ET Insider – March 30, 2010

Elite Traveler Insider –

March 30, 2010

Elite Traveler Insider

By Douglas D. Gollan, President and Editor-in-Chief, Elite Traveler Magazine  

Welcome to the latest issue of Elite Traveler Insider, the bi-weekly newsletter designed to update our top partners on trends in the private jet lifestyle. This information is provided to offer a better understanding of how to target these globetrotting elite travelers, their impact on your business and other trends that affect you. Remember, private jet travelers are paying up to $10,000 per hour to fly by private jet, so these super rich consumers could be and should be your best customer. We talk about them and how you can get more of them and more from them.

IN THIS ISSUE:

1. Home Sweet Home: Motley Crue’s Vince Neal Will Fly You There

2. Private Jet Travel Continues Year Over Year Growth in January

3. The Two-Track Economy: More on Why the Super Rich Are Your Saviors

4. Take the Helicopter to Work with Elite Commuters and Elite Traveler

5. Who Are You Paying to Reach With Your Ad Dollars?

Over 90 percent of today’s Super Rich are Self Made and over 80 percent of the Super Rich have made their fortune in the past 10 years. Now is the best time to make sure they know your brand. 86% believe Elite Traveler is a good showcase for luxury products.

1. Home Sweet Home: Mötley Crüe’s Vince Neal Will Fly You There

What’s new in private aviation?

OK, flight numbers continue to bounce back and show year over year growth (see item below). But what about something a little more out there?

From the band that brought you rock epic “Home Sweet Home,” Vince Neil, frontman of band Mötley Crüe is now in the private jet business and will take you home or anywhere you want to charter his fleet of three private jets.

Vince Neil now owns Vince Neil Aviation, which has a Hawker 700, a Lear 35 and a Gulfstream available for rental out of Las Vegas’ McCarranInternationalAirport. Aside from the “VN” logo near the door of the planes, Vince told Robin Leach that they’ve got all a rocker could want, according to a published report.

“The planes are now all finished, they are all tricked out exactly how you think a rocker’s tour plane would be, complete with painted flames on the fuselage and the zebra-striped interior furnishings,” according to the report.

Neil hasn’t released pricing figures yet, but he does assure those interested that they can take care of flight crew, special requests…anything.

There is no doubt the planes will be stocked with his CDs and bottles of his Tres Rios tequila. Just don’t ask to book the Gulfstream next week-Vince is taking it with him down to Mexico for a series of concerts.

Out of the Box: Looking for new and innovative ways to efficiently and cost-effectively target potential customers? Advertise in the only worldwide audited magazine aboard private jets, Elite Traveler, and get to these consumers as they narrow their consideration set through Elitetraveler.com. You can find all the tools you need at www.elitetraveler.com/business.

2. Private Jet Travel Continues Year Over Year Growth in January

With strong growth in large cabin fractional (15.2 percent increase) and large cabin owner operated private jets (up 12.3 percent), private aviation continued its strong year over year growth in January with a 5.3 percent increase 2010 over 2009.

Use of private aviation continues to separate High Net Worth individuals from those that are not. While some Super Rich folks cut back after the September 2008 crash as economic uncertainty ruled, most Ultra High Net Worth families are now more confident about their future and private jets continue to be the chariot of choice according to ARGUS, Aviation Research Group U.S.

While the world’s economy today is unsteady, one thing is for sure: The wealthy consumers flying aboard private jets are your best bet, and only Elite Traveler delivers these elite travelers to our advertisers through our BPA audited circulation aboard private jets in over 100 countries, including Russia, the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, India, Singapore, Korea and China. All with one ad buy!

3. The Two-Track Economy: More on Why the Super Rich Are Your Saviors

Luxury companies are finding that despite unemployment in the 10 percent range, the U.S. economy is being stabilized by the return of Super Rich spending.

According to a recent Associated Press article titled, “Two-track economy: 9.7% unemployment, $200K cars,” author Christoper Rugaber stated: “For the super-rich and everyone else, the economic recovery is taking place in two very different gears.”

Citing a new $200,000 sports car, the article quoted Ron Dennis, chairman of McLaren Automotive saying, “Following any recession, there’s a resurgence… We intend to catch that wave.”

Continuing that, “for most people, though, the economy’s still a clunker,” the story noted that Super Rich clients feeling more confident are fueling high end sales again as the aspirational market stays sidelined or continues to trade down:

– Luxury clothing stores outpaced others last month and brought in more money than expected. At Nordstrom, sales at stores open at least a year surged 10.4 percent. Sales only rose 2.4 percent at Target, and 1.2 percent at J.C. Penney.

