Are the days of EuroBiz seating numbered? Probably not, but as SAS reinvents itself out of bankruptcy, CEO Anko van der Werff is keen to see changes in the premium product the company offers. Driven by both the company’s shift from Star Alliance to SkyTeam, as well as a shift in passenger behavior, van der Werff sees a significant revamp of the company’s product coming in the near future.
We’re analyzing a serious revamp of our European Business Class.
– Anko van der Werff, SAS CEO
Details are scarce; van der Werff does not want to show his cards too much before the details are finalized. Speaking at Future Travel Experience 2024 in Dublin this week, he acknowledged that premium leisure travel continues to grow, where “people do want to spend, but our current cabins and our current product offering don’t really allow for the differentiation.”
NPS is, of course, always top of mind. And faced with the choice between pivoting towards an LCC operation or full services, van der Werff is clear, “Rather than going down, I think you’ll see us go up.”
What will that on-board shift entail? Blocking the middle seat is likely the starting point. That would accomplish van der Werff’s goal of aligning better with SkyTeam partners, especially as SAS seeks to join the joint venture.
Whether that’s just the whole of the changes or just the start for hard product remains to be seen. Ultimately, a staged approach to changes is expected, with “a significant upgrade [planned]” for 2025, compared to the soft product offered today. Additional, more significant product changes “may come out later on,” assuming the analysis yields compelling data in that direction.
Van der Werff also noted that private aviation is growing in Scandinavia. Countering that is partly a scheduling and on-time performance challenge. But the product also matters. He does not expect to deliver a first class experience, as “that’s not Scandinavia. But for product differentiation pre flight, flight and post flight, and certainly also on board, we can definitely go up.”
Also driving the push towards higher NPS is a discussion of revamping the company’s inflight internet services.
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SAS does not have short-haul (European) business class, so there’s nothing to revamp.
Their highest short-haul class is Premium Economy (branded as SAS Plus), which has no lounge access, no middle seat blockage, and some cold food (salad) served in a paper box with flimsy wood utensils — a complete farce when on a business class ticket connecting to a long-haul (made the mistake once, never again). Didn’t surprise me they went bankrupt, as they couldn’t compete on the profitable premium end of the market.
Hopefully (for them) this means that they’ll be adding business class to their short-haul flights and will become competitive.