 "Kennedy International Airport")
For Allison Reeves, a 34-year-old actor based in Hollywood, California, a trip to the airport is something she dreads. "I hate, hate, hate flying," she said. So she was surprised when she actually had fun at Kennedy International Airport after Thanksgiving.
Wandering through Terminal 4 earlier this month, she came upon a party set up by Jose Cuervo for the holiday travel season. Because the Rolling Stones loved the tequila, the brand built a replica of the plane the band used for its 1972 North American tour. Cuervo representatives dressed as sexy flight attendants from the '70s served $18 tequila sunrises and complimentary tequila samples while travelers of all ages hung out and discussed rock 'n' roll. "It was relaxing, and I had good laughs with people," Reeves said. "And the shots didn't hurt either."
During the busiest travel time of the year, brands are offering interactive, pop-up experiences inside airport terminals. The idea is to capture the attention and funds of happy, eager-to-spend travelers waiting for their flights.
Beam Suntory has a flashy temporary bar at Los Angeles International to show off its whiskeys from around the world. Travelers are handed passports and given stamps for every new drink they taste. The company estimates the bar will have given out 12,000 free tastes during its tenure, during the month of December.
"It's worth trying to make airport experiences memorable," said Andrew Meeks, the company's marketing manager for North America Duty Free. "Instead of saying, 'I couldn't find parking' or 'TSA was a nightmare,' they say, 'That whiskey tasting was amazing'." Beam Suntory is currently replicating the event in Singapore and Hong Kong for holiday travelers there.
JetBlue is working with a variety of brands to entertain the estimated 1.5 million customers who will have traveled through Terminal 5 at Kennedy Airport from the Tuesday before Thanksgiving through the end of the year.
With Amazon, JetBlue built the world's largest Amazon Prime theater inside a giant box, where, through January 3, travelers can watch movies for free.
On the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, JetBlue and J Crew held an all-day bash with temporary tattoos, photo booths and free snacks. Steve Liu, a 36-year-old consultant in New York City, was flying home from the Bahamas, where he was on a vacation with his family, when he discovered it. "The pop-up was totally unexpected and seriously the warmest welcome home an airline has ever given me," he said.
"For many customers the airport experience is a horrible bookend to a vacation," said Jamie Perry, JetBlue's vice president of brand and product development. "We are always trying to alleviate that and make it a better experience." Last year during the holidays JetBlue worked withZappos.com to turn a baggage claim into a roulette board; if a passenger's baggage landed in a certain slot, they received a prize like Zappos merchandise or a gift certificate.
Airports are an ideal place to get customers to try a product, according to Scott Green, the chief marketing officer of Proximo Spirits, which owns Jose Cuervo. "Time seems to be suspended at airports," he said.
The benefits to travelers are clear as well. "I think they should be a requirement," Mr Liu said. "That trip, vacation didn't end until we left the pop-up party."
©2015 The New York Times News Service
