global marketplace.
Speaking to The Moodie Davitt Report during an extensive interview to be published this weekend in The Moodie Davitt Report Magazine (digital and print), Musleh talks in detail about the way QDF has continuously strengthened its management team in recent years.
Drawing on a football allusion (he is an avid Liverpool Football Club fan), he comments: “You have to be active in the transfer market, right? If you’re not active in the transfer market, you ain’t going to win any titles!
“My recruitment policy is very clear. We have to go out and find individuals who can bring a global perspective and develop the business. It’s very simple. When we recruit people, we don’t simply recruit people for the position that we’re recruiting for at the time.
“We say, ‘Does this person have the ability to grow two, three, four steps within the organisation, and does this person have the ability to help coach and grow the team around them?’” 
[Thabet Musleh speaks about the key role people play in the QDF success story in this video, the third and concluding part of an exclusive Moodie Davitt STUDIO series called Airport Wonders of the World released in late 2024, dedicated as the name suggests to the greatest gateways on the planet. Click on the YouTube icon to view.]
