Lagardère Travel Retail appoints Sountou Bousso to head West, Central & East Africa operations

Lagardère Travel Retail is pleased to announce a strategic evolution of its organization in Africa to strengthen its regional footprint and support the company’s rapid development on the continent. Effective immediately, Sountou Bousso, currently CEO West and Central Africa, will extend his responsibilities to include the East Africa region, overseeing operations in Tanzania and Rwanda.

This evolution reflects Lagardère Travel Retail’s ambition to accelerate its growth in Africa and continue delivering the highest standards of operational excellence across the continent. By aligning its regional structure, the company aims to intensify collaboration between teams in West, Central and East Africa and to further leverage their shared expertise to support continued growth. 

Vincent Romet, COO Middle East & Africa at Lagardère Travel Retail, commented: “This new structure will allow us to continue delivering the highest standards of operational excellence while preparing for future growth across Africa. Extending Sountou’s leadership to East Africa strengthens our regional organization and ensures we are well placed to achieve our ambitions in Africa — a region where we continue to grow and to deliver for our partners.” 

Sountou Bousso, CEO West, Central & East Africa at Lagardère Travel Retail, added: “I’m honoured to take on this extended role and to lend my support to our talented teams across Africa. East Africa in particular presents many opportunities, and I look forward to building on the positive momentum our team has created there, as shown by our recent opening in Rwanda. Our aim across Africa is not only to deliver strong results, but also to ensure that our growth strengthens local economies, while maintaining the highest standards of service and operational excellence.” 

With over 15 years of experience in travel retail and foodservice, Sountou Bousso joined Lagardère Travel Retail in 2020 to lead its operations in West Africa. Since then, his responsibilities have expanded to include Central Africa and now the East Africa region. Before joining Lagardère Travel Retail, he spent seven years with the Newrest Group, holding several senior management positions in Angola, Cameroon, New Caledonia and Senegal, where he successfully managed multi-country operations and business development. Earlier in his career, he held management and operational roles at Elior Group in France. A graduate of ESMISAB Brest engineering school and HEC Paris Business School, Sountou brings strong operational expertise, a collaborative leadership style and a deep understanding of African markets.