Winning insights into one’s target group and current trends is key to offering products that meet the needs and requirements of them. This is why we are happy that we had the chance to talk to Veronica Freni, Senior Project Manager at Human8 - an international market research agency - and lecturer at the Hochschule München. Veronica shared with us some exciting insights on an increasingly popular travel trend in the GenZ that she elaborated in cooperation with her students at the faculty of tourism: solo travel!

In a qualitative market research study Veronica and her students explored, tested and evaluated several hypothesis regarding solo traveling. The target group consisted of young (18-26 years), male and female travel enthusiasts - half with solo travel experience, half without.

Here’s what we have taken away from their findings…

More and more members of the so-called GenZ follow the trend of traveling all by themselves. Through the years of Corona-lockdowns the thrive for seeing and exploring the world is bigger than ever. And: A large number of young adults between 18 and 26 years doesn’t want to wait for anybody to realize this dream. This is why an increasing number of GenZ travelers are solo travelers. Further motivations that encourage solo travels are the feeling to prove something to oneself (”I can do it!”), a longing for personal growth and the strive for feeling independent and free. These motivations are even stronger among female GenZ travelers.

However, the research also uncovered that young people who have never travelled alone before have also a big obstacle to overcome. The majority of the respondents who wants to experience a solo travel, at the same time also fears spending that much time alone in an environment and culture that they don’t know yet. This anxiety leads amongst others to two interesting observations:

Social Media supports solo travels:
Solo travelers get inspiration on social media accounts, see others who successfully travel solo and most importantly, Social Media enables them to travel solo, but not alone. Via Social Media solo travelers stay connected with friends & family. And: Social Media is used to arrange spontaneous meet-ups all around the world. You travel alone, but meet with other solo travelers for dinner, a museum visit, etc. You stay flexible to do whatever you want - but are still not spending all of your time alone.

Traveling by plane is attractive for solo travelers:
Especially female solo travelers prefer traveling by plane over train. The reason for this is not only the increased speed of traveling, but also the increased feeling of safety. Traveling by plane is assessed as super safe, as you have a secured seat and are brought directly to your destination.

Another burden for solo travelers are the costs. Without being able to share the costs for the journey (e.g. hotels) with another person, solo traveling is more expensive that joint traveling. This is why young solo travelers are open and also actively looking for convincing travel deals.

These learnings lead to the conclusion that the GenZ could be addressed with attractive offers for affordable, spontaneous solo journeys all around the world - that are accompanied by recommendations of what to do and where to meet like-minded people at the destination to overcome potential anxieties. So that they are able to see the world, grow personally and travel alone, without being all alone.

Thank you for the interesting insights and the great talk, Veronica!

💡Flyla Expert Talk #2 - “GenZ - Traveling solo, but not alone!” 💡

To learn, grow and optimize our own offer, we at Flyla seek regular exchanges with different industry experts. This year we would like to invite you to take part in our insights through our Flyla Expert Talk Series - starting with a take on Revenue Management by Henrik Toksvang.

In the dynamic environment of the aviation industry, the principles of revenue management have become the navigator for airlines seeking to maximise profitability and efficiency. With more than 30 years of experience in this field, Henrik Toksvang has been at the forefront of the revenue management evolution. Through our interviews, we captured Henrik's insights into how modern revenue management strategies, powered by advancements in data analytics and technology, are reshaping airline operations. 

In a nutshell: The evolution of revenue management, especially in aviation, is characterized by adaptation and innovation. Initially, the focus was on simple inventory control – ensuring that each scheduled flight maximized passenger potential (in terms of volume, demand variation/uncertainty and willingness to pay). Over time, as competition intensified and technology advanced, the strategies became more nuanced. Airlines began to leverage data analysis and predictive modelling to forecast demand and adjust prices dynamically. Now, with the ever-increasing sophistication of AI and machine learning, revenue management is again at a turning point with a future that could allow for real-time decision-making and more personalized customer experiences. 

This interview will explore Henrik's journey and contributions to aviation revenue management and capture an outlook into a challenging future that is full of opportunities for airlines.

5 Questions to Henrik Toksvang, Senior Revenue Manager for Air Greenland 

How did it come that you’ve started your career in revenue management?

