Nikki Tinsley Harland

As the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Paradies Lagardère Nikki oversees over $1.6B in sales that contributes to the organization’s continued success and standing in the Travel Retail industry. She has leadership responsibility for Retail Operations, Dining, Merchandising, Business Systems and Transformation and Human Resources. Nikki is also a founding member of the organization’s Diversity & Inclusion Council.

With over thirty years of business experience, Harland has contributed to various change initiatives in her career that have propelled turnarounds and growth efforts within organizations. Her work experience includes responsibility in the dining, retail, entertainment, and professional sports industries. Prior to her role with Paradies Lagardère, Nikki was the Senior Director of Field Human Resources for Gap, Inc.’s Old Navy Stores. In this role, she provided people leadership for the Brand’s 1,000+ stores and 45,000 employees in North America. Additional leadership experiences also included The Atlanta Braves, Atlanta Hawks, Turner Broadcasting System, Inc and Babies “R” Us/Toys “R” Us.

Nikki is a counted-on business leader that has consistently expanded her leadership scope over time. She successfully acted as the Executive Sponsor of Paradies Lagardère’s acquisition and integration of Hojeij Branded Foods (HBF) and Vino Volo. The successful integration supported the organization’s material growth in the Travel Retail Dining space. Additionally, she currently serves as the Executive Sponsor of the company’s recent acquisition of Tastes on The Fly, a leading Dining Operator in airports.

A native of Atlanta, GA, she attended Benjamin E. Mays High School, received her BA in Psychology from Spelman College and holds an MBA in Marketing from Clark Atlanta University. She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Jack and Jill of America, Inc., the International Women’s Forum (IWF) and the Airport Minority Advisory Council (AMAC.)

Nikki served as a member of the EVO Payments Board of Directors. This public board role concluded with the Company’s acquisition by Global Payments, Inc. She currently serves on the Board for the National Black Arts Festival, is a Board Trustee for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and the Airport Minority Advisory Council (AMAC.)

She is a member of Leadership Atlanta’s Class of 2023 and has been recognized consistently as one of Atlanta’s Top 100 Women of Influence, Clark Atlanta University’s Spirit of Greatness Awardee (2024), and the Top Woman of Influence by AXN (Airport Experience News) 2024.

Nikki and her husband, Joseph, reside in Atlanta, Georgia with their 18-year-old son.