IllinoisMan

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZHKaRynlrI

"Customers love the cookies"

"That's why I flew Frontier, because of the cookies!"

mke9499

BB also says that he loves the cookies, and that getting them was one of the benefits of buying YX.

Apparently, F9 employees like the cookies, too, according to @frontiercare:

Of course, in reality, people are not going take their business elsewhere, just because the cookies are dropped; they are a small way, though, of making many customers a bit more satisfied with their inflight experience.

RSVP

Like I almost believe anything that comes out of Bedford's mouth.

I've lost track of how many promises have been made and broken. Where shall I start? BCC in DEN, FF alliance, the cookies. Three years later, none of it exists.

mke9499

Confirmation by JSOnlline of the discontinuation of the cookies ...

http://www.jsonline.com/business/fro...145716075.html

Change effective May 1 or before.

This should also mean they will be gone from Miller Park and the Bradley Center.

MikeFromMKE

I'm not sure if any of those were "promises" but things they wanted to do when they were said. This business is a moving target. The cookies stayed a lot longer than most people thought. I'm saddened by it too but as a shareholder I can't complain too much. FF partnerships require other airlines to come to the table, and most carriers already have dance partners. I still hope they can do something with Icelandic.

I still think they need to open a club in DEN. It is their biggest FF base by far and it seems like the last few trips through DEN I've had 2+ hour layovers that I would have loved to spend in something more comfortable than an airport chair.

I would hope if the company is smart they'll find a way to rebrand them and keep selling them in WI.

knope2001

Definitely a more conciliatory tone from Sorenson than we’ve sometimes seen in the past. He’s right that the free perishable snack is virtually unheard of domestically, and for someone trying to move toward the ULCC model, it’s incompatible.

That’s right on the money, in my opinion. The “whole approach to Milwaukee” part is something I agree with, but that’s a lot more than I’d like to burrow into at the moment. But the cookie was essentially never incorporated into Frontier’s image, promotions, or persona. It may have helped ease the transition in the former-YX network, but that’s about it. And with nearly all of that gone, there’s no real point in keeping it.

As things turned out, it was peculiar that in the markets used to the cookies…MKE, MCI and OMA…the huge majority of cookies were served cold because of the lack of (working) ovens on most EJet’s and RJ’s. The cold cookie falls well short of the hot one in bang-for-the-buck. A large proportion of the people who knew the cookie were downgraded to a cold one anyway.

The cookie itself really only grew as the symbol of Midwest in recent years as other amenities were cut. Cookies were, for much of their history, only served as the dessert on (cold) lunch flights, as the hot breakfast and dinner entrees used the ovens on those flights. When catering was scaled way back in early 2002, and subsequently adjusted and turned into BOB food for sale, the cookie really became the signature item because the lobster tail, the hot towels, the extra flight attendant, the free wine, the free food, and eventually the premium seating was gone. (Anybody else remember the hot towel service?) The AirTran hostile takeover solidified the iconic status of the cookie in ways that mere marketing could not. I think that’s what moved them into the role they occupied in the 00’s. Frontier adapted the cookie, but you’re right that they never capitalized on it, and as such it was a half-hearted effort. It would have been a relatively simple concept to have the animals talk up the cookies in a commercial – having Griz put on pounds would have been a natural.

The notion of free animal crackers or goldfish crackers for Summit and Ascent leaves me pretty underwhelmed. Although adults certainly do eat them, both are far more likely to be found half-crushed between the back seat cushions of a minivan than in the carry-ons of frequent travelers. I have doubts it’s worth the cost or effort on Frontier’s part. And I think there’s a danger of cheapening FF status if the crackers are a poorly-perceived trinket. Imagine if Frontier used larger beverage cups for Ascent and Summit members. In fact they would be "rewarding" their frequent cusomters by giving them something more, but how would it come off? It would likely look cheap and foolish. The message is that your repeat business on Frontier is worth three extra ounces of soda. I think there’s a real danger in offering frequent business travelers a little pouch of what’s perceived as a kid’s snack.

Best case scenario for animal crackers, IMHO, is if they are branded as Frontier SpokesAnimals, and they are free both for elite FF members and for kids under a certain age.

When the cookies go, I wonder if they’ll consider using ovens for hot entrees on other flights? The April cabin service guide still includes the hot breakfast on Denver-originating Airbus breakfast flights.

http://www.frontierairlines.com/flig...light-catering

The key, I suppose, is how well these sorts of services cover costs. Free soft drink service is considered a cost of doing business, but the buy-onboard food probably needs to roughly cover costs (at worst) to justify itself. Though they clearly intend to (and probably need to) give laser focus to cost reduction, anything they can do to improve the perception of their customers is helpful.

