XXL Solutions - "do things differently"

19/12/2023

Cutting edge retailing for aviation and travel - customers should demand nothing less

Thank you to the amazing panel members - a real "super panel": Nicol Seifertová BA MSc at Václav Havel Airport Prague / Letiště Václava Havla Praha, Paul Carroll at Air Asia, Nick Redpath at Airport Dimensions and Mitchell Fordham at eSIM Go.

We realised we brought together more than 60 years of / / / and retailing experience coupled with a lot of innovative spirit and openness to share our insight and current innovative approaches to showcase what cutting edge can look like in aviation and travel.

And how putting the customer at the centre and innovating automatically results in higher customer satisfaction and stickiness as well as increased revenues.

Thanks to technology there are no limits anymore to and commercial creativity, creating a seamless journey across touch points and across partners.

We also touched upon crossing physical and digital boundaries, marketplace and social commerce, the increasing importance of mobile and the metaverse, and what it takes to achieve the transformation to truly put the customer and digital at the centre. And more.

A big thank you to the organisers of a truly personal, inspiring and impactful event in Singapore, Daniel Coleman, Ross Falconer, Corrie Thompson Ryan Ghee Future Travel Experience

Join our panel members for an exciting discussion about “New ideas and opportunities to enhance e-commerce, ancillary revenue and retail in air transport” mo...

24/08/2019

Check out my latest article: Aviation of the Future: What Needs to Change to Get Aviation Fit for the Twenty-First Century https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/aviation-future-what-needs-change-get-fit-century-ursula-silling via

-things-differently

The world around us has changed dramatically, particularly since the beginning of the twenty-first century, mainly due to the broad availability of the Internet. Inventions such as smart phones, apps, virtual face to face conversations, coupled with the rise of Facebook, Google, Amazon & Co.

10/02/2019

Looking forward to with 200 thought leaders and innovators from , , , other , and innovative tech companies: think future - Hamburg Aviation Conference, 21-22 February

Attendees include top managers from Thai Airways, Aegean Airlines, Wizzair, Eurowings, TUIfly, LH Group, Vueling, Luxair, Air Baltic, El Al, Easy Jet, Firstair (Canada), Myway airlines (Georgia), Air France, Ukrainian Airlines), Kenya Airways, Hamburg / Brussels / Moscow Domodedovo / Lyon Airport, Fraport, Swissport, Frontier Airlines, A-Rosa, TUI Cruises, Plug and Play, Airbus, Grab, Inflyter, KPMG and more.

Topics include

- innovate and get ready for the future now - by Vueling Airlines

- the road to achieve an innovation culture - by Lufthansa

- no limits - grand opening panel, future visions and what to focus on now - by Hamburg Airport, TUI Cruises, Branchspace, Plug & Play

- how the digital customer can drive revenue for airports, airlines and their commercial partners - by Collinson

- real life stories / experiences around digital assistants, retail and other revenue generators, data and personalisation

01/12/2018

Don’t be afraid of leaving the comfort zone and experience how effective it is to work with agile suppliers

We appreciated that XXL Solutions` CEO Ursula Silling moderated a panel with four super innovative and super smart best-of-breed providers for the airline industry at the IATA AIR in Rome. Alexander von Bernstorff at inteRES, Hélène Millet at Conztanz, Peter Schoeber at Lufthansa Systems and Urs Kipfer at Datatrans AG demonstrated how they could deliver more speed AND more innovation compared to one-stop-shop vendors, with smart solutions based on NDC and ONE Order..

Questions covered were among others how best-of-breed solutions can create value for airlines, what are the challenge to overcome to deliver, how could they unlock innovation envisioned by NDC & ONE Order?

The final recommendation to airlines from the panel members were as follows:
"The technology is there. Go and start implementing it, with pilots."
"Pick the right partners, which are flexible and have the right service attitude."
"We are likely to stay with this NDC world and the old world co-existing for a while - do not fear the transition, experienced vendors know about it. Let’s go for it."
"Don’t be afraid of leaving the comfort zone and experience how effective it is to work with agile suppliers."

Conclusions from our side: There are huge opportunities of working with best of breed organisations, they can offer lots of flexibility, mix and match and allow to go ahead and do what airlines want to do.It is a bigger risk not to go ahead than just going for it and seizing the opportunity, with pilots and agile implementation.
Airlines can move ahead now, today, thanks to IATA NDC and one order and specialised suppliers such as these four best of breed ones.



Alexander v. Bernstorff, Director Airline Solutions, InteRES Urs Kipfer, Head of Key Account Management, Datatrans Hélène Millet, Head of Consulting & Airlin...

21/10/2018

Exciting roadmap to , new advisory board members, what aviation and travel can learn from fashion, speaker and partner spotlight

Pencil in the dates: 21 - 22 February 2019.

We will keep you tuned about our detailed agenda and amazing line up.

Ask the questions you always wanted to ask, with some workshops for specific hot topics providing additional insight to panel discussions with diverse aspects, case studies and more.

