Skybus Airlines began daily flights to and from Westover Metropolitan Airport in Chicopee last month. Tourism and economic development leaders say it will take weeks, perhaps months, to effectively gauge the impact of the service on the local economy, but early evidence shows it could benefit several business sectors while putting the Pioneer Valley on the map.

Columbus, Ohio?

Allan Blair understands that these are usually the words, and the accompanying punctuation, that people utter when they first hear about Skybus, the self-proclaimed “next generation of low-fare airlines,” which uses that city’s airport as its hub, and its recent decision to initiate non-stop flights to and from Westover Metropolitan Airport in Chicopee.

But Columbus — Ohio’s capital, a city of 700,000 people, and home to Ohio State University’s main campus, the largest in the country with 100,000 students — isn’t the story, said Blair, executive director of the Economic Development Council of Western Mass. and director of the Westover Metropolitan Development Corp., who now knows much more about that municipality than he did a few months ago.

Well, it’s part of the story, because some people leaving Westover make that community their destination, he said. But the larger pieces involve where they can get to from there — and for rates that are only a fraction of what other airlines charge — and, even more importantly, the 100 or so people now arriving in Chicopee each night at or around 6:53 p.m.

Skybus now flies from Columbus to smaller airports outside several major cities — Burbank (Los Angeles), Bellingham, Wash. (Seattle and also Vancouver, British Columbia), Portsmouth, N.H. (Boston), and others — and is projected to add many more as it tries to replicate the hugely successful model pioneered by Europe’s Ryanair.

On July 16, Skybus started flying in and out of Westover, which, depending on the marketing material in question, makes the official destination Hartford, Springfield, Chicopee, or some combination thereof, which is a problem Blair is addressing. There were 101 people on the inaugural inbound flight and 86 on the outbound back to Columbus, including Blair and Westover airport director Michael Bolton.

Blair and others involved in economic development and tourism in the Pioneer Valley weren’t sure what all those people were going to do after they arrived in Chicopee that night, but they worked hard to find out. And they will continue to poll passengers as they arrive — and depart from Westover — because that’s how they’ll determine just how much of an impact Skybus and its new service will have on the region and its hospitality-related businesses.
Blair anticipates there will be boosts in hotel stays, restaurant visits, stops at area tourist attractions, and other benefits, because the airline’s ultra-low fares — the first 10 tickets for each flight sell for $10 each — will bring people to the area (at least to start their travels) who may not make it here otherwise.

“You’re going to be having roughly 700 people coming into the area every week,” said Blair, doing some quick math in his head as he talked. “We don’t know how many of them will be needing hotels, but if it’s 20%, which is probably a good estimate, that’s 140 room nights that you wouldn’t have had, which will make an impact.”

Chicopee Mayor Michael Bissonette has been doing some math of his own. Basing his calculations (from some unknown formula) on 80 of the passengers arriving each evening staying an average of three nights each and spending $200 a day, he pegs the potential windfall at a very unscientific $20 million a year. And he expects his city, which has several hotels, restaurants, and car rental agencies within a few miles of the airport, to get a good share of whatever the final number is.

Some quick polling revealed that some who arrived that first night, and on subsequent arrivals, were taking advantage of the low fares to see relatives in the region. Others were using Chicopee as a staging area for visits to Albany, the Boston area, the Cape, or other destinations within 100 miles or so. And still others were intent on exploring Western Mass. and its many attractions.

“This is another gateway into Western Mass., another way to get people here,” said Mary Kay Wydra, executive director of the Greater Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau (GSCVB), who can’t hide her enthusiasm about the arrival of Skybus. “It’s a great opportunity for this region, and we have to take full advantage of it.”

In this issue, BusinessWest talked with Blair, Wydra, and others about how the Valley intends to do just that.

Flight Plan

Blair told BusinessWest that it will be at least several weeks and probably many months (meaning deep into the new school year at area colleges) before the EDC and the GSCVB have some working data to effectively gauge the economic impact of the Skybus flights, the first commercial activity at Westover in nearly 20 years.