Stumblefoot

IMO, this would be brilliant. Barnum's Animals have been available for purchase. But, if Frontier could convince Nabisco (a.k.a. Kraft Foods) to create a mold of their spokesanimals and re-brand the packaging for the purposes of using in their Food Service operation, I think the crackers would be a huge hit. However, to really create additional brand equity, they need to offer them to ALL passengers, not just FF Elites or kids. The goodwill created from such a small act would continue to differentiate the brand.

BTW... the F&B uptake out of Costa Rica yesterday was huge. It literally seemed like every row was ordering something.

Also, yesterday's flight departed LIR about 50 minutes late. Yet, somehow, we landed on-time in DEN. Don't know how that happens, but I like it when it does.

knope2001

I was thinking something along those lines, making them free for kids under X age but collecting something nominal (like a buck) which is donated to charity for everybody else. Perhaps they could even structure it in a way with tax-beneficial properties, such as for every $1 SpokesAnimal package sold, Frontier will donate $1. A kids' charity like St Jude would be great, or they could rotate between charities.

Frontier did do the Ritter Sport pink choclate bar for breast cancer research a few months back. This would tie charitiable work even more deeply into the brand and could be an ongoing thing.

Good to know. I'm guessing they didn't run out glaringly early if lots of people purchased. Hopefully they are successful at aligning the number of food items available versus the number of peopel who want to purchase. Certainly it's an inexact science, but it was a real struggle early in the Frontier BOB program.

MostlyAir

The cookies are made in River Falls, WI so I'm pretty sure they get flown out of MSP.

mke9499

The cookies are gone from the inflight catering page of the service guide, though mentions of the cookies still remain on the website...probably just until someone can edit the site.

Perhaps we can get regular updates from those flying this month, as to the availability of the cookies.

From BizTimes:

(Emphasis added)

DoubleWidesFly

(copied from here)


Who stole the cookie from the cookie jar?
Frontier Airlines stole the cookie from the cookie jar.
F9: Who, me?
Yes, you!
F9: Couldn't be?
Then who?

That's right folks! Frontier Airline has stolen the last cookie from the cookie jar! And as of May 1, the scrumptious cookie will be gone!

For those of your who aren't aware, Frontier Airlines started serving the Midwest Express famous cookies after Republic Airlines merged Frontier Airlines and Midwest Express into a single brand in April of 2010. The Midwest Express cookies was the reason why so many fliers loved flying Midwest Express and in recent years Frontier. On flights longer than 2 hours, flight attendants would Bake the cookies on board the aircraft. The smell of homemade chocolate chip cookies would resonant throughout the cabin bringing joyful bliss to everyone who took a whiff. I honestly only flew frontier once, however the smell of chocolate chip cookies at 32,000 feet was a godsend!

However, now after 26 years of flying together, Midwest Express (now F9) will be ditching the famous Milwaukee Sendik's Food Market cookie for complimentary Pepperidge Farm Goldfish crackers and Barnum's Animal Crackers. Frontier airline's spokeperson said these snacks will be "free for Ascent, Summit, Classic and Classic Plus customers. The animal snack options are nonperishable, run less risk of waste, are a better value and align better with the Frontier brand."

Notice that F9 makes it sound as though basically all customers will get the free snack, however when exploring Frontier's website I noticed that three types of fares, Classic, Classic Plus, and the dreadful economy. Yet, please note there's no difference between these three fare types, except that economy is 100% unbundled, Classic includes 2 check bags and free animal crackers, and Classic Plus offers all the same but 150% bonus miles, free upgrade to stretch seating (exit row) and is refundable. Yet either way, all three classes are the back of the bus standard economy seat, for Frontier only has ONE class of service. However as Frontier Airlines claims: stale, processed, nonperishable, non-unique crackers fits Frontier's brand better.

Yet I ask Frontier one question, what part of your slogan "A whole new animal" does stale crackers fit? Sure the LCC model has stolen the cookie from the cookie jar, but if you want to be different, don't follow your competitors lead, offer something unique, like Fresh cookies!

mke9499

With the change to the Animal Crackers and Goldfish Crackers, the new Spokesanimal will have to be Polly the Parrot. I can just see the new ad spots now.

RSVP

+1

RSVP

I think that ship has sailed with the closure of the MKE club. Perhaps after the FF alliance DEN may see one. I hope you're not holding your breath.

AviationFan24

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