Former Air 2000 chief creates new inflight services company

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Former Air 2000 inflight retail manager Tina Sanders has created a new company, Omnida, to provide inflight services to airline operators

And the company has already gained its first contract, with UK airline Astraeus.

Sanders said her company could offer product selection and negotiation, retail marketing and advertising (including brochure production), as well as bonded warehouse contract negotiations and inflight entertainment services.

The aim is to target carriers who don't want to employ a retail buyer or use a concessionaire.

She told TRW: "The approach I offer is to select and negotiate a product range with marketing and promotional support, with all of the profit going to the airline. I commit to complete the project in a specific number of days and invoice for my time accordingly. I'm able to offer a very comprehensive service from product selection and negotiation, retail incentives for crew, sales promotions for passengers, brochure production, bonded warehouse contract negotiation, bar packing planograms, and inflight entertainment from sourcing movies, audio and short programmes to placing the finished product onboard."

She said her seven years managing the business at Air 2000, and five more years as tax-free buyer at Stena Line, gave her "a good understanding of the criteria required for product selection, how to market a product inflight and how to incentivise the crew to actively sell the product."

And she argued that the retail business on smaller carriers can still make money. "There is no reason why the average passenger spend should be any different to the spend on a larger airline when operating on the same route. Brochures are available on most airlines promoting safety advice and providing travel information to the passenger, so it makes sense to offer the passenger the chance to purchase a selection of retail products at the same time. It is after all part of the flight experience. And key to success is the ability to build successful business relationships with suppliers."

Omnida can be contacted on tel: +44 (0) 1403 713506.