Leveraging expertise to transform Club Premier, Latin America’s pioneer frequent flyer program into a coalition loyalty program
MEXICO CITY, Mexico, Sept. 21—Groupe Aeroplan Inc. (TSX: AER), a leading international loyalty management corporation headquartered in Canada and Grupo Aeromexico and Aerovías de México, S.A. de C.V. (Aeromexico), the leading Mexican transcontinental airline, today announced the closing of the first tranche of Groupe Aeroplan’s strategic investment in Aeromexico’s frequent flyer program, Club Premier. Groupe Aeroplan and Aeromexico also officially launched the operations of Premier Loyalty & Marketing, S.A.P.I de C.V. (PLM), as a stand-alone entity, created on September 13th, tasked with the ownership, operation and transformation of Club Premier into Mexico’s first broad base coalition loyalty program.
“We are very proud to launch this new entity, as it reflects the power of the Aeromexico brand, our internal talent and our members’ preferences. Our partner, Groupe Aeroplan has proven expertise and skill sets in transforming a frequent flyer program into a stand-alone broad based coalition loyalty program,” said Andrés Conesa, Chief Executive Officer of Aeromexico. “Our common objective is to replicate with Groupe Aeroplan the successful transformation of Air Canada’s program, Aeroplan, here in Mexico and build Club Premier into Latin America’s best loyalty program.”
Club Premier is the leading frequent flyer program in Mexico with approximately 2.5 million members and over 50 partners. As a member of the global airline alliance SkyTeam, Club Premier members have the opportunity to earn and redeem points on airlines such as Delta, the largest airline in the world, and Air France-KLM, the largest airline in Europe.
“We are very excited to work with Aeromexico and PLM‘s talented management teams on the evolution of Club Premier into the first Mexican coalition loyalty program,” said Rupert Duchesne, President and CEO, Groupe Aeroplan. “This is our first investment in an international frequent flyer program. As a result, this transaction represents a strategic breakthrough for our company, marking the export of Aeroplan Canada’s successful business model. We believe Mexico is an important and growing market and one of the target countries of our strategy. This investment not only assures us a presence in the significant Latin American market, but reaffirms our position as a global leader in loyalty management, and allows us to participate in the transformation of a frequent flyer program into a broad base coalition loyalty program. With Aeromexico, a first class airline, premium credit card and retail partners all already present under Club Premier‘s umbrella, there is a great opportunity to broaden this strong base and provide unparalleled value to the millions of Club Premier members,” added Duchesne.
As initially announced on April 26, 2010, Groupe Aeroplan will complete the second tranche of its minority investment upon completion of certain performance milestones.