In December 2016 Lufthansa celebrated the inaugural non-stop route between Cape Town and Frankfurt, significantly expanding the group’s operations in South Africa and Southern Africa.
"By partnering with Arts Alternative we are tapping into the local lifestyle and culture of the city,” said Jolanta Slomkowski, brand manager South Africa for Lufthansa. “Travellers identify with brands that fit their lifestyle in culturally relevant ways, and Lyle and Mathew’s graffiti installations are a wonderful expression of the soul of the city.” Slomkowski goes on further to explain that “the installations have pulled inspiration from the city’s beautiful landscape and culture, incorporating our chosen artists’ unique interpretations for the local community and international travellers to enjoy.”
“Cape Town is popular among international tourists for its distinguished attractions for tourists, while the city’s urban art has gained international acclaim for its ability to make powerful and socially insightful statements. Through the campaign, Lyle and Mathew have brought art to life with unique works of art on a grand scale showcasing Lufthansa’s dedication to the Mother City in a unique and engaging way.”
Lyle says, “this is the single biggest opportunity for Arts Alternative so far to showcase what we can do. However, the opportunity is twofold; we get to show the painting, designing and advertising capabilities of Art Alternative on a world stage, and we are able to promote Lufthansa’s new direct flight between Frankfurt and Cape Town in a way that relates to the bold design and advertising stance that Cape Town and South Africa is known for.”
On whether Capetonians will welcome this type of street art installation, Mathew says, “absolutely. Cape Town has always been known to be at the forefront of South Africa’s design and creativity industry. Therefore, it's most fitting to have a campaign of this type run in Cape Town. In my opinion, Lufthansa has become a benchmark of what brands can accomplish in a bold fashion that resonates well with a local targeted audience.”
In addition, the Lufthansa central marketing team in Frankfurt has chosen Cape Town as its city of the month in February, dedicating all its media channels to highlighting the Mother City’s beauty and attractions. For the month of February, Cape Town will be featured on the Lufthansa website’s travel guides, the city will be featured within the Lufthansa in-flight magazine, and will be promoted through its social media channels that have over 2,3 million Facebook, over 530,000 Instagram, and over 300,000 Twitter followers. Cape Town will feature alongside some of other major international cities to be promoted in 2017. Previously profiled cities in 2016 included Amsterdam, Lisbon, Tokyo, Budapest, as well as Munich, which was featured as January 2017’s city of the month.
Wesgro CEO Tim Harris said: “As the official tourism, trade and investment promotion agency for Cape Town and the Western Cape we are excited by the increase in visitors and business the newly-launched Lufthansa direct flight between Frankfurt and Cape Town has helped us generate. Bookings to Cape Town from some major German regions grew by an estimated 30% last year and Lufthansa’s new direct route is going a long way to help us meet this demand, and grow economic relations with Germany. This all-year route is also supported by a Munich flight in our summer season, and Wesgro looks forward to welcoming the new influx of German visitors and business."
Andre Schulz, general manager Southern Africa for Lufthansa concludes, “Lufthansa is exceptionally proud of its Cape Town routes, and we are excited to be profiling the Mother City and its exceptional beauty to more international travellers. We are confident that our already popular Frankfurt to Cape Town route will grow in popularity, and we are happy to be the airline of choice for those eager to explore the many attractions and curious corners of this exceptional city.”
