AgenciesIndiGo needs to up its game a little in providing a wholesome service and experience to corporate customers who are being lured by Vistara and Air India, said the low-cost carrier's CEO Ronjoy Dutta on Friday. The government had on October 8 last year sold full-service carrier Air India to the Tata Group for Rs 18,000 crore. The salt-to-software conglomerate is also the majority shareholder in India's only other full-service carrier Vistara.
In a communique to employees on Friday, Dutta said the low-cost carrier space in India is getting awfully crowded with IndiGo, SpiceJet, Go First, AirAsia India and Akasa Air all vying for the same customer.
Akasa Air -- the new low-cost carrier backed by ace investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala and aviation veterans Aditya Ghosh and Vinay Dube -- is planning to start operating flights from June.
Dutta said that at the higher end, there is Vistara and Air India as full service carriers and that combination will likely target more of the high end customers and particularly corporate customers.
"We have looked carefully at our product positioning and at the end of the day we think IndiGo is positioned quite correctly in the sweet spot that is important for all customer segments - safe, on time, hassle-free and courteous service," he noted.
"Given the particular focus of Vistara and Air India on the corporate customer we need to up our game a little in providing a more wholesome service and experience to the corporate customer," he said.
Ultimately, in the game of thrones that is developing in the airline industry, the key determinant of long term success will continue to be cash flow, Dutta noted.
"Different players will experiment with different product positionings, we have to keep our eye on providing consistency of our product and on generating positive cash flow," he mentioned.
In a communique to employees on Friday, Dutta said the low-cost carrier space in India is getting awfully crowded with IndiGo, SpiceJet, Go First, AirAsia India and Akasa Air all vying for the same customer.
Akasa Air -- the new low-cost carrier backed by ace investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala and aviation veterans Aditya Ghosh and Vinay Dube -- is planning to start operating flights from June.
Dutta said that at the higher end, there is Vistara and Air India as full service carriers and that combination will likely target more of the high end customers and particularly corporate customers.
"We have looked carefully at our product positioning and at the end of the day we think IndiGo is positioned quite correctly in the sweet spot that is important for all customer segments - safe, on time, hassle-free and courteous service," he noted.
"Given the particular focus of Vistara and Air India on the corporate customer we need to up our game a little in providing a more wholesome service and experience to the corporate customer," he said.
Ultimately, in the game of thrones that is developing in the airline industry, the key determinant of long term success will continue to be cash flow, Dutta noted.
"Different players will experiment with different product positionings, we have to keep our eye on providing consistency of our product and on generating positive cash flow," he mentioned.
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