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Cathay Pacific Rebranding?

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  1. #11

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    Quote Originally Posted by Coolboy:
    Hehe, I get the sarcasm of your post, but come to think, this is actually a legit business strategy for some brands.

    In fact, it reminds me of Ferrari's strategy. The famous Italian exotic car manufacturer don't just make ultra-expensive sport cars and run a F1 racing team, they also sell clothes and fashion accessories, sunglasses, watches, mugs, keychains, toys and books. They are a bonafide lifestyle brand, cashing in on its motorsport reputation and high performance road car image to sell merchandise. As a matter of fact, Ferrari earns more by selling its merchandise than selling the cars it is famous for.

    Of course, for that strategy to work, the underlying brand in question has to really stand out in the market and be recognized by a large segment of the consumer base. Ferrari meets that criteria, even people who don't follow F1 or care about its mid engine road cars, know the company produce automobiles that go really fast. Its name is well known enough for the average person on the street to know what the brand stands for.

    Now does Cathay meet that criteria? That is a more debatable proposition. Certainly in HK everyone knows Cathay. But HK of course is a small market. Now Greater China is a much bigger market and one can guess many have heard of the airline. But even so, is Cathay's brand image so desirable, that like Ferrari, people would want to associate themselves with the brand? I have some...doubts about that.

    The airline has engaged in heavy rounds of cost-cutting in recent years. Its inflight product, once a leading example of premium travel, is now barely distinguishable from rival airlines. Nor is HKer's sense of identity and pride so closely tied to Cathay now, unlike how Italians see Ferrari as a pride of their country. In short, CX is just another airline now.
    I think CX is still viewed as a premium airline. I can't think of too many scandals which has tarnished it's name beyond much repair.

    It's still the best airline in Hong Kong, China, most of Asia and probably better than most airlines in Europe and the Americas. Maybe only Singapore Airlines and some of the middle east carriers have a more positive perception.

    Whether it is reality is a different matter. But I can't say I've had any major problems or criticism of flying CX.

  2. #12

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    Quote Originally Posted by UK/HKboy:
    I think CX is still viewed as a premium airline. I can't think of too many scandals which has tarnished it's name beyond much repair.

    It's still the best airline in Hong Kong, China, most of Asia and probably better than most airlines in Europe and the Americas. Maybe only Singapore Airlines and some of the middle east carriers have a more positive perception.

    Whether it is reality is a different matter. But I can't say I've had any major problems or criticism of flying CX.
    Interesting point. CX may still see itself as a premium airline offering superior level of inflight service. And some passengers may still see CX that way. But problem is, increasing number of passengers don't. People who fly it regularly can now see a pretty noticeable contrast between the really top airlines in service (i.e. Qatar) and CX.

    In addition, there is also the question of whether CX commands that level of desirability from consumers and the general public as Ferrari does to generate sufficient revenue from merchandise sales. Outside of a small niche of aviation and travel geeks who collect these things, the general public may be pretty indifferent about this.

    I mean, I will commend CX for thinking out of the box to look for revenue outside it's normal passenger and cargo source. But whether it will work is another matter...
    Last edited by Coolboy; 31-05-2021 at 05:55 PM.
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  3. #13

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    Quote Originally Posted by UK/HKboy:
    I think CX is still viewed as a premium airline. I can't think of too many scandals which has tarnished it's name beyond much repair.

    It's still the best airline in Hong Kong, China, most of Asia and probably better than most airlines in Europe and the Americas. Maybe only Singapore Airlines and some of the middle east carriers have a more positive perception.

    Whether it is reality is a different matter. But I can't say I've had any major problems or criticism of flying CX.
    Could It be possible that you have been in Hong Kong for too long? CX is hardly premium these days. SQ holds the prestige in the APAC region.

    Their product works smoothly, but it is fairly no frills. I would definitely rate CX above what you will experience in Australia and America

  4. #14

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    Quote Originally Posted by bdw:
    Some interesting and funny comments in the video below



    Weird shade of green imo.
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  5. #15

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    Quote Originally Posted by DimSumBond:
    Their product works smoothly, but it is fairly no frills. I would definitely rate CX above what you will experience in Australia and America
    When I'm on a 4 hour flight from Perth to Sydney on Virgin Australia, in shitty economy class, from the lowest price elcheapo website I can find, I get completely free wifi service. Every passenger gets it on every flight. I was shocked. It makes a huge difference to the flight, to be able to browse geo, whatsapp, read the news etc, makes the flight much more productive and pleasant. I'm too much of a cheap bastard to pay an hourly rate for wifi usually, but when its free its fantastic. This one single feature blows everything else away and CX, SQ, Qatar, Emirates will never be as good until they offer complimentary wifi service to the lowest class on the plane.

