New Livery, New Purpose

The new makeover at Air Malta has hit the headlines. Inevitably the discussion has centred on the cost (€2m) and not on the content. The press chose to highlight the fury of the pilot’s union when it complained that such an expense was not justified given the sacrifices that workers are being made to bear . You do have to wonder how these people expect the airline to become more competitive by retaining a tired livery and marketing plan. Attempting to transform the airline’s competitiveness will inevitably cost money – it’s either that or compete with an outdated marketing plan.

The rebranding exercise looks great. I especially love the idea of combining the marketing of the airline with the marketing of the destination. Selling Air Malta and Malta at the same time is an excellent idea – and the colourful livery that is a call to the exotic, sunny nature of the island is a brilliant move all round. Coming as it does in the middle of this August rush that has been reported up north – with British and other clients rushing for last minute escapades to the sun that never came – the marketing exercise might just be the start for a strong selling point: come to the land of Sun, Culture and friendly people.

The airline might need to target more regions that are currently orphaned of its reach and full of potential sun-seeking tourists – and I obviously have in mind the Grand Region of Lorraine, Luxembourg and Rheinland-Pfalz. The Luxembourg airport might be too prohibitive thanks to the  Luxair monopoly but Nancy-Lorraine and Frankfurt Hahn airports are cherries that are ripe for the picking. The same probably applies to other unconventional destinations that have developed a regular customer thanks to the new hubs promoted by low-cost airlines.

In the meantime a good two thumbs up to air malta for a job well done.