Italian airline Alitalia launched a new global brand campaign yesterday, with the aim of highlighting the Italian-ness of the airline, while positioning itself as a luxury carrier. This is a continuation of the partnership with Etihad, which has led to significant investment in various aspects of the airline, and a general re-branding.
In fact, the entire campaign has a very Etihad-vibe in terms of the production quality, the details, etc., but the theme is still quintessentially Italian.
Per the press release:
Cramer Ball, Alitalia’s Chief Executive Officer, said: “Italy is the embodiment of beauty, warmth, passion, hospitality and a way of life celebrated the world over. It is an undisputed leader of style and innovative design. The Alitalia of today, as a national symbol, is imbued with the finest qualities for which this country is famous. It is with this spirit that we introduce our new global brand campaign, starting with a television commercial which presents the best of Italy and the importance that the country enjoys on the world stage.”
And it certainly does — this video makes me homesick for Italy in the worst way:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5g9Zteb1Tg
The Design Air has further details on the new Alitalia uniforms, which I think are fabulous. The colors and accessories are delightfully Italian, and I love the retro jet-era vibe. The 1960s were a great period for Italian design and fashion, and I am of course a big fan of including stylish slacks as a uniform option for the ladies.
Most importantly, they look distinctively Italian. No way are you mistaking that crew for any other airline, and there will be no question as to which airline is represented when you see these groups in an airport terminal.
We love airline videos here at OMAAT, and Alitalia is delivering those in spades today. There are ten “behind the scenes” videos detailing the “Made Of Italy” aspects of the campaign, including everything from the uniforms to the new onboard coffee selection. They’re so Italian, and a delight to watch, so we made a playlist with all of them here:
Swoon.
Alitalia already has a solid international business class product, and the investment from Etihad has gone a long way towards improving the regional and economy products. The airline has definitely suffered from a perception problem, much of which is due to the traditional cluster that has been their ground operations.
Having spent time in Italy though, I feel like there’s only so much that can be done to improve the ground situation. The Rome airport is always going to have a distinctly different approach to transit and punctuality than some other terminals, for example, so Alitalia will have to work within/around that.
It is nice to see an investment in the things the airline can control, however, and the product improvements thus far seem to be making an impact. And I think this new ad highlights that approach nicely.
What do you think of Alitalia’s new campaign? Do you love or hate the uniforms?
Love the bright, happy colors !
A beautiful tribute to luxury air flight in the 60s, harkens back to a time when people actually dressed for flights, wonderful meals were served with silverware on china, flight crews looked dapper and distinctive, and the pace was more civil....Complimenti Alitalia! Well done!
Really a fun and retro look but on their website you still can't choose a seat when you purchase your ticket..... a giant
pain
They are fantastic - I agree with you. You have to understand Italy to appreciate them.
@ Falco Peregrinus --
The song is Volare, performed in this case by Malika Ayane (she's in one of the "Made Of" videos). Many other artists have covered it though: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volare_(song)
Thanks Tiffany !
Kind of ad that reminds me of flying as a child in the 80ies. And glad they use older people and not only super models in the ad and people actually having fun on a plane, a good counterpoint to the "if you lift a finger I'll call you a terrorist" attitude prevalent among many crews nowadays.
Does anyone know the singer/song? Shazam won't find it.
This means nothing if the ground game doesn't improve. A few years ago we flew Alitalia to and from Italy using our Delta miles as my husband had the highest Delta status at the time. When we checked in at FCO on the way home we used the elite check-in line (and there was no one else in line) and they literally screamed at him "This line is for elites only!!!!" He explained that he...
This means nothing if the ground game doesn't improve. A few years ago we flew Alitalia to and from Italy using our Delta miles as my husband had the highest Delta status at the time. When we checked in at FCO on the way home we used the elite check-in line (and there was no one else in line) and they literally screamed at him "This line is for elites only!!!!" He explained that he was elite and they screamed again "Where's your elite card, show us now!!" Well, no one carries their elite cards on them so he had to get it from the Delta app, which takes a minute or so to load, and they screamed at him the entire time to produce his elite card, which he finally did. We were both floored because why in the world would you act like that to any customer, let alone someone who is very likely your elite customers? It was all downhill from there.
Tiffany as an Italian I'm so glad that you're following the Alitalia revamping...personally I don't believe too much in a bright future for "our" airline but when I see these videos and the general re-branding that is trying to follow the Etihad-partnership I'm attracted in a positive thinking mood........so, let's try to improve the image of the brand, really hope that the new "Casa Alitalia" will be as good as it seems to be in the architecture mind.
Well… All I can say is I would hate to be an Italian who is a person of color. As usual zero representation
Placing a model aircraft with the sharp wing pointed at a sleeping child's face and eyes is a little dangerous, non?
I like the red uniform pieces.
Ditto the green uniform pieces.
But the red and the green uniform pieces worn together make the female flight attendants look like sexy Santa's elves.
Now if only they'll let me select a seat without calling AND actually stick...
Ciao Italia!!!! Love that country.
I can't help but wonder how long it'll be before Alitalia leaves Skyteam, especially given Delta's hatred of Etihad/Emirates/Qatar...
Haha...the new commercial is similar to those they used to play on Rai Uno during the late 90s when my family and I lived in Malta!
Lovely ad. I wish the actual experience on board was as serene and enjoyable though... regardless... the only ad I would need to make me want to fly Alitalia would be these two babies parked in front of whatever aircraft they wish... swoon... https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7509/16124025306_ac8185e331_b.jpg
@Tiffany. Good point:)
Wow... remind me so much of American's new uniforms!
Swoon is right! Makes me want to fly to Italy right now.
The ladies look great. The guys look ridiculous.
@ Geoff -- That is also typical for Italy ;)
I'm flying with them this summer FCO-MIA, now, I'm looking forward to it.
Colourful stockings! Red and green?! And hats that look like piped cream frosting.. Amusing! :)