Delta - Alessi In-Flight Tableware

Delta - Alessi In-Flight Tableware

Ask a passenger what they ate for breakfast last Wednesday and they’ll struggle, but ask a passenger about their meal the last time they flew and they’ll probably remember – so says founder of the Inflight feed website Nik Loukas.

Not all of the memories come from the food, however. Presentation and tableware leave an impression as well.

In our March report we talked about how Delta teamed up with artists to transform seat back tray tables into works of art. Having looked at tables, Delta has now turned its attention to what goes on them by partnering with iconic design company Alessi to produce a range of #AlessiforDelta tableware.

This is the first time Alessi has cooperated with an airline in a collaboration of this nature and the tableware has now started making an appearance in Delta’s premium cabins, including Delta One, First Class and, in late 2017 Delta Premium Select.

The range includes 86 individual items spans flatware, crystal glassware, new bone china, stainless steel serving pieces, tabletop accessories such as napkin rings and salt and pepper shakers and trays.

However not only did the range have to look good, it also had to meet airline and aircraft requirements. According to company President Alberto Alessi, “it was important that the items look beautiful, but we also had to focus on space and weight reduction.”

According to Alessi the whole project took three years to come to fruition and involved input from the people who actually have to deliver meals to seats - the cabin crew.

One example of the emphasis on storage as well as design comes from the Wine glass, which Wired magazine says requires 33% less room to store, a key benefit when working in an environment where space is limited.

With Alessi being very well known among style conscious consumers worldwide, the initiative has had extensive coverage in design, travel and business publications.

In addition to the lengthy feature in Wired, pieces also appeared on Conde Nast Traveler, Curbed and Dezeen, to name a few.

As Bloomberg reports, the Alessi partnership fits into airlines trying to woo passengers with their so-called ‘soft product.’

For example, while Delta has chosen to work with Alessi, KLM’s business class tableware and linen comes from Dutch designer Marcel Wanders (who also happens to count Alessi as a client).

Meanwhile Finnair has for the past five years had a very successful partnership with Finnish design house Marimekko. In addition to appearing on-board, the items are available for purchase on the Finnair online store.

Key Take-Away

While airline / design company partnerships are not new, the Delta initiative worked for two reasons. First, most premium cabin passengers will be aware of Alessi and quite possibly even have items in their own homes. It’s a household name among a certain demographic.

Secondly, Delta and Alessi were able to maximise the PR value of the story through ‘making of’ features where they talked about the process of getting the tableware from the design studio into the air, including some of the very specific challenges that an airline faces.