– Business at high-end hotels is coming back much faster than at mid-price or budget hotels, says Patrick Scholes, an analyst at FBR Capital Markets. Revenue at luxury hotels was up 7.7 percent last week from a year ago. At less fancy hotels, revenue fell.

– While overall U.S. auto sales were up 13 percent for February, luxury brands did even better. Revenue rose 32 percent for General Motors’ Cadillac brand, nearly 14 percent for BMW and 17 percent for Honda’s Acura. Sales of the Lexus were up 5 percent while overall sales at Toyota fell because of widespread recalls.

“Confidence in the economy has risen most among wealthier Americans, said Jonathan Basile, an economist at Credit Suisse, in the story. Rising stock prices are helping: The S&P 500 index has surged more than 70 percent since its bottom last spring.

Inflation, meanwhile, has all but vanished. Consumer prices were flat in February. The absence of inflation allows the Federal Reserve to keep the short-term interest rate it controls at a record low to nurture the economic recovery.

McLaren, meanwhile, is banking on renewed spending to bolster demand for its MP4-12C sports car, which will go on sale in late 2011 with a price of 125,000 to 150,000 pounds – as much as $228,000 at today’s rates.

The company plans to make up to 1,000 of the cars next year, with up to 40 percent being sold in North America.

“Our volumes are very much linked to how we see the recovery,” Dennis said.

Only Elite Traveler can guarantee you that your ad dollars are reaching wealthy consumers who are still spending. What do we mean? Our December 2009 BPA Circulation statement breaks out where our magazine goes – 74 percent of our copies to private jets and private jet terminals, 14 percent to First Class lounges, 12 percent go to Sport Locker Room/Training Facilities and Yachts, etc. This means you know that your dollars are getting to consumers who are still traveling in style, and still spending money – not sitting home worried about the economy. It is a guarantee that your critical advertising dollars are reaching a lucrative target. It is a guarantee no other publisher can provide.

4. Take the Helicopter to Work with Elite Commuters and Elite Traveler

How does spending $200 per day on your commute sound? For well heeled commuters coming from Northern New Jersey to Manhattan, sharing a helicopter with five other commuters each morning to fly over the traffic jams makes sense.

And of course, with copies of Elite Traveler on hand, the short ride should be even more enjoyable!

According to Bloomberg News, Liberty Helicopters Inc. is offering to fly weary commuters from New Jersey to Manhattan for about $200 a day, saving them 14 hours in traffic a week and signaling that Wall Street may have seen the worst of the recession.

As many as six people at a time will travel above the Statue of Liberty and the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge during the trip of about 20 miles from Port Monmouth, New Jersey to landing pads at West 30th Street and Pier 6 near Wall Street.

Liberty has already been approached by 150 potential clients after about a month of advertising, Patrick Day, a pilot and vice president of charter marketing, said in an interview in the cabin of a twin-engine Dauphin at the carrier’s base in Linden, New Jersey. The interest may reflect how far Wall Street has bounced back, said Robert Grotell, an independent transportation consultant in Port Jefferson, New York.

Out of the Box: Looking for new and innovative ways to efficiently and cost-effectively target potential customers? Advertise in the only worldwide audited magazine aboard private jets, Elite Traveler, and get to these consumers as they narrow their consideration set through Elitetraveler.com. You can find all the tools you need at www.elitetraveler.com/business.

5. Who Are You Paying to Reach With Your Ad Dollars?

While luxury companies may be seeing some bounce back, clearly the severe recession has made management, marketers and ad agencies alike take a harder look at what they are getting for their ad dollars. The key questions: Are these readers even prospects for my company? Are they potential “heavy users” or “core customers?”

In the case of Elite Traveler, simply turn to page 3 of our just released BPA Statement. On it you will find we are the only publication chasing advertising from luxury brands to actually show you where copies of our magazine is going (see chart below).

The best news is that we continue to assure you that your ad dollars invested in Elite Traveler are reaching well heeled consumers who are spending money on luxury: 74.3% of our circulation is on private jets or in private jet terminals; 13.5% is in First Class lounges, with the remaining 12 percent split between Professional Sports Locker Facilities, Yacht Marinas, Exclusive Golf & Country Clubs, Top Hotel Suites, Luxury Car Services, Boutiques and Luxury Residences.

And with our audited distribution in over 100 countries worldwide, with one ad placement for our two month publication shelf life, you know you are reaching the Super Rich wherever they are from and wherever they happen to be. So say hello to some new “Core Customers” and advertise in Elite Traveler!