British Airways has ‘done the double’ at the Superbrands 2015 awards, winning both the Business and Consumer titles.
The airline also secured the Consumer Superbrands title last year, but this is the first time any carrier has secured both the top titles. Google was the last brand to win both categories in 2008.
It means that British Airways has beaten Apple, Virgin Atlantic, Microsoft and Visa to the top business brand slot and Rolex, BBC, Microsoft and Nike to the best consumer brand accolade.
The UK’s Consumer Superbrands are chosen by the British public in a national survey of 2,500 adults, while the Business Superbrands are chosen by a panel of marketing experts and 2,000 individual business professionals from across the UK.
Keith Williams, British Airways’ Executive Chairman, said: “We want to say a huge thank you to our customers for helping us to secure this top spot. Everything we do is for them so to be recognised by both travellers and businesses alike means an enormous amount to all of us at British Airways.”
Stephen Cheliotis, Chief Executive of The Centre for Brands Analysis and Chairman of the Superbrands Council, said: “British Airways has consolidated its brand strength and not only retained top spot in the Consumer Superbrands survey but also taken pole position in the Business Superbrands survey for the first time. To lead both surveys is remarkable, especially considering over 1,500 well-known consumer brands and 1,200 business brands were analysed.
British Airways’ overarching ‘To Fly: To Serve’ positioning and daily focus on exceptional service clearly continues to resonate with flyers, while the brand is also benefitting from recent investments in its planes, lounges, marketing and technology. While a much-loved heritage brand, British Airways continues to be recognised for its focus on customer-centric innovation, seen this year through programmes like the hi-tech happiness blanket trial, its pioneering partnership with Solena Fuels and its Cannes Lion award for an innovative digital campaign. In short, British Airways successfully combines tradition with slick delivery and continuous invention and improvement to remain a trusted, desirable and relevant brand.”
The awards also come just ahead of the publication on April 28 of a new book, Better By Design: Shaping the British Airways Brand, written by the director of the British Airways archive, Paul Jarvis and published by Amberley. The book includes a foreword by Keith Williams, Executive Chairman of British Airways and it will cost £17.99.
