The Slate Money podcast talked about the psychology of airline premium cabin marketing, and it was an interesting discussion both for what they got right but also what they got wrong. There’s a certain amount of schadenfreude in listening to people who sort of know what they’re talking about discuss an area.
Journalist Felix Salmon and his colleagues contended that,
- Airline food has become more important post-pandemic, to compete for discretionary leisure dollars. It used to be business class was for business travelers, and I guess airlines didn’t have to try so hard?
- Airline food also isn’t about delivering a product that competes for leisure dollars, it’s about making coach passengers feel they’re missing up so that they’ll buy up.
- Premium cabin travel is about creating an effortless experience where the customer feels taken care of – while good food is more real in first class.
- The difference between first and business class has really widened post-pandemic.
I’m not sure that any of these broad claims are accurate. The group discussed the Singapore Airlines pressurized space to taste food on the ground, which isn’t quite right. Singapore has a pressurized room primarily for wine tasting, to simulate the effects of altitude on the palate.
And framing food service as “‘FOMO’ for people in economy, to make economy passengers feel bad about themselves” is odd as well. Economy food has always been bad but on many carriers and during and since the pandemic business class meals have been closer to what was once offered in economy. That’s more so been the case with Delta and United than American (for international).
The view expressed here is that business class dining is getting much better, because of pandemic-driven change. In Salmon’s view business class was for business travel before the pandemic, but now it’s an experience since business travel isn’t back and it’s leisure travelers in the air. That’s just wrong.
- Two decades ago Delta was sending flight attendants to wine training. Trying to elevate premium cabin service is hardly a new idea. It happens whenever times are good in the industry, when there’s premium revenue to compete for.
- Yet the notion that premium cabin food is markedly better than it was in the past, with salads made seat-side and carving stations, seems exactly backward.
A lot of misunderstandings happen, I think, when talking about business and first class together and talking about airlines in general – U.S. airlines and foreign carriers. Different businesses in different markets are… different.
Emirates has long invested in a top first class product, whether showers on the Airbus A380 or a genuinely luxury wine program. Their business class has actually been weak – weaker than Delta’s and American’s! Emirates sells a brand, and their first class product creates a halo over the rest of the experience to position themselves as a premium airline.
Château d’Yquem in Emirates First Class
The food in Air France business class is much better than American Airlines business class, in my view, but none of it is truly fine dining. Air France first class, and the Asian food on Singapore Airlines and ANA, is a genuine exception. But that’s first class and not business and on a limited set of airlines.
Ultimately airlines are selling the seat, but enhancing food to compete for high margin business – not selling you a top meal for an incremental $3000 or more.
Salmon adds that “for the first time ever there’s a real and noticeable difference between first and business” because lounges are more exclusive, and “you just need to spend enough money to get away from the crowds” and now you need to get away from business class crowds. He’s using the crowded airport lounges to suggest first class, where there are dedicated first lounges, is now something worth paying for. Ironically perhaps there’s less of a difference now on British Airways than before their introduction of Club Suites?
So what’s really the difference between premium cabins?
- Premium economy is a leisure traveler and small business product, an economical way to buy a little extra space (domestic first class with perhaps a foot rest.. or just a foot bar)
- Business class is about a bed, and generally comes with food you can eat.
- First class is about effortlessness and privacy. When it’s done right, you don’t need to worry about when it’s time to board your flight, someone will collect you (not something Emirates delivers on). You have plenty of space in a small cabin – you see only a few people, not the sea of seats you’ll find in a large business cabin. The food and beverage options are really elevated, and someone is there to tend to your requests when you have them.
Singapore A380 Suites
Business class was indeed mostly the province of business travelers – companies paying the premium for executives to be rested and head straight to work on arrival. And of course with corporate discounts they weren’t paying full price, either. (Some consolidators, and American Express for Platinum and Centurion cardmembers, have deals where they pass along some of the savings to you.) There’s an increasing leisure market as well for business, especially when priced at $2500 – $3500 roundtrip and not $8,000 – $10,000.
There’s a smaller market for first class, and it’s not just Middle East sheikhs. Long haul travel between major business centers, you’ll find senior bankers and lawyers working on major deals. They might be traveling 20 hours for a single meeting, and the cost of the flight is a rounding error. Or it may be super wealthy or celebrities trading down from flying private considering flight length (charters start to get very expensive, and owned private jets may lack the range).
