How EasyJet’s holiday revamp drove a 400% profit boost

Despite only claiming a 1% share of voice in a package holiday sector dominated by established players, EasyJet was on a mission to relaunch its holiday products to its 1 million strong target audience.

Timing had not been on the company’s side. Having only gone live six months prior to lockdown, EasyJet Holidays needed to shake off perceptions of being solely an airline brand and build fame fast.

Research revealed an appetite among 25- to 34-year-olds to book ‘all-inclusive travel’ options from a single provider, with 31% of consumers more likely to choose a package holiday compared to pre-pandemic.

Working with agency VCCP, EasyJet’s marketers devised a new value proposition based on offering “unrivalled flexibility”, popular hotels, “unbeatable” pricing and sustainability. Meanwhile, ad campaign ‘The Search is Over’ centred on a game of hide and seek, epitomising the pursuit of the elusive aspirational package holiday.

On-pack placement with PepsiCo-owned Walkers and Doritos helped flag EasyJet Holidays to 110 million people. A further takeover of Gatwick airport across 45 high-impact sites helped transport holidaymakers into their own game of hide and seek.

Post-relaunch unprompted awareness of EasyJet Holidays grew seven percentage points, outperforming competitors such as Jet2 and TUI. Web revenue rose 30% in London and the South East following the Gatwick takeover, while the brand’s PepsiCo partnership generated £1.3m in UK media exposure.

Winner of the 2023 Marketing Week Award for Travel, Tourism and Hospitality, EasyJet became the UK’s fastest growing travel business in 2022 with passenger numbers up 83% to 1.1 million and profit rising 400% on pre-Covid levels to £38m.