Nicisms

I’ve managed to secure a short interview with Nadine Damen, the marketing manager of Kulula.com. I’ve asked her some questions about the rebranding, sub-brands and more interesting tidbits about Kulula.com.

I also found out that Kulula.com does ±R3.5million in sales every day. Yes, that’s right, every day. Wow.

Here’s the interview:

1. Wow, great new and clean design for your site. Can you tell me why Kulula is relaunching the brand now?

The timing of the new site coincides with kulula’s seventh birthday and we consider it an opportune time to extend kulula’s focus beyond aviation. We have a new strategic direction and the new look (as well as the three supporting sub-brands) are part of this expanding business focus. Domestic air travel in South Africa is worth around R13 billion per annum. The broader travel sector in southern Africa is estimated to be worth more than R50 billion. With kulula’s new look and three distinctive sub-brands, we expect to have more flexibility to associate kulula with a wider array of products within, and outside, the travel sector.

2. Do you think a “Web 2.0″ feel is right for the brand considering many saying that web 2.0 in design is out?

Web 2.0 means different things to different people and without getting into the details, kulula plans to be more interactive with its customer base in a future incarnation of kulula.com, especially on the air and travel side of things.

3. Would you be able to tell me how much the redesign cost and who helped? Did you outsource the design or manage it in-house?

The cost of the new CI is less than a tank of petrol for 5 flights from CT to JHB. The design was created in collaboration with the Johannesburg office of Brand Union. A new advertising campaign, conceived by King James advertising in Cape Town, will launch in mid September to support the new kulula travel brand. Over all the re-design didn’t cost much because the biggest element we had to change was our website, which we build, design and manage in-house; so it was just a matter of getting the resources to do it on time.

4. Are there more plans to delve in to the social media world with the Kulula brand?

Yes…stayed tuned…

5. How long has the design been in progress?

The new look for kulula has been part of this year’s strategic plan and has been envisioned for a while.

6. I see that there seem to be plans for a Kulula Travel and Connect to complement Kulula Air. Can you tell me a bit more about these?

Taking a plane is more than about just getting from A to B. A trip could be for pleasure, for business, to explore, to escape etc. In addition, while travelling, many South Africans want to keep in touch, either on a cell phone or a laptop. With this in mind, kulula’s partnership with Altech is a complementary business to our core competence – flying passengers. Similarly, kulula travel is a logical brand extension into related areas such as hotels, car rentals and travel packages. As a trust online brand, we have a great platform to build on and encourage more consumers to extend their favourable kulula brand experience into other products that are similarly easy to browse and purchase online (all in the same place – something no other online travel retailer is doing). With more than R2 billion in revenue each year and over 650 000 unique browsers monthly, kulula is the largest online retailer in South Africa. With this strong base and entrenched consumer respect, kulula has the opportunity to extend into complementary business lines within and beyond the travel sector.

nharalambous@gmail.com