Employee Spotlight - Liz Pontoriero

(December 7, 2017) As the retail concessionaire company Paradies Lagardère has added several new retail and news convenience stores at Tampa International Airport, sales associate and trainer/team lead Liz Pontoriero has been an invaluable part of the Paradies TPA family. Her supervisors and team members have noted her eagerness to jump in and help during the Airport’s busiest times, her friendly demeanor and her determination to make the best of any situation. 

These and other strong business traits earned her one of the highest honors in the entire company as she was recently named a Paradies Associate of the Year.

“Liz is a hard worker and always tries to create a positive ambiance, and her attitude is incredibly inspiring,” Paradies General Manager Jim Mackey noted in Liz’s nomination. “She epitomizes all the right things in our company, and she is also a deserving candidate for the Associate of the Year Award.”

For Liz, the work ethic comes naturally. She thrives on the hustle and bustle of the Airport and loves staying busy.

“I’m a person who can’t stand still,” Liz said. “This is right up my alley.”

Born and raised in New Jersey, Liz actually got her start in retail when she was 16 and worked at a 5-7-9 clothing store, a job she loved. From there, she worked in a supermarket before taking time off as a stay-at-home mom of her two children.

When the children got older, Liz went on to run a family-owned fine wine shop. She moved to the Tampa Bay area in 2002 and eventually became the general manager of three bars and four liquor stores.

About two years ago, Liz was watching the news and saw a report of a job fair happening at TPA.

“I thought what the heck, why not,” Liz said. “It sounded interesting.”

She went to the fair and soon became one of the original 13 associates hired as the opening crew at TPA. Liz primarily works at the NewsChannel 8 store at Airside C but spends time training new associates at all of the Paradies shops throughout the Airport.

Her dedication to her job has never wavered, even earlier this year when she had a setback that would prompt most people to look for a less physically demanding job.

This past summer, Liz got home from work late at night and, while feeding her dog and closing her fridge, she saw a flash of light and suddenly couldn’t see out of her right eye. Exhausted, she went to bed, hoping to wake up to clear sight again.

When she woke up still half-blind, she went to an eye doctor who immediately sent her to a specialist. Liz discovered she had suffered a stroke.

A week later, she was back at work.

“I figured I could sit there and feel sorry for myself or I could move on,” Liz said. “This is what the good Lord gave me and it was up to me to adapt to it. I feel very fortunate. It could have been worse.”

Liz loves her team at TPA and enjoys meeting new passengers and people, as well as helping new associates adjust to the world of airport retail.

“You just try to make it fun for everyone,” Liz said. “It’s a strong team. Everybody knows what has to happen and they just do it. It makes my job a lot easier.”

When Liz isn’t working, she loves reading “anything but Stephen King.” She dotes on her pet Cairn Terrier and enjoys spending time with her two adult children as well as her two young grandchildren, ages 2 and 5.

Liz says she looks forward to a long career at TPA as Paradies continues to grow along with it.

As the retail concessionaire company Paradies Lagardère has added several new retail and news convenience stores at Tampa International Airport, sales associate and trainer/team lead Liz Pontoriero has been an invaluable part of the Paradies TPA family. Her supervisors and team members have noted her eagerness to jump in and help during the Airport’s busiest times, her friendly demeanor and her determination to make the best of any situation.

These and other strong business traits earned her one of the highest honors in the entire company as she was recently named a Paradies Associate of the Year.

“Liz is a hard worker and always tries to create a positive ambiance, and her attitude is incredibly inspiring,” Paradies General Manager Jim Mackey noted in Liz’s nomination. “She epitomizes all the right things in our company, and she is also a deserving candidate for the Associate of the Year Award.”

For Liz, the work ethic comes naturally. She thrives on the hustle and bustle of the Airport and loves staying busy.

“I’m a person who can’t stand still,” Liz said. “This is right up my alley.”

Born and raised in New Jersey, Liz actually got her start in retail when she was 16 and worked at a 5-7-9 clothing store, a job she loved. From there, she worked in a supermarket before taking time off as a stay-at-home mom of her two children.

When the children got older, Liz went on to run a family-owned fine wine shop. She moved to the Tampa Bay area in 2002 and eventually became the general manager of three bars and four liquor stores.

About two years ago, Liz was watching the news and saw a report of a job fair happening at TPA.

“I thought what the heck, why not,” Liz said. “It sounded interesting.”

She went to the fair and soon became one of the original 13 associates hired as the opening crew at TPA. Liz primarily works at the NewsChannel 8 store at Airside C but spends time training new associates at all of the Paradies shops throughout the Airport.

Her dedication to her job has never wavered, even earlier this year when she had a setback that would prompt most people to look for a less physically demanding job.

This past summer, Liz got home from work late at night and, while feeding her dog and closing her fridge, she saw a flash of light and suddenly couldn’t see out of her right eye. Exhausted, she went to bed, hoping to wake up to clear sight again.

When she woke up still half-blind, she went to an eye doctor who immediately sent her to a specialist. Liz discovered she had suffered a stroke.

A week later, she was back at work.

“I figured I could sit there and feel sorry for myself or I could move on,” Liz said. “This is what the good Lord gave me and it was up to me to adapt to it. I feel very fortunate. It could have been worse.”

Liz loves her team at TPA and enjoys meeting new passengers and people, as well as helping new associates adjust to the world of airport retail.

“You just try to make it fun for everyone,” Liz said. “It’s a strong team. Everybody knows what has to happen and they just do it. It makes my job a lot easier.”

When Liz isn’t working, she loves reading “anything but Stephen King.” She dotes on her pet Cairn Terrier and enjoys spending time with her two adult children as well as her two young grandchildren, ages 2 and 5.

Liz says she looks forward to a long career at TPA as Paradies continues to grow along with it.