Dogs who are tired of being stuffed in bags when flying with their owners — or worse, crated in a cargo hold — can breathe a sigh of relief today, as Bark is launching an airline for dogs.
If it sounds like an April Fools’ joke, the brand insisted it’s not. Bark is partnering with a private jet charter company to offer flights between New York and Los Angeles as well as New York and London for dogs — and their humans.
The planes are branded with a “Bark Air” logo (and wagging tail) similar to the one used on the company’s BarkBox toy and treat subscription deliveries. Dogs will be able to roam freely on the aircraft, and will be pampered with treats and various other amenities.
The video below promotes the airline, offering a glimpse of the puppy paradise on board. (The company admits the film may exaggerate the experience a bit, but says it’s in the spirit of what will be offered.)
Bark worked with agency Tombras on the project, which has been years in the making. Indeed, Matt Meeker, Bark’s founder, was talking about a dog-friendly airline as far back as 2013.
“It is not a gag. It’s very much real. And it’s something we’ve been wanting to do for over a decade,” said Dave Stangle, Bark’s vice president of brand marketing. “There’s huge demand for this. And the obvious truth is that the airline industry doesn’t want to make the flying experience better for dogs. We’ve tried to partner with airlines for years. Now we’ve decided to build it ourselves.”
For travelers, it won’t be cheap—at least, not at first. The New York-Los Angeles route will cost about $6,000 per leg (of the trip, not the dog), while New York-London will be around $8,000.
Flights can be booked at dogsflyfirst.com.
Stangle acknowledged the cost may be a barrier to some, but said demand is still there at that price point—and the cost will hopefully come down over time.
“We did plenty of market research to figure out demand,” he said. “We have plans to really invest in this as we build it out strategically. That will allow us to lower prices and reach a bigger audience. And hopefully we’ll spur competition, which will also lower prices. Eventually, we’ll get this to a place where traveling long distances with your dog is going to be normal. This, to us, is day one of that.”
Stangle is hopeful that Bark Air will add more routes as soon as this summer. And he added that sticker shock isn’t a reason for companies not to innovate.
“When flatscreen TVs came out, they cost like $15,000. Now you mount a 15-pound TV on your wall that looks like a piece of art for $500,” he said. “We are seeing this with Apple Vision Pro. Definitely sticker shock when they announced it, but they’re setting the gold standard for what the future of VR should be like.”
For Tombras, Bark Air was a dream project — a chance to help with a milestone effort for the brand. The agency helped to create the Bark Air brand, the plane design and the overall in-flight experience.
“We were immediately like, ‘Wow,’ said Jeff Benjamin, the agency’s chief creative officer. “It embodies everything Bark is about — being ridiculously focused on the happiness of dogs — but in an experience rather than a toy or a treat.”
Stangle elaborated on some of the amenities that humans and their best friends can expect.
“We spray calming pheromones into the cabin before the dogs get on,” he said. “When we’re taking off and landing, to avoid any ear issues, we serve them all drinks of water so their ears pop and adjust. For every part of the flight experience, we said, ‘How can we make this super perfect for a dog?’ Because if you make someone’s dog happy, you make the dog person happy.”
While it’s not primarily a PR stunt — Bark says it’s in this for the long haul — Benjamin said it should have a halo effect on the brand.
“We’re solving a problem, but this is also an ad 30,000 feet in the air,” he said. “If you’re a dog looking up at this — or a human who has a dog looking up at this — you’re going to be like, ‘I want to be up there.’ But you’re also going to want other things this brand makes.”
The agency has made a series of out-of-home ads, running in all three cities, promoting the airline.
As dogsflyfirst.com goes live today, the brand and agency are optimistic that the reaction will be ecstatic — though maybe not universally so. “We think dog people are going to love it,” Benjamin said. “We’re not quite sure about cat people.”
This article originally appeared in Ad Age.
Tim Nudd, Ad Age , 2024-04-11 21:59:17
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