Miles to Merchandise? Sure, the idea isn’t new, but can you name an effort that looks like a million bucks … and miles? Repeat after us: Frontier EarlyReturns More Store.
We had a chance to sit down with Andrew Hudson, Senior Director, Corporate Communications and Marketing; Dan Vorlage, Senior Manager of Branding and Joe Hodas, Senior Manager of Corporate Communications for Frontier Airlines and chat about this bold move.
InsideFlyer: The More Store: where does the idea of the More Store come from?
Andrew Hudson: Our loyalty program did not stack up against other programs. It was not at the level it should be.
Dan Vorlage: We felt we have this really strong program that nobody knew a lot about. So one, we got the word out there, two, improve the basics of the program, third, how to add a little bit more to say thank you.
Joe Hodas: There were a lot of competitive advantages that United and some of the legacy carriers had over us, but the interesting thing, the research that came back to us was saying, I really dislike these carriers for reasons A, B, C, D. But it’s one of those things that you’re in a bad relationship but refuse to leave. They think they will change. We have an audience we know in terms of the Denver hub audience. Our hub is our most important strength. Research showed that the More Store was a good idea.
IF: This effort is head and shoulders above anything the industry has seen today, Why so upscale?
Andrew: Our core offering is the 15,000-mile award, but we wanted one last thing to show. This is big news. We didn’t think people wanted everyday stuff. This had to be something everybody wanted but would never be able to justify. Who wouldn’t want to bid on a car?
IF: Do you see this as part of your award chart?
Dan: Absolutely, this is going to be a core product.
IF: Other airlines’ similar efforts are more like eye candy. Your intent seems to make this program up front and center.
Dan: Yes, we really wanted to open some eyes.
IF: What were some of the names you were thinking of?
Joe: We must have had at least 150 names, the first one was Box Office, The Frontier Store, The Mile Exchange, VIP Spree, Reward Store. At the end of the day, we needed something that would stick. The More Store was the one that worked.
IF: Your use of “store” is clever.
Andrew: Perception is reality. We felt we are adding more award seats.
IF: Do you think this is one of those things that will be a standard component in almost all of the various programs, or will it be exclusive for programs that have the right idea like you have?
Dan: Imitation would be the best form of flattery. Our intent is to make this a pillar of our program.
Joe: This is different enough to take notice. We want people to say when they’re picking up their luggage that it was a value and not a budget.
Dan: There will always be fun things we can add to this. It builds community. That is what Frontier is about.
