Problem: Food on planes suck!!!
Solution: A service that allows customers to upgrade certain parts of their airplane dining experience: for example, right now people can upgrade their seats or their bags, but what about upgrading their food? This business would actually be more of a “return to what was” rather than a completely new innovation. This article from Travel & Leisure actually describes in-flight meals and services quite well; one notable quote is:
“…variety took off in the 1950s, when airlines such as Northwest Airlines brought in spaces like their “Fujiyama Room,” a lounge that served up cut pineapples studded with shrimp, cheese, cherry tomatoes, and fruit squares.”
Allowing passengers to buy access to “in-flight food lounges” (aka a floating bar with high quality food) could be a differentiator that helps boost business for airlines. This will be especially important in the socially-distant travel era and changes that will plague the 2020s. One way to re-incentivize people to spend more on vacations, is to optimize smaller experience like food. Already, as reported by Fortune in April 2019, this has been a trend for many major airlines that are: “looking more and more to all-star chefs and leaving frozen food on the no-fly list.” Below are examples from the 1930s, 1950s, and 1970s for how this service would look.
Monetization: Sell this service and take a fee from the airlines or from passengers. Perhaps make it a subscription or premium service like Priority Pass.
Contributed by: Michael Bervell (Billion Dollar Startup Ideas)