Despite losing money by the millions, Virgin Australia was all smiles at the launch of their newest lounge concept at Brisbane International Airport on Wednesday.
Partnering with UK-based No1 Lounges, the Australian airline's CEO, Paul Scurrah, opened the non-existent doors to a new "pay-by-use" private lounge, a "first of itskind" concept on our shores.
Dubbed My Lounge, the leafy concept has rejected the typical lounge experience, adapting an open space that will welcome all checked-in passengers from any airline across any ticket class.
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The new lounge officially opens on Monday, with non-Virgin Australia guests able to pre-book access online or in-person on the day of travel for $60 and $70 respectively.
While it's not an official Virgin Australia lounge, the airline's business class guests, Platinum and Gold members as well as lounge members travelling to New Zealand will have priority access, especially during peak periods, over other passengers.
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Included in the price is access to a hot and cold food buffet, barista-made coffee, a curated wine list and even a cocktail station.
The menu, which will change every fortnight, ranges from DIY sliders to Asian cuisine, desserts and "the best ever chicken pies" at the ready.
The lounge, however, is a completely different experience to what you'd typically experience as an airline passenger.
The open space is positioned within the airport corridors, making it the closest lounge to the departure gates at Brisbane's International Airport.
The lounge itself doesn't hide behind closed doors, sitting among passenger traffic on one side and the runway on the other.
The space has a "cafe-style" feel rather than the corporate atmosphere of traditional lounge spaces.
The loft-style design pulls away from the red and purple palette synonymous with Virgin, instead featuring neutral tones with bursts of yellow, green and navy blue throughout.
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The lounge, which can only hold 108 guests at capacity, contains shower facilities with luxury toiletries, towels and hair dryers on one end, while if you're in the mood for a bit of entertainment, there's a games corner with a foosball table, magazines and newspapers at the other.
"What you will see is a social scene and a slightly different angle to other lounges," Mr Scurrah said.
"It's a little more casual and can support anyone who wants to come here. We didn't want to be like everyone else with the lounge experience.
"Where I am taking the Virgin Australia Group is to book us for the things that are different."
The lounge, which spans over 332sq m, will be open from 6am-12pm and 3pm-10pm daily with guests able to stay for a maximum of three hours.
The launch follows a "disappointing" week for the airline, which announced a full-year results loss of $349.1 million.
In a bid to claw back bleeding dollars, Australia's second biggest carrier said it would review every flight route on its network, as well as cut 750 jobs, as part of a drastic restructure.
Mr Scurrah said the massive restructure of employees was set to save the airline $75 million by the end of the 2020 financial year.
The new lounge, however, oozes luxury with no expense spared, an area of spend which some critics believe Virgin Australia has invested far too many dollars in to try and stay out of the red.
"Virgin set out on a course to become a head-to-head competitor with Qantas," aviation expert Neil Hansford told news.com.au.
"They invested enormously when they weren't a profitable business. They tried to be the Qantas alternative … focusing on expensive lounges and provide certain service levels when they were having losses.
"That (was very different) to the model they chased early on as a low-cost carrier. They painted themselves as a young, yuppie, typical 'Virgin' image. That was their focus and the culture was created.
"When Ansett folded in 2001, somebody said 'we can nibble off what they previously had against Qantas' … and that's what Virgin chased.
"They wanted to get in with corporate and business class customers but were doing it at a time when they were losing money. They took on a war they didn't have without the soldiers or the ammunition to fight it."
