airBaltic and Partners Introduce a New Currency – BalticMiles
2009-10-21
BalticMiles is a loyalty programme that earns Miles, or points, for customers every time they use services or products of BalticMiles partners - be it flights, banking, telecom, hospitality services, entertainment or transport. The earned Miles can later be spent with any of the BalticMiles partners (e.g. to enjoy a free flight, hotel room, spa treatment, car rental). This feature makes BalticMiles an alternative/parallel currency that one can earn and spend with any partner of the loyalty programme.
The BalticMiles loyalty programme is based on close cooperation with partners. Currently BalticMiles represents nine partners – Nordea, Latvijas Mobilais Telefons, Reval Hotels, ESPA Riga, Islande Hotel, SAS, Sixt, Eurolines, and Forum cinemas. BalticMiles is an open loyalty programme that can accommodate unlimited partners from various industries in the future – be it a bank, petrol station, grocery store or laundry. Partner companies from any industry can use BalticMiles as their own loyalty program.
Bertolt Flick, President and CEO of airBaltic: “With the introduction of BalticMiles, we have created the first pan-Baltic loyalty programme. Similar loyalty programmes in the world, for example, in Canada, show that miles or points have become literally a parallel currency, as increasingly more partners join the programme, and miles can be earned and spent almost everywhere – when talking on the phone, petroling your car, buying milk and bread, or cleaning your laundry.”
BalticMiles members can currently earn and spend miles when flying airBaltic, using financial services of Nordea, telecommunications services of Latvijas Mobilais Telefons, staying at Reval Hotels or Islande Hotel, indulging in ESPA Riga treatments, renting cars from Sixt, and taking Eurolines/LUX Express buses or SAS flights. Forum Cinemas is a partner offering to spend miles for cinema tickets.
BalticMiles loyalty programme has three status levels for members– Basic, Executive and VIP. The Basic level is granted to members who have just enrolled in the BalticMiles programme, while Executive level is granted to customers who collect 25 000 miles a year or take 30 airBaltic flights. VIP is the highest level of the loyalty programme granted to customers who collect 50 000 miles or take 60 airBaltic flights a year.
For residents of the Baltic countries, the new loyalty programme offers BalticMiles MasterCard issued by Nordea. BalticMiles MasterCard is a “two-in-one” solution and functions both as a pan-Baltic loyalty programme and a credit card that customers can use for purchases at over 29 million points of sale around the world.
BalticMiles also offers a special card for children with no minimum age limit called Young Pilots card.
How many flights are needed to get a free flight? 12 flights between destinations in Scandinavia, Finland and the Baltics will earn a free one-way flight to Scandinavia, Finland and the Baltics.
airBaltic destination countries – flights needed to earn a free flight
With the introduction of BalticMiles, there are changes in the partnership of airBaltic with EuroBonus programme, starting 1 November 2009. Existing EuroBonus points remain in the EuroBonus account and can be used as a part of EuroBonus program. EuroBonus points can be earned and spent on airBaltic flights to Stockholm, Oslo and Copenhagen. EuroBonus points will not be transferable to BalticMiles.
airBaltic is willing to offer extra benefits for BalticMiles members. One of the benefits for Economy class ticket holders will be free of charge check-in for flights at airport counters, if they are members of BalticMiles. Passengers, who are not BalticMiles members, will have an option to become enrolled in the loyalty programme right at the check-in counter at their airport, in order to avoid the check-in fee (5 EUR, takes effect 1 December 2009).
How to join BalticMiles? Customers can join BalticMiles, filling the application form found inside the Baltic Outlook magazine, onboard aircraft, at airBaltic ticket offices, check-in counters or at airBaltic Business lounge in Riga. You may also fill in an online application at www.balticmiles.com and via the airBaltic call centre.
AIR BALTIC CORPORATION (airBaltic) is a joint stock company that was established in 1995. The primary shareholders are the Latvian state, with 52.6% of stock, and SIA Baltijas aviācijas sistēmas, with 47.2% of stock. The airBaltic fleet consists of 31 aircraft – ten Boeing 737-500, eight Boeing 737-300, two Boeing 757-200, and eleven Fokker 50 airplanes. airBaltic offers non-stop flights from three Baltic capital cities – Riga, Vilnius, and Tallinn. airBaltic received the title of Airline of the Year 2009/2010 (Gold Award) from the European Regions Airline Association.
