In a move that’s raised eyebrows across the frequent flyer world, British Airways recently rebranded its Executive Club to The Club and restructured how members earn status. The shift to a revenue-based model now sees Tier Points awarded per pound spent, not miles flown – a dramatic pivot aimed at rewarding big spenders. But given the current economic headwinds, the British Airways Club overhaul timing is starting to look increasingly questionable.
Virgin Atlantic recently flagged weaker demand on its transatlantic routes, a key market for both airlines. IAG, BA’s parent company, hasn’t escaped the fallout – its share price has tumbled by around 30% in the last month. Cruise stocks, many of which depend heavily on US port departures like Miami, have also taken a dive. Put simply, the travel sector is showing signs of strain.
British Airways has placed its loyalty bet on premium flyers – the high-value segment with the deepest pockets. Trouble is, we’re in the middle of a macroeconomic storm, with the cost-of-living crisis only expected to deepen on both sides of the Atlantic. While those premium travellers may be less exposed personally to rising bills, they’re often the ones holding the purse strings for business travel budgets – and the knives are already out. Some major FTSE firms have begun tightening their belts with outright bans on non-essential travel.
In that light, the British Airways Club overhaul timing feels like a double-down on a segment that’s about to get cautious. There’s a growing risk that BA has priced out its core loyalists at precisely the moment they’re reassessing their travel priorities.
All of this is happening while BA appears to be quietly discouraging high-value redemptions. Avios transfers to Qatar Airways – long a favourite way to extract value from the scheme – have been “temporarily” blocked with little explanation. The timing, again, is curious.
If the premium travel slowdown continues, it begs the question: could BA be forced to do what it did during the pandemic – court leisure travellers once more to fill its Club World cabins? That pivot worked in 2021 when Londoners fled to Barbados and the Maldives. But this time, wallets are thinner, and holiday inflation is biting hard.
There’s another glaring omission that hasn’t gone unnoticed. When British Airways first announced the changes to The Club, it promised that American Express cardholders would soon be able to earn Tier Points from spending on their BA Amex cards. That announcement was made weeks ago, yet no further details have been released. Negotiations were supposedly in the final stages, but the continued radio silence is fuelling suspicion that all is not well behind the scenes. Given the importance of co-branded credit cards to loyalty ecosystems – and the fact that Avios earning via Amex remains one of the few strong value props left – the lack of transparency is only adding to the unease. For a programme being pitched as “simpler and more rewarding”, this bit feels neither.
With all of that swirling, the British Airways Club overhaul timing looks more like a gamble than a strategy. It’s not that rewarding high spenders is the wrong approach – it’s just that doing it while the market softens and customer confidence wobbles might turn into a loyalty miscalculation BA can’t afford.
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