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Case Study

Easyjet: The web's favorite airline

By Nirmalya Kumar and Brian Rogers

22 pages

December 1999

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Reference: IMD-3-0873

Stelios Haji-Ioannou, the 32 year-old CEO and founder of easyJet airlines, achieved profitability for the first time in 1999, almost 4 years after launching his London-based low-cost carrier. The concept behind easyJet was “to offer low-cost airline service to the masses”, and the airline accomplished this by adopting an efficiency-driven operating model, creating brand awareness, and maintaining high levels of customer satisfaction.

A key issue in the case is whether the airline will continue to grow and survive in the highly competitive low-cost segment of the market. In 2000, Stelios was anxious to try his hand at launching other businesses, so he started a chain of Internet cafés. Some questioned whether Stelios would be able to successfully transfer his low-cost business model to Internet cafés. Undeterred, Stelios moved ahead with his plan to create easyEverything, with the belief that he could make a profit by encouraging customers to surf the Internet, send email, and shop online.

Keywords

Marketing Strategy, Industry Analysis, Service Management, Airline, General Management

Settings

Europe
Easyjet
1999

Type

Field Research

Available Languages

English, Spanish, Japanese, Portuguese

Related material

Teaching note, Video

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This case study is part of a series

EasyEverything: The internet shop
EasyEverything: The internet shop (Abridged)
EasyJet: The Web's favorite airline
Easyjet: The web's favorite airline (Abridged)
Www.easyrentacar.com

2002 ECCH AWARD WINNER (Overall Winner)

2001 ECCH AWARD WINNER (Policy & General Management)

Best-selling Case Study

This case study is part of a series

EasyEverything: The internet shop
EasyEverything: The internet shop (Abridged)
EasyJet: The Web's favorite airline
Easyjet: The web's favorite airline (Abridged)
Www.easyrentacar.com

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