Ikea creates a ‘democratic airport lounge’ at Paris Charles de Gaulle

Furniture and household group Ikea teamed up recently with marketing agency Ubi Bene and Aéroports de Paris to create an experiential lounge area at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport. Paris-based promotions agency Allure, the official French representative of the Airport Promotion Agencies (APA) association, supplied staff for the initiative.

The Ikea Lounge was open from 13 July until 5 August in Terminal 3 at Charles de Gaulle Airport. It was staffed by six permanent female staff throughout the day.

The lounge, which the Swedish home furnishings giant has dubbed “the first democratic airport lounge open to everybody”, was a 220sq m “˜brand space’ featuring Ikea sofas, tables, lamps and TVs where passengers could relax and wait for their flight. They could even get into an Ikea bed in one of the specially created bedrooms for a short nap. Meanwhile, children could enjoy themselves in a secure 50sq m area supervised and entertained by qualified childcare staff.

Passengers could nap in one of the specially created Ikea bedrooms
Children playing in a 50sq m area in the Ikea Lounge supervised by qualified childcare staff

Commenting on the campaign, Allure Associate Director Magali Fages said: “Holiday departures are often a source of stress and nervousness, so Ikea and Ubi Bene have created a unique experience area where the whole family can take time out.

“Our brand ambassadors [were] on hand to ensure that passengers are really able to relax in the knowledge that both they and their children were being looked after by experienced and trained staff. This is a fantastic opportunity for us to showcase the quality and flexibility of our staff in what will be a high-profile area of the airport.”

Aéroports de Paris, which operates Paris Charles de Gaulle and Paris Orly airports, has developed a reputation for establishing partnerships with top brands to create branded areas that offer passengers a space to relax before their flight free of charge. The joint venture with Ikea follows other partnerships with Sony (Salon Vidéo HD), Samsung (SoundCorner) and Philips (light therapy pods).

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