Alas! The king of good times has fallen on bad

The last time I traveled by Kingfisher Airlines, I thought their use of blood red in branding was quite a red herring - it actually managed to make an economy class traveler feel rich and good!!

The red uniform, the red lipstick, the red on the stamped boarding passes, the red in the logo, the red carpet welcome, and now the company is also in the red - what a shame!

I am a frequent flier on 'low-cost" airlines and try to grab the cheapest available option, which could be either the last seat in the aisle or the one next to the emergency exit. I also make sure I take only a mid night, week-day flight, when  fares nosedive and start falling within my budget.  

For someone like me, the prospect of accessing in-flight entertainment (Kingfisher never turned it off even on short hauls) was immensely delightful and walking away with the red-edged, translucent toilette pouch, bearing a red pen, a note pad, sanitizer, headphones and other knick knacks - as keepsakes from the Airlines - struck as customer-focused, customer-vital gestures that touched me deeply. Inwardly, I'd vow to fly again with Kingfisher.

....And what tickled me no end was the highly personal 'Welcome Aboard" message from the King himself - it sure made me feel a VIP on his flight. Again, I'd make a mental note of sharing this as a fine example of how brands create "emotional surplus" in the minds of their customers.

Today, we know that the "King of Good times," Vijay Mallya, the promoter of Kingfisher and the chairman of the UB Group of Breweries, who the Board is feeling compelled to oust soon, is on the run, for personally defaulting on $1 billion in bank loans, and it makes me wonder if you can built a brand of enduring value, if your personal, central value is in conflict with the perceived value you are creating for your brand.

Products are what companies make. Consumers buy brands and that’s an important distinction.  Brands that succeed at establishing an emotional bond with the consumer are not just those that evoke good feelings but those that are able to convey a consistent, central value, over and above their functional and expressive value. The trouble arises when there is a dichotomy between the two.

And the result?

They phase out from the market.

Just as Kingfisher has.