The segment ended with their talk about people who fly to a destination just to experience the flight, maybe look around a bit when they get to their destination like Dubai, and then take the flight back: “those people are weird!” I think I know some of those people…
(HT: @rakeshlobster)
@Gary: “Their [EMIRATES] business class has actually been weak – weaker than Delta’s and American’s! ”
Please be specific.
@ L3 — Non lie-flat seats is all you need to know about EK J. Why people think EK J is glamorous is behind my comprehension.
If “Emirates sells a brand, and their first class product creates a halo over the rest of the experience to position themselves as a premium airline,” than the opposite must be true–if AA provides a total shlock, abysmall domestic FC product, why should a traveler expect anything better re service, food, seat, etc. traveling to Europe? AA is like Amtrak with wings.
No airline has a pressurized space to do anything with the cabin simply because cabins in flight are LOWER than sea-level air pressure, so they have a room that is depressurized, not pressurized. Perhaps they have a “pressure room” where the pressure can be altered, both up and down, but “pressurized” implies the room pressure is raised, like a diving chamber for deep sea work or a room to treat the bends. There is a difference between adding and keeping pressure in and taking and keeping pressure out, design for the wrong direction and things go whoopsy.
Great Column :-). Weird is Fun.
I Booked the Cook today for my Sydney Singapore Frankfurt New York Suites post election escape return These flights after two nights at the just refreshed Sydney InterContinental in Club High East Bay (Royal Botanic Gardens) room pre upgrade Ambassador Weekend Certificate rate
1st world big disappointment when my LAX – SYD Qantas 1St Class A380 got downgraded to Dreamliner on my day only taking back my award find! ;-(
But now DCA-LAX Back with stop in Dallas to visit Cap1 lounge and then DreamLiner to LAX. Hilton CC Free night at H Hotel airport runway view. Fun in LA next day then Qantas 1St Class Lounge as per email notifying me of downgrade. I can compare Qantas Biz with July’s Polaris flight instead of comparing Qantas First to SQs Oh Well
This will be third RTW trip this year Weird 😉 is FUN
I think Felix is coloured by the LHR centric view where on BA they stripped biz class dining to a one tray affair while First remained close to usual.
Fortunately that will change by November when BA returns to multi step biz class meal service.
In the 1980’s, business class was much like premium economy now. Current business class pods are more spacious than 1980’s or 1990’s first class. The ultimate first class would be a private room.
Never say that AA J is better than Emirates business class. You not only sound disingenuous but ridiculous at the same time. In what way is it better??? Certainly not on the catering, the food and booze, and amenities such as the amenity kit, EK kicks AA in the balls so bad it’s not even funny. In the service department , forget about it, AA ‘s old and decrepit marshals, hmm excuse me flight attendants, are ready to murder you the minute you ring that flight attendant call button. So that leaves us to the actual chair. The fact that on AA you don’t have to skip your next door neighbor and recline in that little nasty pod with hospital gray colors, ok then. But then again, the bar is really really low!!
@Gravelly Point Guy – The seat. Which is the most important thing in business class. Angled seats not fully flat on the majority of their fleet, and center seats (seven across!). Much of Emirates business class is embarrassingly bad.
I’ve flown business class all over the world on 7-10 different carriers. I’ve never had a meal that was memorable for being good and only a handful of times actually thought “oh, this is tasty.”
Why anyone, ever, would think there’d be good food in business is beyond me. The place where there is good food in business is in the lounges before the flight. Especially in Asia.
@Gary, fair enough, I see your point. However, during the times we are living in, IMHO, the seat alone, individual angled seats, just won’t cut it. Anyways, just my 2 cents.
@Gravelly
The Emirates business cabin is 20 years outdated. Their new premium economy is glamorous compared to the decrepit color scheme, center seats with no direct aisle access, and poles at the top of the seats that look like the NYC subway.
I appreciate your point about the 65 year old flight attendants on AA. The seat, however, is decent and mid level. There is good privacy when lying flat. The amenity kits are decent. The bathrooms on the 777 are stylish. The stand up lounge area on the 777s are respectable. The food is decent.
