Aer Lingus Eyes New Ancillary Opportunities Following Retail inMotion Program Launch
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APEX Insight: Aer Lingus has launched an onboard retail program by LSG Group subsidiary Retail inMotion that will help the airline increase revenue and reduce costs.
Aer Lingus successfully launched a new in-flight retail program earlier this year, capping more than six months of development with onboard sales specialist Retail inMotion. Work on the project began in April 2017 after an “extensive tender process” according to Aer Lingus COO Mike Rutter. The culmination of that work came in November 2017 when the new shopping offering was rolled out across the carrier’s 63 aircraft.
Rutter sees potential for further development of the partnership, expanding to additional shopping opportunities, “We are convinced that we have found the right long-term partner to develop our Bia and Boutique offerings into the future. Now that the new program has been successfully launched, we look forward to working closely in partnership, to further enhance our award-winning guest experience.”
Retail inMotion appointed a dedicated retail management team to the Aer Lingus account. The group has twin goals of driving increased revenues and creating cost efficiencies for the airline. Vector In-Flight, Retail inMotion’s proprietary onboard retail management software, is fully implemented on Aer Lingus aircraft, enabling onboard payments, supply chain management and warehouse logistics. This cutting-edge technology has been applied in order to increase efficiency and decrease complexity for Aer Lingus employees and has already received very positive feedback from staff and crew alike.
“We are fully committed to taking [Aer Lingus’] onboard retail program to the next level.” – Stefan Patermann, Retail inMotion
“Aer Lingus is an established market leader in the aviation industry and well-known for offering an outstanding onboard retail experience to their passengers,” explained Stefan Patermann, Retail inMotion’s CEO. “With Retail inMotion’s expertise in this industry and access to global resources, we are fully committed to taking the airline’s onboard retail program to the next level.”
Aer Lingus is not the only Irish airline benefitting from Retail inMotion’s onboard expertise. Ryanair uses the Vector platform to offer passengers departing from Dublin the option to preorder a hot Irish breakfast. The pre-order option is better for passengers, as they know the food will be available, and better for the airline because it enables planning ahead and the funds are collected in advance.
The Aer Lingus deal comes as Retail inMotion expands its technology reach with an updated version of the Media inMotion platform. Media inMotion extends the retail shopping platform to the in-flight entertainment system and personal electronic devices, allowing for shopping throughout the journey. As Patermann notes, “The solutions that Media inMotion provides are crucial in ensuring that we can offer our customers a product that maximizes the potential of onboard retail at all customer touchpoints… Media inMotion will help airlines streamline their retail processes and drive ancillary revenue on board.”