Transcript
AIR TRANSPORT
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Much of an airline’s reputation isentrusted to the care of its cabin crewwho, as the public face of the
organisation, can leave a lasting impression onpassengers in an increasingly competitive andcrowded industry.
This impression is ever more significant intoday’s fast-growing market, at a time when theonce-glamorous vision of air travel is clouded bysecurity threats, long queues and delays.
Today, airlines are building their brands throughmemorable crew uniforms and clever marketingcampaigns (using cabin crew as the main selling-point) and with so much of an airline’s publicimage resting on its crew, it is unsurprising thatover recent years it has become popular for airlinesto commission the world’s best fashion designersto create stylish staff uniforms.
Gulf Air’s online recruitment page boasts that“Gulf Air has a legacy of service and style built onmore than 55 years of Arabian hospitality.” Eagerto maintain its style legacy, the airline chose tocelebrate its 40th anniversary back in 1990 bycommissioning world-renowned fashion houseBalenciaga to design a new light-blue and peachcabin crew uniform – a stark contrast to thebrown and cream outfit that had been worn by theairline’s flight crew for the previous 20 years.
In 2000, the airline introduced its current darknavy blue uniform, designed by anotherrenowned fashion house – Balmain of Paris. Thiswas intended to reflect the changing face of GulfAir and the motto: “Smart Airline, SuccessfulBusiness”. Marcus Bernhardt, Gulf Air’s chiefservices officer, said of the uniform: “It is areflection of what Gulf Air is all about – thehallmark Arabian hospitality, warmth,presentation, progression, modernity and, aboveall, a corporate statement.”
Royal Jordanian (RJ) also chose to mark its40th anniversary with a new uniform for its cabincrew, announcing in 2003: “A very public part ofthe airline’s image is the RJ cabin crew’s uniformand this year, as part of its 40th anniversarycelebrations, RJ decided it was time for a change.”
This was not the first time that RJ had revampedits uniform. Between 1976 and 1982 Lebanese
Cabin crew uniform is often the first thing that distinguishes one airline
from another in the minds of passengers and, therefore, is vital for
carriers to get right. Kelly Green looks at how airline fashion is changing.
designer Papou Lahoud created the uniform forRJ pilots and stewardesses, for which she wonIATA’s ‘best uniform design’ award in 1986.
An Italian designer took over the responsibilityof RJ’s uniforms for the next 20 years. However,unlike Gulf Air, RJ did not engage a celebratedfashion house to provide its new design in 2003but, instead, chose to reflect its role as a nationalcarrier by enlisting a Jordanian company, ElzayReady Wear Manufacturing Company. At thetime, a spokesperson for Elzay said: “RoyalJordanian wanted a change; a new uniform for thenew millennium that is more elegant anddistinguished, and reflects the heritage of Jordan.”
Colours were chosen to symbolise Jordan as acountry – red, white and charcoal. “Red is a veryprominent colour here and it was chosen for thewomen’s uniform, while the men’s is mainlycharcoal.”
A spokesperson for RJ told Arabian Aerospace:“The RJ uniform should always be consistent withthe colours of the aircraft and, thus, of the RJcolours in its offices.”
Teresa Stedman, managing director ofStedman Corporate Clothing Ltd, said the choice
of colour plays an important role in uniformdesign. “The colour of a uniform helps present anappropriate impression as it has a psychologicaleffect on both the wearer and their customer.”
Qatar Airways’ plum-coloured uniform musthave hit the right note with customers, as it wasvoted ‘most stylish’ by Skyscanner users in a poll inSeptember 2010. The deep-maroon uniform, acolour often associated with dignity, nobility, andpower, reflects the airline’s logo, which Stedmanargued is important, so as to be easily recognisable.
Oman Air also chose to co-ordinate itsuniforms with the company colours when, inSeptember 1999, it unveiled a new eye-catchingturquoise-blue outfit, designed by the house ofBalenciaga, which matched its livery.
