Brexit doesn't have to be all that bad. At least that's how Virgin Atlantic has put it when it unrolled "The Bright Side of Brexit" campaign and introduced a unique calculator that will prove the airline's point.
The British airline introduced the Brexit Calculator as a result of seeing that "bright side." In its 60-second ad, Virgin Atlantic has flipped the dark financial consequences of last year's referendum into an opportunity to pounce on. It's when the British pound is taking a pounding at a 31 year low, the airline's head of marketing Jenna Lloyd told US Campaign, "which makes it a fabulous time for Americans to visit."
Virgin Atlantic's Figliulo&Partners developed the Brexit Calculator to illustrate how travelers visiting London can reap up savings like in no other time in recent history. The calculator computed the savings based on the pre and post-Brexit prices and showed how popular tourist attractions have become a bargain. To cite samples, tourists can now rack up $510 savings for getting an authentic English bulldog, $572 savings for a private box at the Opera or $657 for a watching a West End musical.
Virgin Atlantic has plenty at stake on the fallen pound which is why it's hoping to entice not just Americans but also travelers from Dubai, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Delhi when they introduce the Brexit Calculator in these areas mid-April. After initially setting its targets on tri-state business travelers, the British airline recently opened routes from New York, San Francisco and Boston to Manchester as well as Seattle to London. Manchester airport has seen a boost of passenger growth in the past year.
Two weeks after UK Prime Minister Theresa May triggered article 50, the pound has continued to fall. According to The Guardian, official figures indicate inflation at a three-year high at 2.3 percent in February and expected to climb even higher while the general workforce is expected to suffer shrinking real pay. If it does boost tourism, Brexit Calculator can soften the blow of Brexit.
