AMENITIES ISSUE 6 (Spring 2018)

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What Women Want

What women want! With the evolution of the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements, never has gender been such a divisive issue. It’s no surprise with the progression of gender roles and female empowerment, that, as Jennifer Green from Wessco International highlights ‘it’s clear more business women are flying and overall demographics are changing.’ Now is the time for airlines to start looking at their Business Class offerings and ask themselves WHAT DO WOMEN WANT?

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n Economy Class the kits are nearly always unisex. This makes sense, due to the tight budget constraints placed upon suppliers when it comes to designing these amenities. However, in Business Class there is a divide. Some airlines are choosing to offer gender specific Male and Female Amenity bags, with others sticking to a Unisex offering. However, are either really fulfilling their purpose?

Unfortunately, the unisex kits are often very masculine in design and content, and although the demographic of Business Class travellers is still predominantly male, the number of women in board positions of global companies is on the rise, and so in the long term the unisex kits may end up being unfit for purpose in their current form.

Contents of amenity kits are complicated. This is true whether looking at Economy, Business or First Class kits. There is a careful balancing act for airlines to offer products that the passengers want and use, whilst also promoting their own, and other brands. In the Business Class and First Class kits the brands that are on offer are often high-end and globally recognisable, with an array AMENITIES MAGAZINE

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