Snowflake melting away?

[Rocco in Budapest]

Apparently, the future of Snowflake, the low fares but high cost arm of SAS, is in question after only a year or so in business.

It´s a damn shame cause their formula was brilliant:

Same high cost crews
+SAS configured airplanes
+Similar overhead
+Using the ingenuity of "the internet"
+Different brand name
-Free meals
= MONEY MAKING LOW FARES AIRLINE

[RYRbaby.com]

Rocco

You are on the ball.
Snowflake will go the same way as GO & Buzz (and others).
Parent company sells out.
SAS tried hard at the "low price with the high costs!" model.

Scandanavia needs real competition.
Where is EZY?

Snowflake is about to melt.

[ecj]

Inverness is a new destination for them this summer.

Get the pricing structure right, and load factors could be promising.

[Rocco in Budapest]

RYRbaby.com,

If i understand you correctly, you are saying that Snowflake will be sold off to another low cost airline? Will the airplanes be sold off as well then?

It will be interesting to see how the current low fares airlines will respond in filling the gap.

[colegate]

In his first posting Rocco lists several features thet DO NOT make for a successful low fare airline. Given that combination of features it would be surprising if SAS could find any profits in the Snowflake brand. Snowflakes always melt in the heat and that is what will happen to this one as soon as it gets real competition.

[Rocco in Budapest]

colegate...bist du deutsch meine liebe? Thought the sarcasm in my post was obvious.

[bmibaby.com]

Snowflake will definately continue to operate throughout 2004, and it will be at the end of the summer season that SAS will decide if Snowflake will continue to be operated for Summer 2005.

The problem at Snowflake is that they are a brand. The costs of operating a flight by Snowflake where they´re getting lower yields is exactly the same as operating a mainline flight.

I do know a number of people over at SAS, and apparently the management team (under the capable hands of the lovely Ludmilla) are looking at how the company can best get its costs down, through labour relations, as well as having the company operate as an independent subsidiary like Go or Buzz.

Snowflake does have potential, they´ve got a strong brand and are popular with the pax, they just need to sort the costs out!

[View From The Ground]

'Just' !!!!! sort the costs out......that's the hard bit :D

[colegate]

No, Rocco, I am not German. I just thought that you might be someone who had something to do with Snowflake and had come to believe in their publicity. I saw a Snowflake aircraft atMalaga a few days ago. It has got to be the dullest livery of all time. Plain white with no markings would have given it a stronger identity.

I am baffled as to why SAS should have "invested" in such a venture. Normally when you invest money it is because you think that that is the best thing to do with it. That standard appears to be lacking within SAS.

There is an old saying in business about making your core business run well before taking on anything else. Since SAS is not doing well it would seem to be a high priority to get that part right before toughing it out with some very aggressive and successful competitors on the LCC scene.