Winding Tree Travel Tech Con Aegean Airlines IBS Software Swissport International AG Station Zürich Futuris - Workforce 2030 - 5 December 2018 Airbus ch-aviation Bold Endeavours Robin Kater / Photography Philip Micallef Carl Michel Bratati Ghosh Hamburg Airport

Join us to discuss with thought leaders, decision makers, leaders in aviation, rail, hospitality, mobility potential solutions to embrace the new digital opportunities:

15/10/2018

Best-of-Breed Innovation in - unlocking innovation for airlines

Change is in the air. Good to see the right questions being asked at the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Airline Industry Retailing Symposium in Rome, Italy 23-25 October 2018 .

Looking forward to moderating a panel discussion with super innovative vendors - demonstrating how they could deliver more speed AND more compared to one-stop-shop vendors, with smart solutions based on and .

Honoured to be there with InteRES GmbH Conztanz Systems Datatrans AG Hamburg Aviation Conference - think future

Based on the success of the Distribution Track of the former IATA World Passenger Symposium (WPS), the IATA Airline Industry Retailing Symposium (AIRS) will address in depth the topics of Distribution and Payment.

25/09/2018

Looking forward to explore how future needs, trends, innovations will shape the way we at (Global & Passenger Symposium in 2-4 October18. Great content: airport to Seamless ,World of Interactive & future of experience!

Thanks International Air Transport Association (IATA) for asking us to curate the track: , & best in class & concepts with a holistic view along the .Thought leaders from , & will ensure food for thought

Airbus Viasat Inc.. Panasonic UK Avionics Air Malta Grab flybmi CaraveloTech Brussels Airport Pragma Consulting SkyTeam airBaltic Lufthansa AmericanAirlines Delta Air Lines Athens International Airport "Eleftherios Venizelos" Manchester Airport Group KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Air France International Air Transport Association (IATA)

25/09/2018

Looking forward to explore how future needs, trends, innovations will shape the way we at (Global & Passenger Symposium in 2-4 October18. Great content: airport to Seamless ,World of Interactive & future of experience!

Thanks International Air Transport Association (IATA) for asking us to curate the track: , & best in class & concepts with a holistic view along the .Thought leaders from , & will ensure food for thought

Airbus Viasat Inc. Panasonic UK Avionics Air Malta Grab flybmi CaraveloTech Brussels Airport Pragma Consulting SkyTeam airBaltic Lufthansa Delta Air Lines American Airlines Athens International Airport Manchester Airport KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Air France

20/09/2018

The recipe of "The Blonde Salad"​ - a social media and a retail success story

On 1st September this year the 31 year old Chiara Ferragni got married in beautiful Noto, Sicily. Media attention varied from detailed descriptions about the whole 3 days ceremony and of course her outfit(s), branded boarded cards when guests were flown in with a charter flight with Alitalia up to estimates about the cost of the wedding and her wedding dress(es).

Her Dior Couture gowns for her wedding are estimated to have had a media impact for the designer of $5.2m according to Fashionista. The 31-year-old has reached 14.9 million Instagram followers to date. She has an impressive list of partnerships with famous fashion and beauty brands, including Dior, Yamamay, Burberry , Victoria Secret, Yves Saint Laurent.

What is more, in September 2017, Chiara Ferragni was ranked first in the Forbes list of the most powerful fashion influencers. Harvard Business Review have created a case study around her activities.We analysed what has been key to her success. Check out our findings in the enclosed article.

The Blonde Salad by Chiara Ferragni Chiara Ferragni Collection - Milan Store Chiara Ferragni collection

On 1st September this year the 31 year old Chiara Ferragni got married in beautiful Noto, Sicily. Media attention varied from detailed…

14/09/2018

Beyond airbnb - hospitality keeps reinventing itself to create experiences

It was interesting to experience myself how Hilton Hotels Worldwide have changed to appeal to new generation customers. Excellent mobile booking process, great flexibility by staff in the hotel, strong engagement with customers through the app. The digital does not yet go all the way through, for example digital key cards were not available even though it was one of the latest hotels.
Hostels are another group in the hospitality arena which keep surprising and create special experiences, building on digital, art, activities and socialising. Hostelworld is one of the innovative players in the area of digital experiences for hostels.

Going back to medieval times and turning this into an authentic experience is the new "albergo diffuso" concept, a "scattered hotel". The village is the hotel, and guests stay in the original houses, restored to meet travellers' requirements. It is a great example how new concepts aided by technology can create enormous opportunities, and new jobs. Sishouses do something similar, also within the medieval environment of a Borgo, but using places where people also still live.

I am sure that new concepts will go beyond borders, and there are more developments to come.

An unusual hotel, scattered throughout the community, is breathing life back into deserted villages.

05/09/2018

Three musceteers? View from Lufthansa aircraft arriving at Geneva, Switzerland

easyJet Vueling Alitalia