@Gary
Thank you for pointing out business is not just for business passengers. Outside of certain routes to China from the west coast, the majority of people in business are tourists or leisure travelers. A round trip fare of $2500-$3000 is something most can afford if done on a once a year 2 week vacation. The problem with business is for those with large families.
For the executive, lawyer or consultant flying on the company or client dime, space is the big draw for FC. You can actually sleep in a FC seat if you want to and be relatively fresh for arrival. They come with mattresses, pjs, comfortable bedding, and enough room to stretch out. In J, it is hard to get much sound sleep with your clothes on, with no mattress, on a surface designed to support sitting, with feet jammed into a tiny cubbyhole under the console of the seat in front, in a cabin with perhaps as many as 47 or more other people.
I’ve flown international FC (also expensive even with points or miles) on Japan Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific, ANA, Asiana, Korean Air, American Airlines (if that counts) and Etihad and J on all of those airlines and many more. In my experience, the difference between FC and J has widened somewhat but it depends on the airline. In general, FC and J have both taken a step back regarding onboard service, but again it depends on the airline and aircraft. Seats continue to improve in all premium cabins.
I’ve seen only a few working much in FC. FC business travelers should have their work done before traveling so that rest is the primary function in flight and they are ready to conduct business once they arrive.
In sum, for those flying FC on somebody else’s dough, the difference between FC and J is definitely worth it. It is also worth the extra expense for those who have enough personal wealth that the difference in cost won’t be missed.
The difference between business and first class
4 or 5 thousand dollars
Mets Fan.
More than that. I paid over $7.5k for BC on Emirates on my upcoming vacay. FC, was out of sight.
I’m fine with angled, just so long as I have a bed. Not a foodie so don’t care what the food is, most of the time I sleep thru dinner anyway.
Singapore Air bedding more comfy than Emirates but Emirates beats out pretty much everyone else. And their FAs don’t hide in the galley or are grumpy frumps like my Egyptian Air BC FAs did almost the entire flight.
Am disappointed that all my long haul BC trips on better airlines have jumped from the $5k mark to $7.5k almost across the board. I get pent up travel demand, inflation, fuel prices but that’s a goodly amount to add to the budget.
And don’t even get me going on what awards tickets have gone to. I’ve given up chasing points because it’s just not worth it anymore.
Of well. Still not booking cattle car seats
@john – To each his own, of course. I sleep like a baby as long as the seat lies flat. The upgrade from Y to J is the difference between arriving rested versus bleary-eyed. The upgrade from J to F is just for fun.
Regarding the podcast, the notion that there are passengers flying in economy on ~$1,000 tickets will be motivated to spend $5,000 on biz on their next trip because the food looks better is…an interesting theory.
Flying BA First LHR-JFK has one major advantage: you can choose the hour when you want dinner served. I take the c.6PM flight, switch to New York time, which is 1PM and ask for dinner to be served New York time, namely 6PM. Why? It’s the only way I have found to reduce jet lag going west. Eastbound on the morning flight is a breeze, no jet lag at all. Westbound has always been a problem, until I found that near-solution.
You know it’s funny. Thinking back at the meals I’ve had in C, the ones that stick out are where I thought, “wow, that was good… for a plane.” For example, KE recently provided a burger that had a warm patty, crisp lettuce, and a toasted bun. It wasn’t going to win a michelin star, but the execution was impressive… for a plane. When it comes to F, I can’t say that I’ve really remembered any of the meals, because there is an expectation that it will be well-executed. Except on AA, where they served (serve?) the exact same “snack” and 2nd meal every. single. flight. (At least the FAs and I would joke about it. For all the valid complaints about inconsistent service, the foreign-language FAs are awesome and treat the regulars well.)
Never flown First Class. Goals!
Flew AA F from LHR to ORD a few years ago. Took the PJs because why not, even tho it was a day flight. The AA F lounge at LHR was the highlight, not the flight.
Similarly, BA’s JFK to LHR in F was OK. But dinner before in the Concorde Room is still a meal we both recall fondly.
These days. It takes daily searching for months to find seats in J that don’t cost a fortune in points. I’m sitting on a balcony in the Maldives, having gotten here in Qatar J, for 75K AS points each, and will return in BA J, found one afternoon on AA for 70K each.