Developer Rick Caruso is looking to expand his retail empire to airports across the country, including Los Angeles International.

John Cugasi, a former director of concessions at Hartfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, was hired Monday to serve as vice president for airports, a new position that was created at Los Angeles-based Caruso Affiliated.

Caruso, whose developments include the Grove outdoor shopping mall in Los Angeles and the Americana at Brand in Glendale, may be interested making a bid for lucrative concession contracts soon to be put out for bid at LAX’s Tom Bradley International Terminal, which is undergoing a massive $1.5 billion makeover scheduled for completion by mid-2013.

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