In the meantime, there is some qualitative and anecdotal evidence that the airline is bringing some attention — and visitors — to the area, while also making Columbus and other points near and far from that city more accessible (meaning affordable) to area residents.

Wydra said her office has detected a noticeable uptick in the volume of calls from people inquiring about the region and what they can do here when they arrive. “As soon as this was announced [in the spring], the phone started ringing, and it hasn’t stopped since,” she said, adding that those at the GSCVB are tracking how many of the calls are Skybus-inspired, and it’s a good number.

“We’ve seen a real increase in inquiries coming out of the Columbus area, and lots of E-mails from Ohio, with people looking for visitor information,” she said. “In the beginning, we were getting deluged with calls about how to get transportation while at the airport.

“There were calls from people looking to come and visit family,” she continued, “and even some people who used to live here and are planning to come back because they want to go to the Big E.”

Meanwhile, Wydra, Blair, Bissonnette, and others are already compiling stories from friends, relatives, and area business people who are taking advantage of the Skybus service with scheduled trips to Ohio and elsewhere.

“I know someone who’s flying to Columbus and then heading to Cleveland to watch the Indians play the Red Sox,” said Bissonnette, adding that the excursion will be easier, and probably cheaper, than getting tickets for a game at Fenway. “I know someone else who’s flying out to Columbus to play Jack Nicklaus’s course [in nearby Dublin]; he’s paying much more for the green fees than for the flight, but Skybus is what’s making it doable.”

Such stories are at the heart of what inspired the no-frills airline, which starts with those $10 seats and moves on from there, with the price of tickets getting progressively higher as the date of the flight in question draws closer and the number of available seats dwindles. Overall, fares run roughly 50% of the going rate of other carriers serving the same markets. Already, the lowest price available for most tickets for the Columbus-to-Chicopee run over the next few months is at or more than $70, which area tourism leaders interpret as solid interest in the Pioneer Valley.

On the drawing board since the late ’90s, Skybus takes its cue from Ireland-based RyanAir, which uses smaller airports, modern equipment, outsourced services, fees for everything from luggage service ($5 for the first bag, $50 and more when it gets past two) to pillows and blankets, and placing ads on the side of its planes in order to keep fares low. The 150-seat Airbus 319 that landed at Westover on July 16, painted in the company’s bright orange color, came practically out of the box, as did others in the growing fleet, which helps keep maintenance costs down.

The company’s operations took flight on May 22, with initial service offered to Burbank, Portsmouth, and Kansas City, Mo. Flights to Richmond, Va.; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Greensboro/Winston Salem, N.C.; Bellingham; Oakland; and a second flight to Burbank were added over the next month.

The next wave came in mid-July, with Westover, San Diego International Airport, and St. Augustine, Fla. (providing access to Jacksonville and Daytona Beach) added to the mix.

More cities and flights to each destination will be added as the market dictates, said Denis Carvill, vice president of Ground Operations for Skybus. While waiting for the inaugural inbound flight to arrive, he told BusinessWest that the company became attracted to Westover for its location (close to Springfield and Hartford, but also not far from Boston and New York), facilities, infrastructure, runway length — and apparent interest among Columbus-area residents.

“Our research showed that this one of the places to which people wanted to go,” he explained, listing everything from colleges to attractions to family as reasons why.

While the airport was a good fit for the company, much work, following some lengthy negotiations, had to be done to make it ready for the July 16 startup.

Bolton said talks between Westover administrators and Skybus officials started in late 2005. The airline was looking for deals — meaning it wanted everything for free — so the talks never really got off the ground. But there were subsequent rounds of negotiations that eventually led to a deal late last year.

Terms of the agreement between the airport and the airline were not disclosed, but Bolton said a three-year contract was inked that included several of what he called “introductory rates” on such things as landing fees, parking fees, and handling fees. There were many logistics to be worked out over the past several months, including Skybus’s hiring of an outside company called Quickflight to handle ticket counters, baggage handling, and other tasks; a staff of roughly 15 works a three-hour shift each day. Meanwhile, the airport hired additional personnel to handle obviously larger auto parking operations.

