Swiss International Air Lines, one of acquisition-hungry Lufthansa's first takeovers, says it has remained largely independent and is pleased with its recovery under the watchful eye of its German parent.
Lufthansa, which is taking stakes in Austrian, Brussels Airlines and bmi, completed its acquisition of Swiss in July last year. Over a year on, Swiss chief network and distribution officer Harry Hohmeister says the carrier is largely autonomous, retaining its own decision-making and financial responsibility: "It was a financial takeover the day-to-day business has not been taken over. We are, to a great extent, independent."
On a day-to-day basis Swiss reports only its top-line commercial and operational data to Lufthansa the remainder is available on request. Hohmeister says more detailed booking forecasts and network performance figures would only clutter the information flow.
The two companies also share detailed month-end financial reports, but he identifies customer information as a priority area for communication and full data exchange. "[In this area] we share everything, as much as possible," says Hohmeister.
Although he acknowledges that processes are a little more complex than in the pre-Lufthansa days, Hohmeister notes: "The day-to-day business is not hindered and the added value over-compensates for any loss of time to market. It has clearly not been a disadvantage so far. [As Lufthansa grows] things might get a little more complex, but our experience has been very positive within Lufthansa as an organisation."
Hohmeister says Swiss has retained its autonomy in areas such as pricing, revenue management, scheduling and distribution. "Without that a multi-brand theory doesn't work," he says.
Over recent years Swiss has undergone a substantial turnaround. One of the steps towards the recovery was a three-pronged reshape of the airline's revenue management and distribution strategy in 2005-06. It moved away from fare rules in favour of availability-based pricing, carefully examined the true cost and contribution of bookings via the various distribution channels and more closely aligned its sales, distribution and revenue management teams.
Today around 75% of Swiss' revenues are generated by travel agencies, which handle the majority of its corporate bookings. E-channels, such as the airline's own website and intermediaries, handle a further 20%. The remainder stems from call centre and airport ticket office transactions.
Source: Airline Business
