Flying Blue

From grounded to soaring — rebuilding loyalty during crisis

Overview
Client
Air France / KLM Flying Blue & Isobar Paris
Industry
Aviation / Loyalty

During the global pandemic, air travel collapsed and traditional loyalty models lost relevance almost overnight.

The challenge was to extend the value of Flying Blue beyond flights, maintaining engagement and generating revenue in a grounded market.

Approach
Strategic Focus
  • Extend loyalty value through non-travel partnerships
  • Reduce friction across earning and redemption journeys
  • Accelerate delivery under global operational constraints
  • Align experience strategy across multiple regions and teams
Research & Collaboration
  • Stakeholder interviews across France, Netherlands, and Canada
  • Remote-first research and testing under pandemic constraints
  • Competitive analysis of global loyalty ecosystems
  • Identified key levers: personalisation, integration, partnerships, data
Design & Execution
  • Combined Material Design system with Flying Blue rebrand direction
  • Translated business goals into structured user stories
  • Designed across mobile and desktop behavioural contexts
  • Iterated rapidly through continuous stakeholder feedback loops
Key Product Improvements
  • Seamless digital wallet integration
  • Simplified redemption flows
  • Expanded partner ecosystem (retail, mobility, finance)
  • Faster access to loyalty credentials via mobile
Outcome
  • 61% increase in homepage conversions to e-commerce platform
  • 3× increase in Miles & Points customers
  • 11% increase in reward ticket usage
  • Strengthened long-term engagement across the loyalty ecosystem
Showcase
Air France/KLM - Flying Blue screens
Client Feedback

Working across complex, cross-functional teams, success is measured as much in collaboration as in delivery.

These reflections come from senior stakeholders involved directly in the Flying Blue programme.

Frank de Boer
Frank de Boer
Director Customer Loyalty, Air France KLM
“A digital expert with a huge amount of knowledge and experience and a relentless willingness to create the best possible solution. Rich translates high level business demands into clear, consistent design proposals. A true sparring partner who is not afraid to ask the difficult questions while always proposing a possible solution.”
Giordana Mendola
Giordana Mendola
Product Manager, Flying Blue Digital Touchpoints
“We worked together for 14 months on the redesign of FlyingBlue.com. Rich became a key part of the team. The collaboration was highly effective, and much of the work is now in development or already launched. He is flexible, easy to work with, and an experienced design lead I would recommend without hesitation.”