New signage, a temporary baggage-claim area on the tarmac, and other additions were made, said Bolton, who told BusinessWest that, with revenues from parking and the assorted fees paid by the airline, the airport should at least break even the first year, with expectations of higher profits down the road.

Beyond the revenue, however, the airport will — after 10,000 paying passengers have filed through it (probably late this year) — qualify for Federal Aviation Administration entitlements that will pay for a new baggage area and new restrooms.

Winging It

In addition to his many duties with Westover and the EDC, Blair has also been monitoring the passenger volume on incoming and outbound Skybus flights, checking rental car business activity, and trying to gauge any increase in hotel room stays.

In time, said Blair, the Skybus service will increase awareness of the Hartford-Springfield area on a national level. “It will put us on the map — that’s what air service does,” he explained, adding that from this there will be benefits to the tourism sector and perhaps broader economic development initiatives. “This can only help this region grow.”

Measuring the direct impact from the visitors will be difficult, said Wydra, noting that it’s much easier to track the spending of convention-goers than it is for people coming in to see friends or family or moving on to other destinations like the Cape.

“When they come for a convention in Springfield, you can see the added number of rooms at the Marriott and the Sheraton,” she explained. “But when they come in to see family or to take in Six Flags, you don’t know where they’re staying — and many are staying with family.”

But over time, and probably not much of it, Wydra believes the Skybus service will have measurable results on several types of businesses, because the low fares will bring travel (or more travel) within reach for more people.

“I think you’ll see more people coming in to the area colleges for parents’ weekends’ and others coming in for homecoming that might otherwise have stayed home,” she said. “There will be more people coming in to visit family members, and others making two visits instead of one. These are the kinds of things those lower fares will do.”

A quick visit to the Skybus Web site reveals that early bookers on flights to Columbus are not thinking too far out — not yet, anyway. While most dates in August had the cheapest seats remaining going for $90 or $110 (there were some with $70 seats available), the November calendar shows many dates with $10 seats still there for the taking, including the days around Thanksgiving; the Christmas season seats seem to be going much faster. As for flights from Columbus to Chicopee, there are only a few dates remaining on the 2007 calendar when $10 seats can be had, and, on most days, the lowest-priced ticket is moving toward $70.

The 7:21 p.m. departure time for the outbound flight has passengers in Columbus by around 9, making it difficult to get connecting flights until the next morning, said Bolton, adding quickly that, even with a hotel stay factored in, Skybus allows travelers to get from Hartford/Springfield to Los Angeles, San Diego, and other destinations for far less than they could on other airlines.

There was no negotiation about the departure time from Westover, he continued, adding that the airport, like most others now hosting Skybus service, is already lobbying for earlier flights and additional flights.

While already enthused about the potential gains from the Skybus flights, area officials know there is work to be done to help maximize the impact.

For starters, Wydra said she’s working with Bolton and others at the airport to place more material about the region in the hands of those arriving from Columbus. Those on the inaugural flight were given gift bags complete with tourism guides to the region, a luggage tag with the Pioneer Valley logo on it, a coupon book, and a map. Budgetary considerations won’t permit all incoming passengers to get the same treatment, but Wydra said racks could be placed at the terminal with some information.

Meanwhile, Wydra is also exploring ways to create greater awareness of the Pioneer Valley in the Greater Columbus area to more effectively leverage the Skybus service to Chicopee. Advertising in Columbus-area media outlets will be expensive given the size of that market, she explained, but she is looking at ways to gain additional funding from the state for such marketing efforts while also exploring possible collaborations — with groups like the Springfield Business Improvement District and area tourist attractions and hospitality facilities — to share those costs.

During his short stay in Columbus, Blair took in some of the sights — “there really is a lot to do there” — while also meeting with Skybus officials to discuss ways to give Western Mass. possibly greater play in marketing of the Chicopee service. The map on the company’s Web site identifying service areas lists the Westover stop as “Hartford,” in a likely nod to current awareness of that city among travelers who use Bradley Airport, while some marketing and press advisories list the stop as “Hartford/Springfield.”

“There is a connection to Hartford, which is understandable,” he said, “but we want there to also be a connection to Springfield and Chicopee.”

