Quick Case HBP No.
7962
Air India: Positioning for Success?
The Scenario
Early one spring evening in 2023, Atul Srinivasan received a call from his business partner, Das Gupta.
Srinivasan and Gupta had founded BrandWon, a consultancy that helped organizations with branding
challenges.
When Srinivasan answered, Gupta said excitedly, “Air India may be rebranding! Before next Monday, I
want you to help me develop a proposal that we can present to them. Let’s meet tomorrow at 8:00 a.m.
and sketch out some ideas.”
Srinivasan hung up, newly energized; winning the Air India account would give BrandWon needed
visibility. Yet he knew that BrandWon would face stiff competition if Air India sought outside assistance for
this effort. How could BrandWon differentiate its proposal?
Air India’s Journey
Air India was founded as Tata Airlines by JRD Tata in 1932. In 1947, it was rebranded as Air India and
nationalized. 1 Air India's mascot, the Maharaja (Sanskrit for “great king”), had long symbolized the
company's dedication to first-rate service and its vital role in India’s aviation history. Yet Srinivasan knew
that recent developments might justify new branding.
First, Air India was under new ownership. Vistara Airlines, a joint venture between Tata Sons and
Singapore Airlines that offered premium service since 2013, bought Air India from the Indian government
in late 2022. This merger was expected to be completed in early 2024. By that time, the Vistara brand
would end, and Air India would be the airline’s name going forward. 2 This merger would effectively return
Air India to its founding family.
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Air India: Positioning for Success? HBR Quick Case
Second, Srinivasan appreciated that Air India wanted to capitalize on India's growing base of fliers among
its middle class and India’s large diaspora worldwide, particularly as the Indian aviation industry was
projected to grow from its 2023 level of USD $10.89 billion (INR ₹90,501.73 lakh crore) to USD $12.55
billion (INR ₹1.04 lakh crore) by 2028.3 Srinivasan had heard that Air India was planning to support its
ambitions for growth by purchasing almost 500 planes from Airbus and Boeing. The order would be the
largest ever by a single airline for a single aircraft.
Srinivasan also knew that it would be challenging for Air India to implement these changes. The Indian
airline industry continued to become more competitive in rivals’ bids to make air travel more affordable for
India’s increasing middle class. The airline that had best succeeded in doing so was IndiGo, a low-cost
rival. IndiGo had 55.4% market share (by passengers carried 4) and offered 1,900 daily flights. 5 It had
focused systematically on lowering the cost of flying and unbundled many services that Air India’s
passengers took for granted.
Air India held 9.4% of the domestic market by passengers carried, while Vistara held 8%. 6 Air India
attempted to meet the demands of a larger range of travelers than IndiGo did, and it supported this by
offering class configuration, a reward program, and access to the Maharaja Lounge. 7 Air India used the
Maharaja as its logo since 1946. To its loyal customers, the Maharaja logo had long represented luxury. At
this point, however, most customers valued efficiency over luxury. They wanted a simple booking process,
quick check-in and departure, and friendly flight attendants.8 Unfortunately, Air India had begun to
experience numerous customer complaints about its service, including refunds, flights, and employee
conduct. 9
Fast Facts: Air India10
• Company type: Private, fully owned subsidiary of Tata Sons
• Industry: Aviation
• Founded: October 15, 1932, in Mumbai, India, as Tata Airlines
• Headquarters: Mumbai, India
• Products: Passenger and cargo air transportation
• Revenue: INR ₹19,815.9 lakh crore (2022)
• Key people: Natarajan Chandrasekaran, Chairman; Campbell Wilson, CEO & Managing Director
The Ask
1. Should Air India rebrand? Why or why not?
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Air India: Positioning for Success? HBR Quick Case
2. Should Air India change its brand position? Why or why not?
——————————————————
1
Air India, “About Us.” https://www.airindia.com/in/en/about-us.html. Accessed October 19, 2023.
2
Anu Sharma, “Air India to end brand Vistara after merger,” Mint, February 27, 2023. https://www.livemint.com/companies/news/air-india-
to-end-brand-vistara-after-merger-11677521516029.html. Accessed October 8, 2023.
3 Shangliao Sun, “Domestic market share of airlines across India FY 2022, by passengers carried,” Statista, September 18, 2023.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/575207/air-carrier-india-domestic-market-share/. Accessed October 20, 2023.
4
ET Online, “Indigo reaches milestone of 1,900 flights per day,” The Economic Times, August 4, 2023.
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/transportation/airlines-/-aviation/indigo-reaches-milestone-of-1900-flights-per-
day/articleshow/102424093.cms?from=mdr. Accessed October 20, 2023.
5
Shangliao Sun, “Domestic market share of airlines across India FY 2022, by passengers carried,” Statista, September 18, 2023.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/575207/air-carrier-india-domestic-market-share/. Accessed October 20, 2023; Sukalp Sharma, “The
budding IndiGo-Tata airlines duopoly and what it could mean for consumers,” The Indian Express, June 27, 2023.
6
https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-economics/indigo-tata-airlines-duopoly-aviation-explained-8686384/. Accessed
October 20, 2023.
7
Piyush Yadav, “IndiGo vs Air India: Difference and Comparison,” Ask Any Difference, July 13, 2023.
https://askanydifference.com/difference-between-indigo-and-air-india/. Accessed October 20, 2023.
8
Piyush Yadav, “IndiGo vs Air India: Difference and Comparison,” Ask Any Difference, July 13, 2023.
https://askanydifference.com/difference-between-indigo-and-air-india/. Accessed October 20, 2023.
9
Press Trust of India, “1,000 passenger complaints received against Air India in 3 months: Govt,” Business Standard, July 19, 2022.
https://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/1-000-passenger-complaints-received-against-air-india-in-3-months-govt-
122071900839_1.html. Accessed October 20, 2023.
10
Air India, “About Us.” https://www.airindia.com/in/en/about-us.html. Accessed October 19, 2023.
This Quick Case was prepared by Prashant Salwan of Indian Institute of Management Indore, India, with
Shailesh Kumar Pandey of Jaipuria Institute of Management, Indore. HBR Quick Cases are developed
solely as the basis for class discussion. They are not intended to serve as endorsements, sources of
primary data, or illustrations of effective or ineffective management. This publication may not be digitized,
photocopied, or otherwise reproduced, posted, or transmitted without the permission of Harvard Business
Publishing. Although based on real industries and despite reference to actual companies and company
information, the problem in this Quick Case is fictitious and any resemblance to actual company problems
is coincidental.
Copyright © 2023 Harvard Business School Publishing Corporation. All rights reserved.
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