London Luton Airport (LLA) welcomed almost 40 local businesses to its latest ‘Building Local Connections’ networking event this week, highlighting its commitment to stimulating the local economy and supporting the local supply chain.

The networking event was hosted at LLA’s Excellence Academy* and provided local suppliers with insight into upcoming tendering opportunities and the procedures for working with the airport across ongoing and future projects. The event attracted a broad range of local businesses including engineering, construction and professional service companies.

LLA’s support of the local economy and its focus on creating new employment opportunities is significant. Last year, the airport invested £110 million - 60% of its total supply chain spend - in works, goods and services provided by over 320 businesses within a 25-mile radius.

Alberto Martin, Chief Executive Officer of London Luton Airport, said: “London Luton Airport’s focus on local, responsible procurement means we are now working with more local suppliers than ever before. By working with local businesses, LLA is helping to create local jobs and strengthening the local economy, as well as supporting sustainability and boosting efficiency. These networking events provide the perfect forum to meet with a diverse range of local businesses who will have been excited by the wealth of opportunities to work with LLA as we move forward to an exciting period of transformation for the airport and its surrounding region.”

Cllr Javeria Hussain, Deputy Chair of Luton Rising, the Luton Council company that owns the airport for community benefit, said: “Supporting the local and regional economy is one of our key objectives and we are really pleased to work with the operator to maximise the opportunities for local companies to do business with our airport. These will only increase as the airport grows and we would continue to encourage local suppliers to take advantage of this approach and apply to attend future events.” 

Notes for Editors

* LLA’s Excellence Academy is also open to external bookings. The newly refurbished facility boasts six state-of-the-art meeting rooms, complimentary parking, refreshments and catering packages and is ideally suited to host training sessions, staff inductions, workshops and corporate events. To enquire about bookings, email llaexcellenceacademy@ltn.aero. 

About London Luton Airport
London Luton Airport (LLA) is one of the UK’s busiest airports, operated by a consortium, of which the majority shareholder is AENA, the world’s largest airport operator, and InfraBridge, a leading infrastructure investment manager. Airlines include Jet2, easyJet, Wizz Air, Ryanair, Tui, FlyOne, Sun Express and El Al.

The airport is owned for community benefit by Luton Rising, a company wholly-owned by Luton Council, which has invested more than £500m in front-line, voluntary and charitable services since 1998.

The Luton Airport Express is a new dedicated train service that allows passengers to travel from central London to the LLA terminal in around 30 minutes. The Luton Airport Express runs from St Pancras International to Luton Airport Parkway station and connects seamlessly with the DART, an electrically powered people mover that connects to the airport terminal in less than four minutes.

In 2024, LLA was named European Airport of the Year (10-25 million passengers) by ACI EUROPE, and in 2025 LLA received the highest possible rating of 'Very Good' in the annual Airport Accessibility report published by the CAA, assessing assisted travel service performance.

In 2023, LLA also achieved Level 4 of the globally recognised Airport Carbon Accreditation scheme, demonstrating that it is ‘transforming its operations to achieve carbon reductions in line with global climate goals’. With a maximum score of 100 and a five-star rating, LLA has been ranked as a sector leader for four consecutive years in the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) benchmark of sustainability governance management and performance of major infrastructure assets worldwide.

LLA continues to be a major employer and a key economic driver in Bedfordshire — supporting 28,000 jobs and contributing £830 million per year to the local economy. In 2024, LLA spent 60% of its supply chain costs with more than 300 businesses within a 25-mile radius of the airport, totalling £110 million.

London Luton Airport Press Office
T: 01582 395333
E: pressoffice@ltn.aero

URL: https://mediahub.london-luton.co.uk/news/03122025/lla-talks-business-with-local-suppliers