Originally Posted by
Pete838
Your solution is based on the idea that somehow many of the people that use the clubs are somehow doing so for free.
How do you arrive at who is a 'lower' category of entry?
If pax A pays $450 outright to use the club, does he have right of first entry? He has generated only $450 in income for the year to DL.
If pax B obtains access as a DM, does he have right of first entry? He has potentially generated tens or maybe hundreds of thousands dollars in revenue for DL, and granting him access as a small token of appreciation is a small price.
If pax C pays $50 for the day, does he get first right? He has paid more directly to the club than anyone else for a single use.
If pax D accesses the club via his AMEX PLAT or CENT card, and uses the clubs very often then he can possibly generate more revenue to the club directly than any of the others, and as a group (all AMEX access combined) definitely more than the others.
Your stratified system is built on a false premise that some customers are some how more entitled than others to use a product that they are all paying for.
This of course does not apply to guest access, and I think we can all agree that this is an area that needs to be addressed.
Actually, my premise is not based on the idea that some people are getting in for free. My premise is based on the way that DL used to operate the Crown Rooms. My father was a CR member from the time the first ones opened. He bought me a Crown Room membership when I was in college and I'm sure that when my kids are old enough, I will do the same for my kids (if there is any value left in the SC at at that point). It used to be an exclusive members only atmosphere with people who paid DL for the right to be a part of that club. Supposedly from folks I've talked with at DL over the years, it was a profitable business model in those days when they only admitted paid members. Over time, however, it's been that anybody and their brother can get into a SC. I recognize that AmEx pumps a ton of money into DL and that they pay for each of those card swipes but I will also tell you as an AmEx Reserve cardholder, I would be fine with that benefit ending. As a DM, I would also be fine with that benefit ending. The clubs are simply too crowded and DL's original vision of the Crown Room being an exclusive retreat at the airport is no longer. Now, unless I want a shower or the assistance of a SC attendant with flights, I might pop in for a bagel in the morning or a beer in the afternoon but I don't sit in the SCs for long at all any more. Airport bars, restaurants or even prayer rooms offer a quieter refuge from the crowd madness than the SC. Again, if the ST partners can stratify their paid lounge members over DL's, then stratifying DL's paid lounge members over a partner (AmEx) doesn't seem unreasonable. Remember that DL heavily advertises the partner lounge benefit of being a SC member much in the same way that AmEx advertises the SC benefit for their card and I can tell you from multiple experiences with DL that they could care less when I've complained about being denied entry at a partner lounge. My guess is that AmEx wouldn't care too much if a cardholder was denied entry based on "space considerations."