Blair says there is also work to be done as far as ground transportation from Westover for arriving passengers. While the demand for rental cars is being met, he told BusinessWest, taxi service could be improved, and public transportation to downtown Springfield or perhaps area colleges would be a good addition.

Flights of Fancy

As the ‘Spirit of Columbus’ taxied to the terminal area at Westover on July 16, water cannons from two fire trucks based at the airport created an arch and a rainbow.

And as passengers disembarked, some in a large crowd gathered nearby started clapping. T
e assembled included elected officials, economic development leaders, press, military personnel from Westover Air Reserve Base, and some who were just curious.

Actually, that word pretty much describes everyone in attendance, as uncertainty and intrigue abound when it comes to this venture and what it will eventually mean for the region and its hospitality-related businesses.
Blair, for one, is certainly confident that the flights will have an impact, that the region will register gains in visibility and tourism-related spending — and that people will soon stop saying, “Columbus, Ohio?”

George O’Brien can be reached at[email protected]

George Condos met his future wife at a Friendly’s restaurant, one he hung out at while growing up in Webster. His parents love the chain, he said, and so do his children. This generational aspect of the Wilbraham-based icon is one of the things that appealed to Condos as he mulled a job opportunity he eventually accepted — president and CEO of the company — as well as a stern challenge: to re-energize a somewhat tired brand.

George Condos was asked for a current copy of Friendly’s lunch/dinner menu for a quick read of its contents.

“Have you got half an hour?” he joked, implying that he wouldn’t put ‘quick’ and this menu together in the same sentence.

Indeed, as he flipped through the menu, and flipped, and flipped, he passed by traditional items like burgers, wraps, baskets, and salads, and eventually reached grilled flounder, steaks, and ‘homestyle meatloaf.’

“This is not what we’re really about — it takes the focus away from what makes Friendly’s great,” he said of those last few items, adding that they are far removed from the company’s core of hand-held food items, the signature Fribble milkshake, and ice cream. They serve largely as a distraction to the customers, but also to managers and kitchen staff who must order and prepare foods that are ordered infrequently at best.

“And this is just one of our menus,” said Condos, fanning out different models for breakfast, desserts, and children. Simplifying and shortening them are just a few facets of a very broad plan that Condos, who took the role of president and CEO at Friendly’s in mid-January, has for re-energizing and contemporizing the 72-year-old chain that has been in the news lately — but for mostly the wrong reasons.

There have been many stories in publications ranging from the Wall Street Journal to the Boston Globe that have chronicled an ongoing proxy fight involving the company’s largest shareholder, lawsuits filed by 93-year-old co-founder S. Prestley Blake against its current chairman alleging self-dealing, and, most recently, the commissioning of Goldman Sachs to explore options for the company moving forward, including a possible sale.

All of the above has become a “distraction” (that’s a word Condos would use often) for the new CEO, who came to Friendly’s after a lengthy stay at Dunkin’ Donuts, where, among other things, he led a repositioning and brand-development effort that more than tripled the number of stores in the Northeast and took sales from $400 million to more than $2 billion.

Just five months into his assignment at Friendly’s, Condos sees several signs of progress. Sales are improving, franchisees are, by his account, expressing more confidence in the chain, and steps are being taken to simplify the menu while adding new products.

These include an Angus beef burger now being tested; iced lattes, with flavors ranging from French vanilla to caramel, which will be private-labeled in most markets, but sold in the Albany area under the name Seattle’s Best Coffee, the company owned by Starbucks; some new cold beverages called tropical chillers to be ready for summer; and a planned new chocolate/chocolate chip ice cream featuring Ghirardelli chocolate.

Co-branding with companies like Ghirardelli and Seattle’s Best is one of the many strategies moving forward, said Condos, adding that marketing efforts will be retooled to reflect the many changes within the chain. They will still emphasize the family aspect of the business, but also focus on the younger audience that is driving many trends in the hospitality sector and society in general.

“We want to increase our relevance with young adults by adding contemporary cold beverages and healthy menu items,” he explained, “and we also intend to improve quality by phasing out low-volume, high-complexity items.”