  6. #16

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    Quote Originally Posted by bdw:
    When I'm on a 4 hour flight from Perth to Sydney on Virgin Australia, in shitty economy class, from the lowest price elcheapo website I can find, I get completely free wifi service. Every passenger gets it on every flight. I was shocked. It makes a huge difference to the flight, to be able to browse geo, whatsapp, read the news etc, makes the flight much more productive and pleasant. I'm too much of a cheap bastard to pay an hourly rate for wifi usually, but when its free its fantastic. This one single feature blows everything else away and CX, SQ, Qatar, Emirates will never be as good until they offer complimentary wifi service to the lowest class on the plane.
    When I'm sitting in the huge Cathay chair in F sipping champagne I couldn't care less about wifi

    Cathay is still pretty great if you can get free tickets on Asiamiles. Much better than those tight ass chairs you get on Lufthansa. It's not worth the cash premium though.
    Last edited by mrgoodkat; 31-05-2021 at 10:39 PM.
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  7. #17

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    Quote Originally Posted by mrgoodkat:
    When I'm sitting in the huge Cathay chair in F sipping champagne I couldn't care less about wifi

    Cathay is still pretty great if you can get free tickets on Asiamiles. Much better than those tight ass chairs you get on Lufthansa. It's not worth the cash premium though.
    Quoted for truth. I like how you roll

  8. #18

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    Quote Originally Posted by Coolboy:
    Interesting point. CX may still see itself as a premium airline offering superior level of inflight service. And some passengers may still see CX that way. But problem is, increasing number of passengers don't. People who fly it regularly can now see a pretty noticeable contrast between the really top airlines in service (i.e. Qatar) and CX.

    In addition, there is also the question of whether CX commands that level of desirability from consumers and the general public as Ferrari does to generate sufficient revenue from merchandise sales. Outside of a small niche of aviation and travel geeks who collect these things, the general public may be pretty indifferent about this.

    I mean, I will commend CX for thinking out of the box to look for revenue outside it's normal passenger and cargo source. But whether it will work is another matter...
    Moving into e-commerce is a trend in aviation, as some airlines attempt to become all round logistics providers.

    Ancillary revenue has pulled several Asian airlines out of a hole. AirAsia for instance has moved into delivery services and all sorts of e-commerce - not just merch but also meal deliveries and grocery shopping. Vietjet has also expanded into e-commerce and delivery, acquiring Swift 247. Ancillary revenue accounted for 50% of VietJet's total revenue last year.

    Of course what these two examples have in common is that they are both budget airlines and both have a track record in low-end ancillary revenue beyond just duty free. With CX, I'm not so sure. I think there is room to grow the airline's related sales (hotel deals, travel-related goods) but general e-commerce is questionable. For example, would people prefer to buy a set of dumbbells fro CX or from Decathlon? If CX, then why? What is the value? Certainly not the brand and I doubt it will be price point either. And speaking of band, does this approach fit with the CX brand as a premium airline. It's fine for AirAsia, whose brand is already known for value nd product innovation. But CX? I'm not feeling it.
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  9. #19

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    Quote Originally Posted by FrancisX:
    Ancillary revenue has pulled several Asian airlines out of a hole. AirAsia for instance has moved into delivery services and all sorts of e-commerce - not just merch but also meal deliveries and grocery shopping. Vietjet has also expanded into e-commerce and delivery, acquiring Swift 247. Ancillary revenue accounted for 50% of VietJet's total revenue last year.
    The home economies that the serve are quite different from Hong Kong. There are a fair few options available here and I have no clue what Cathay's value add would be.

    May be they could import some cheeses from the EU on their freighters and compete with Citysuper or something ...

  10. #20

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    Quote Originally Posted by bdw:
    When I'm on a 4 hour flight from Perth to Sydney on Virgin Australia.
    Way cheaper to offer flying above ground than when flying above water. AA, as supremely shitty as they are, have really affordable high speed internet when flying in the lower 48. Practically impossible elsewhere - maybe in the EU at some point, not sure how regulations work there