This was almost 99% coincidence. It just happened. My early interests in mathematical modelling and operations research were pivotal. During my education, I was deeply engaged in these areas, which naturally led me to explore their application in various industries. Revenue management was my second job - and I ended up being in this area for more than 30 years now. And this is amazing. With all the developments in technology, it has been really interesting all these years. 

How has revenue management changed since you started in this field? 

When I started at SAS in the early 90ies, revenue management was a very special area. Very cumbersome, very technical and complicated. We only had a PC for the complex models.

In the beginning, we were responsible for allocating seats in the optimal way for planned flights. Other departments were accountable for planning which airplanes on which days from which airports were starting. We were doing our revenue management optimization for the capacities already put in place. We couldn’t optimize all in one go. 

But things progressed because of technological advancements. Over time we developed much more sophisticated models, used ad hoc algorithms and established a more precise forecasting of the capacity utilization. The introduction of overbooking was a game-changer in revenue management. 

And today, we are using constraint demand forecasting. Constraint demand forecasts results in Expected To Board figures that are widely used in a lot of planning processes afterwards in airline fleet operation. So we know quite well which passenger mix will end up being on a specific airplane and our task is now to structure crew planning, all the catering stuff, resource planning on the airport, and so on. It’s all a chain - and revenue management can optimize it in one go. 


Which developments do you see in the future of revenue management?

With all the technical progress and development - not least with AI and machine learning - the way for revenue management to get broader instead of being something elite for airlines and big hotels is paved. 

If timing is good, revenue management could expand to even a small hairdresser chain with 10 shops that use this to allocate their limited capacity in the most beneficial way. You could have cheaper fares during time slots that are not that popular, and higher fares e.g. on weekends or in the evenings. It’s important to be thinking in customer segments - and offer the most appropriate deal to each segment. For example, if you don’t have the financial means, you could pay “with time”. 


And what does this mean for the airline industry? 

It could be a breaking point that is going to lead to progress, but it could also mean that some areas go into very fluctuating, unstable periods until we know what’s going on and how all the AI technology  works effectively. Ideally, we can use the developments to re-model and re-evaluate our programs and parameters.  


So you could make some improvements to the airfare modelling. And what's even more interesting is the potential surplus in revenue coming from ancillary services: selling supplementary offers along with the basic products as we experience everywhere where we walk. Thereby, it is crucial to work with emotions, getting the services across visually and breaking up the established NDC frames that are being installed. 

Finally, we would be interested in which guiding principles or values are from your point of view critical for a successful future of revenue management.

My approach to revenue management has always been grounded in principles of fairness and balance. It's not solely about profit maximization; I also focus on the customer's needs, employee well-being, and the broader societal impact. 

Of course, solely focusing on the monetary part is very easy - but at the same time it’s also very limited. With all the computer power we have, we might be able to simulate a lot of different scenarios, bringing all stakeholders in balance and thus create win-win situations for companies, society as well as the environment. 

A question I frequently ask myself is: Do we always need more products? And I would clearly say no, we just need better products. So if you have this mindset, I believe revenue management will develop in a highly different way than if it were all driven by money and the question of where can we earn the most. It is now key to develop the right tools for the right setting. Because - you shouldn’t work harder, you should work smarter. And that’s all that revenue management is actually about. 

Thank you for the interesting insights, Henrik! 

💡Flyla Expert Talk #1 - “You shouldn’t work harder, you should work smarter!” 💡

We are thrilled to announce that Flyla has recently been given a new look and feel. But why was a re-branding necessary in the first place?

A lot has happened since Flyla was founded in 2017: We got off to a promising start and were well on our way to turning the student travel market on its head. But then Corona came along and we had to take a forced break. Since mid-2022, we have been taking off with a new team and have been growing ever since. We have optimized our booking process, formed new partnerships and developed further overall. And our users, their wishes and requirements have also changed over the years.

And through all these changes, it was also time to tackle our pre-Corona design and initiate a re-branding.

Our new branding reflects the great company and product we've created. It's clean, contemporary and straightforward. As a result, it fits our clear, transparent booking process and our digital-savvy target audience.

We also spell our brand name differently now: FLYLA has become Flyla. Why? Because it's not an abbreviation, doesn't contain any hidden meaning nor has it anything to do with the beautiful city of Los Angeles 😉 Flyla is simply a name that fits us and our idea well!

We're proud that our brand is growing and changing with us - and are excited to see what the future holds for us.

Anja