In this issue, BusinessWest looks at the many things Condos has on his plate as he tries to provide a needed spark for a chain with a glorious past but an uncertain future.

Shaking Things Up

Condos told BusinessWest that he’s probably eating at Friendly’s three or four times a week these days.

He’s now well-known at the restaurant next door to the company’s headquarters on Boston Road in Wilbraham, but, outwardly, just another customer at the many other locations he’s visited. However, he’s not interested in undercover work.

He makes a point of introducing himself and seeking out the manager of every Friendly’s he visits, and comes ready with a long list of questions. These are information-gathering sessions, and to date they’ve been quite eye-opening, with informal reviews running the gamut when it comes to overall grades.

“We have some excellent restaurants, but there is some inconsistency,” he said, adding that bringing all of the chain’s 500 or so restaurants up to the same high level of quality, in terms of food, service, and appearance, would be his broad job description. And this was an assignment that appealed to him when he was approached by a recruiter last fall and asked to consider taking the helm of a chain to which he had both a personal attachment and some professional curiosity.

After all, Condos met his wife, Laurie, at a Friendly’s in the Worcester suburb of Webster. The two were among the many neighborhood teenagers who liked hanging out at the eatery — a tableau repeated in countless communities across the Northeast over the past seven decades.

Indeed, there are now at least four generations that have grown up with Friendly’s. Some of these constituencies have specific needs and tastes, said Condos, adding that the chain’s mission moving forward is to properly address these preferences (lattes, for example) — but without trying to be all things to all people.

This may sound confusing, but for Condos, it’s rather simple. The plan is to focus on core products — ones that appeal to all generations, from those that blog to the one that fought World War II. Meanwhile, he wants to add some new products to the menu that appeal to what he called “young people” without elaborating.
Condos will bring to this assignment some extensive experience with both restaurants and brands. He started acquiring it at Dairy Queen soon after graduating from the University of Vermont with a degree in Business Administration and Management.

“That’s where I learned how to run a restaurant,” he said of his stint with the company, where he eventually assumed the role of regional manager of Operations and Development.

At Dunkin’ Donuts, which he joined in 1986, Condos held a number of positions, including area vice president for the Northeast, U.S., Canada, Europe, and the Middle East, as well as vice president of Marketing, Development, and Operations, and, most recently, brand officer for the chain. In that capacity, he was lead executive for Dunkin’ Donuts in the U.S., and responsible for developing brand strategy and execution for the nearly 5,000 franchised stores, which generated more than $4.3 billion in sales when he left, voluntarily, last year following the second of two ownership changes.

Condos said he wasn’t looking for work — his intention was to begin a career serving on corporate boards — when he was called by the recruiter last fall.
He met several times with the Friendly’s board, and became intrigued with the opportunity to breathe some life into the chain that he knew so well as a customer.

“I believed that Friendly’s had some great opportunity that was not being leveraged,” he said. “I saw a brand that has a unique emotional attachment with its customers that was similar to the two brands I had worked with previously; there are certain brands in the world where the consumer loves the brand, and Friendly’s is one of them.

“As a consumer and an executive within the industry,” he continued, “I saw a number of opportunities where I believed my experience could significantly help the Friendly’s brand.”

The Company’s Bread and Butter

When asked about the board controversy and other matters he lumped in a category of “things beyond my control,” Condos feigned turning off the tape recorder on the table in front of him.

As it continued running, he spoke again of distractions, but how ultimately they weren’t keeping him from his appointed rounds. “It’s a distraction from a time standpoint, but also a distraction for the brand in the marketplace. That said, I was hired to re-energize the brand, and that’s where my primary focus lies.”

Condos said he spoke at length with Prestley Blake — still one of the largest shareholders and one who many say simply can’t let go of the venture he started — soon after he arrived at the company, and talked with him again recently, when the discussion included Blake’s positive review of a visit to a Friendly’s in Florida.
As for the proxy fight, Condos said he can really only watch as matters play themselves out. Texas businessman Sardar Biglari, the largest shareholder with 15% of the stock, asked for a seat on the board of directors last fall, and Friendly’s gave a conditional ‘yes’; it stipulated that he not seek any additional seats. But Biglari refused, and in a letter sent to the board in early March said he and a business partner are running against two incumbents who are seeking re-election at the annual shareholder’s meeting. Billboards calling for the election of Buglari and his partner have gone up in a few locations locally.

