VA's Audience Demographic

[clifford]

I have no idea what the current VA management thinks it is, but here's my take.

- small business
- travellers who don't want to pay for Qantas, and who'd not rather not drive or take the train or a bus.

Is this sustainable, I wonder? Depends on pricing, I guess, but with the frequent flyers having been pissed off, who knows?

 

[Saab34]

They say small business, but they would still have eyes on those larger contracts. Bigger corporates are looking for savings, Virgin might offer a better deal. My previous employer (top ASX) pushed most travel to VA a few years ago.

The seem to be after the value customer, those who don’t want to fly the LCC, but those who can’t justify paying the QF premium. Seems to be a profit pool in the middle for them so they have found their niche I think.

Virgin has larger frequency on the Triangle and Transcon compared to Jetstar, this is where they make their money.

Virgin’s earnings should be relatively stable, in comparison to the others they have the bulk of capacity tied to the triangle and transcon, all of which are becoming very slot constrained, especially in peak. Those peak triangle profits are well protected. Unknown how WSI will change up the profit pool in the Sydney basin.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

I have no idea what the current VA management thinks it is, but here's my take.

- small business
- travellers who don't want to pay for Qantas, and who'd not rather not drive or take the train or a bus.

Is this sustainable, I wonder? Depends on pricing, I guess, but with the frequent flyers having been pissed off, who knows?

And the market between ULCC and full service… so between JQ and QF.

I doubt the changes will affect ‘loyalty’, because customers are largely price sensitive. Status was a byproduct of flying, primarily at the cheaper fares.

All the business class pax from VA aren’t suddenly going to switch to QF… they can’t afford it.

And there are just enough perks on VA to keep that middle market… an inch or two of extra legroom, cup of tea of coffee, hand baggage with every fare. And some benefits when getting silver.

 

[jase05]

All the business class pax from VA aren’t suddenly going to switch to QF… they can’t afford it.

Or don’t want to pay it.
For us VA suits is fine.
About 90% of our domestic leisure travel is with VA J as we don’t fly Y if possible.
I still think they offer a solid enough product domestically and QF prices are absolutely exorbitant at times and when we book I’ll choose BJFOD and in that regard VA is nearly always cheaper. If we had to pay the QF price we would so it’s nice to have the option.
Just a pity that VA has a terrible FFP these days so I’ve pretty much given up on the program and switched to alternates

 

[Steven of Bali]

Or don’t want to pay it.
For us VA suits is fine.
About 90% of our domestic leisure travel is with VA J as we don’t fly Y if possible.
I still think they offer a solid enough product domestically and QF prices are absolutely exorbitant at times and when we book I’ll choose BJFOD and in that regard VA is nearly always cheaper. If we had to pay the QF price we would so it’s nice to have the option.
Just a pity that VA has a terrible FFP these days so I’ve pretty much given up on the program and switched to alternates

I am with you. The VAFFP is no longer something I focus on. All the airlines are ruining their programs, so now it's just price and services.

 

[HS-TQE]

As said, VA aimed for the 'hybrid' value carrier market and have "exited" the corporate market when they exited Voluntary Administration.

Risking being a broken record, Virgin is a 'Hybrid' LCC with a 8-seater Recliner cabin attached on all aircraft with limited lounge services for those 8 passengers. The FF changes didn't affect the revenue for VFF in the first 6 months of the changes, the revenue for VFF went slightly up in that period. It would however be interesting at the end of FY26 though.

VA's equivalent cheapest Y fare is almost the same as JQ, 'Lite" fare with carry-on only and the only difference is complimentary water & tea runs on all runs (plus complimentary coffee on longer runs).

 

[HS-TQE]

Virgin’s earnings should be relatively stable, in comparison to the others they have the bulk of capacity tied to the triangle and transcon, all of which are becoming very slot constrained, especially in peak. Those peak triangle profits are well protected. Unknown how WSI will change up the profit pool in the Sydney basin.

I would not expect WSI to affect revenue on the triangle for the first 12 months at first. VA chose to not to commit to WSI for at least the first 6 months despite the NSW Government incentives available on offer for VA to take, although there is potential for VA to announce something for WSI for mid-2027 at the FY26 announcements the middle of the year (around July).

 

[MEL_Traveller]

VA's equivalent cheapest Y fare is almost the same as JQ, 'Lite" fare with carry-on only and the only difference is complimentary water & tea runs on all runs (plus complimentary coffee on longer runs).

And entertainment… which for a family going on holidays can save some $$. Plus there’s a bit of leeway for carry on baggage…

 

[Human]

The seem to be after the value customer, those who don’t want to fly the LCC, but those who can’t justify paying the QF premium

Exactly. I am VA's demographic.

I don't want to fly Jetstar, for the reasons so well outlined in @Mattg 's excellent article. But I'm one of those people (and I do sometimes wonder how many of us there are on AFF ) who doesn't have an employer or a retirement fund to pay for my flights.

I can easily justify the extra money that Virgin costs compared with Jetstar: lounges, internet, better customer service during IRROPS, etc, etc. But I simply can't see the value of paying extra for Qantas. Especially considering that Platinum status is (still) much easier to attain via Velocity than via Qantas FF for someone like me.

I really enjoy flying Qantas. I'm not a Qantas-hater and I fly on Qantas a few times per year (usually using points, but occasionally when someone else pays). Qantas does special meals, which I appreciate when flying with a family member who has dietary requirements. So I can definitely recognise that in many ways the experience of flying Qantas is better.

But, for me, Virgin is better value.

 

[HS-TQE]

And entertainment… which for a family going on holidays can save some $$. Plus there’s a bit of leeway for carry on baggage…

JQd and JQ Short Haul International also has a limited range of complimentary wireless BYOD IFE entertainment (accessing the whole range is chargeable $$) , which includes games for the kids. Sure it's less than what VA offers, but I'd say that is still equivalent.