“Ultimately, a uniform enables staff to becomeambassadors for their company and actaccordingly. In being dressed in the companycolours, staff immediately represent their airline,”Stedman added.
As company representatives, airlines will oftenstress the importance of appearance to staff fromthe very beginning of their careers, as illustratedon Virgin Atlantic’s online cabin crew recruitmentpage: “Finally, you’ll be the face of the airline. Assuch, your grooming should always beimmaculate – even after a long, tiring flight.”
For this reason, uniform designers andmanufacturers must carefully choose the fabric tobe used, as Shane Bray, MD of Europeanprofessional-wear provider Kwintet International,reportedly said: “Crew need to look as immaculateat the end of a long-haul flight as they did whenthey boarded the aircraft. Turbulence can wreakhavoc when food and drink are being served, sostain-resistant fabrics and finishes are key.”
Crew uniforms have always been used to evokethe glamour and romance of flying, an associationthat Virgin Atlantic played up to in its recentJames Bond-style television advertisingcampaign, which portrays attractive flightattendants wearing the airline’s iconic reduniform, skyscraper red heels, and glossy redlipstick. The sexually-charged global campaignno doubt assisted the airline in winning theaccolade of ‘most attractive’ flight attendants in a
THE CREW
Royal Jordanian: elegant and distinguished.
THE CUT OF
UNIFORMS
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survey of 1,000 British business travellers,conducted by Business Travel and MeetingsShow (BTMS) in February 2011, with the airlinereceiving a massive 53% of the votes.
Middle East carriers also achieved highly in thepoll, with Etihad Airways’ uniform, designed byItalian haute couture fashion designer EttoreBilotta, taking third place behind SingaporeAirlines with 12% of the votes, and EmiratesAirlines taking fourth place with 11%.
Etihad Airways has a strong relationship withthe fashion world, as was displayed in September2007 when it celebrated the launch of flightsbetween Abu Dhabi and the fashion capital Milanwith a catwalk show exhibiting Bilotta’s newwinter 2007 collection. James Hogan, EtihadAirways’ chief executive, said at the time: “Therehas been tremendous excitement surrounding thestart of Etihad’s new Milan service, so what better
way to mark this momentous occasion than tostage an Italian fashion show here in our home-base of Abu Dhabi.”
Bilotta’s philosophy in designing the Etihaduniform was “to communicate the welcominghospitable values of the Arabian culture in aninternational, cosmopolitan context, while at thesame time designing for the comfort of the crewin the air and the airline’s ground staff”.
While aesthetic considerations are obviouslyimportant for building and establishing anairline’s brand, many more aspects are taken intoaccount when designing airline uniforms,including the safety and comfort of clothing.
“Long skirts can restrict movement and areparticularly dangerous when combined withhigh heels, which can become caught in hems.Ties, too, can be a safety hazard,” Stedmanexplained.
It is also essential that uniforms can be adapted tosuit different environments. “This is vital when theconditions on the ground for staff can vary from SaoPaulo in Brazil through Newcastle in England toHong Kong in Asia,” said Terry Daly, Emirates’senior vice president, service delivery, when theairline introduced its new staff uniform in2003.Ultimately, perhaps more so for the aviationindustry than any other, staff uniforms must inspireconfidence and communicate a responsiblecorporate image, so that passengers are assured thattheir safety is in good (perfectly-manicured) hands.
“Figures of authority are traditionally identifiedby their uniforms,” Stedman told ArabianAerospace. “This is particularly true of airlines andcertainly in the current environment of heightenedsecurity we take assurance in being able to easilyidentify official figures by their clothing.
“A uniform reinforces the expectation that staffare trained and competent professionals,providing additional assurances to customers thatour trust is in safe hands. In the case of airlinestaff, this effect is multiplied, as our safety isentirely in their control.”
Above: Etihad made the Milan catwalk withits Italian style uniform while (left) the scarlet
Virgin girls are always a hit.
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