What is the impact of the recent increase in the solidarity tax that came into force on 1 January?er last March?
Réginald Otten - It's still early to judge the impact of this tax because it has only just come into force. We're not happy about it, we're against it, we've been very critical of the risk it poses to passengers, to French purchasing power, to the democratisation of air travel and to regional connectivity, because prices will automatically rise. We ourselves have increased the price of a flight by more than €5 because of the tax..
What is the impact of the recent increase in the solidarity tax that came into force on 1 January?er last March?
Réginald Otten - It's still early to judge the impact of this tax because it has only just come into force. We're not happy about it, we're against it, we've been very critical of the risk it poses to passengers, to French purchasing power, to the democratisation of air travel and to regional connectivity, because prices will automatically rise. We ourselves have increased the price of a flight by more than €5 because of the tax..
That said, we need to keep an eye on what's going to happen over the next few weeks. Bookings for April are already well advanced. So even with the arrival of the Easter holidays, it will be hard to feel any impact. On the other hand, the summer season is going to be keyThis is the most important period for an airline. The impact of this tax should be felt during the holidays. Families travelling with 4 or 5 passengers will be hit threefold by this tax on their ticket price. It's powerful and it's going to hurt.
Has the tax increase put a question mark over your expansion in France?
Réginald Otten - Our biggest concern is the impact of the tax on domestic routes.. On the domestic front, we have double taxationon the outward and return journeys. This potentially affects business travellers. What's more, business travellers generally book very late. This adds to the cost of tickets. We'll be able to judge how demand develops at the start of the new school year in September, when companies prepare their travel budgets. Finally, another market that will be impacted is that of tourists coming to France. They are likely to choose European destinations where taxes are lower, or even non-existent.
Does it call for strategic caution with regard to the French market?
Réginald Otten - If demand is no longer there, this will obviously have repercussions. consequences on the number of frequencies, the network and the connectivity offered. As Europe's leading low-cost airline, we have the opportunity to expand into other European cities and countries, because we have the size and resources to do so.
Do you think you can take advantage of Ryanair's announcement that it wants to reduce its operations in France?
Réginald Otten - We're looking at what the competition is doing, particularly if Ryanair leaves. We are already very well established in France. We are de facto the second-largest airline behind the Air France group and even the leading airline in the region. For example, we reacted very quickly after Ryanair's departure from Bordeaux. We are already the leading airline in terms of volume at this airport. We have increased our offer and announced a number of new services where Ryanair was no longer present. We have six new routes this summer. With Edinburgh, but also Rabat and Rome-Fiumicino, previously operated by Ryanair. We have also strengthened existing routes, such as Marrakech and Bordeaux-Marseille, where we have almost 50% of business travellers on certain days. Nevertheless, Ryanair's decisions are not a key element in our strategy either. We don't systematically set up at airports that Ryanair leaves. Even if Ryanair's departure opens up opportunities.
How is the 2025 summer season shaping up overall?
Réginald Otten - For the summer of 2025, we are stable overall after having significantly increased our offer this winter with 5% of additional capacity. We concentrated on the winter season, in particular to reduce losses. This has worked: in our first-quarter results, we announced that we had reduced losses in the winter season by 50%.
How is the summer season shaping up for French airports?
Réginald Otten - Our strategy in France continues to be to strengthen our domestic routes. in order to offer an attractive product to business travellers. When I talk about stability of supply, there are nevertheless a few 'pockets of growth' in France. In Lyon and Nantes, we are increasing our traffic by basing an extra aircraft in each of these cities. Lyon will have 7 aircraft based there and Nantes 4, so we should see plenty of growth! We also have Orly, which is expanding, since we have recovered slots there and we will base a seventh aircraft there. This summer we are opening an Orly-Skopje in Northern Macedonia and developing Orly-Sofia. However, our biggest base in France is still Roissy CDG, with 9 aircraft.. In fact, we are the second largest airline in Paris.
Let's talk a little about the business market. What is the outlook for 2025?
Réginald Otten - This is an important market for easyJet. Across our entire network, the business segment represents 14%. But in France, rising to 20%. On some routes, the figures are even higher. On Bordeaux-Marseille, business traffic represents 43% on average. On Lyon-Toulouse, the figure is almost 50%. This is all the more remarkable given that we need these customers, who often book late, need flexibility and pay more, to make these routes profitable. The business traveller therefore remains a key element in our strategy.The Orly-Nice shuttle service is particularly popular on domestic routes in France. Orly-Nice has 8 flights a day and a total of 11 to 12 daily flights with Roissy on certain days in the summer. Lyon-Bordeaux, for example, has 4 to 5 flights a day...
The regularity of the business traveller reinforces our desire to reduce our losses in winter. And to attract this clientele, we need to offer flights between cities that are European capitals or economic metropolises. EasyJet is the airline that connects France's regions and territories. For example, we recently relocated to Strasbourg with 100,000 seats to half a dozen destinations. And business travel represents an average of 14% for all traffic!
Which are easyJet's fastest-growing business markets from France?
Réginald Otten - Excluding the domestic market, business demand from France is important about London but also to Glasgow and Manchester. Otherwise, we have a high proportion of business travellers with Switzerlandparticularly Basel-Mulhouse and Geneva, as well as Barcelona, Milan, Venice and Berlin. On the Paris-Berlin route, for example, there is 16% of business traffic.
What products will attract French business customers?
Réginald Otten - First and foremost, I want to talk about a regular service with good timetables and numerous frequencies from the main airports. This is a key area because it corresponds to what business travellers expect. On the product side, to build customer loyalty, we reworked the easyJet Plus offer. This is particularly true of business travel. It is available on a redesigned dedicated site with an easyJet Plus Pro business offer that allows you to buy up to 250 season tickets for company employees. There is also a page dedicated to the management of these season tickets and an offer currently under development. 1 free card for every 10 purchased for businesses. The product itself includes many easyJet services, such as the 2th classic cabin baggage included, a reserved seat, thread-cutting in 50 airports or priority boarding and baggage drop-off. Or change flights at the last minute. The €298 subscription pays for itself very quickly, usually after five flights.. With the departure of Air France from the domestic market, this type of product is important for business travellers.
What about airport exhibitions in France?
Réginald Otten - We're always working on improving easyjet Plus. We already have car hire and hotel promotions available on easyjet Plus. As far as lounges are concerned, we have an agreement in the UK with a partner covering seven airports, including a very large lounge at Gatwick, our number 1 air base. We are studying this type of offer for the rest of Europe...