And regarding Goldman Sachs’ work, Condos said there are many options that the company will be considering, none of which he cared to discuss in any detail. “We’re not saying that there will be a sale, or that a sale is the only option,” he explained, adding that the review work is expected to be wrapped up by year’s end.

By then, he said, moving on to the many things that are within his control, he expects to be able to qualify and quantify significant progress in his mission to bring more consistency and overall quality to his product — which he described as both the food in the restaurants and the manner in which it is delivered.

This will be a three-pronged approach, focusing on menu choices, service, and the appearance of the restaurants, he said, adding that steps are being taken with regard to each.

On the menu side of the equation, simplification is the order of the day, he said, emphasizing greater focus on handheld items (burgers, melts, wraps, and chicken-strip baskets, for example), cold beverages, including the new iced lattes and tropical chillers, and ice cream. The chain will still offer appetizers, entrée salads, kids meals, and breakfast items, but it will focus its marketing, menu, and operations on the core items.

This approach can be seen with that lengthy lunch/dinner menu, which was actually made one page bigger, with a large insert touting five new burgers, including the tomato pesto provolone and ‘Chicago firehouse’ models. Subsequent inserts will feature other menu staples, said Condos, adding that the new approach is already registering results, with a noticeable increase in sales.

Meatloaf and grilled flounder are still on the menu, but perhaps not for much longer.

“Those are not core to what Friendly’s is, and continuing to expand in that direction is a distraction from the main part of the menu; it makes it more complex and harder to execute,” said Condos, adding that it took years for the Friendly’s menu to get large and complex, and the process of reversing that trend won’t happen overnight.

As for service, the company is introducing something called the ‘Friendly Service Way,’ a model designed to vastly improve the company’s recent poor grades in customer service, at least as measured by Consumer Reports.

“When your brand name is Friendly’s, you absolutely have to be the leader in the industry around what great, friendly service looks like, ands that’s what we intend to do,” he said. “I’ve recognized a big opportunity for us to improve our operating standards within the restaurants.

“My own experience and my own research shows that we have some inconsistent restaurants,” he continued. “We want to significantly improve the guest experience through speed, cleanliness, and friendly service.”

Meanwhile, many of the restaurants will be getting a new, more contemporary look, said Condos, adding that the same can be said of the company’s marketing images.

In the past, the company has focused on families, generations of same, and the great Friendly’s tradition, he explained, adding that while this has been somewhat effective in generating sales, a stronger emphasis on food, including tight, close-up images of specific menu items, will be much more so.

While addressing the menu, service, and the look and feel of the restaurants, Condos is also focusing on the broad and important matter of franchisee-relations, a task that took on even more significance after it was announced that the strategic initiatives to be explored would include a sale.

Condos said he has met with franchisees individually and at district meetings, and believes he’s generating some enthusiasm and support for his plans moving forward.

“They’re supportive of the brand, they love the brand, and they’re looking forward to sales-building initiatives that my team and I are working on, including a stronger focus on the core part of the menu,” he said. “They’re also excited about improvements in our marketing creatives.

“One of my first priorities was to develop a great working relationship with the franchisees,” he continued. “Coming out of 30 years of being in the franchise business, I know how important such a relationship is to re-energizing this brand.”

That’s a Wrap

As he talked with BusinessWest about his plans moving forward, Condos displayed the new rounded tubs, called “squrounds,” that started serving as containers for half gallons of ice cream earlier this spring.

They replace the rectangular cardboard boxes, or bricks, that have been used almost since the company’s beginning. The change wasn’t a slap at tradition, but rather an acknowledgement that the boxes simply weren’t customer-friendly, or at least as much as the new model.

“Have you ever tried to use a round scoop in a square corner?” he asked. “It doesn’t work.”

Neither, apparently, does grilled flounder. At least not at this chain, which is trying to shake things up and simplify them at the same time.

George O’Brien can be reached at[email protected]