Spafax - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Spafax is a custom content agency that focuses on consumers in transit such as frequent flyers and travellers and was founded in London in 1985. Spafax is now part of Sir Martin Sorrell’s WPP Group

WPP Group

WPP plc is a global media communications services company with its main management office in London, United Kingdom and its executive office in Dublin, Ireland. It is the world's largest advertising group by revenues, and employs over 150,000 people in 2,400 offices in 107 countries...

PLC, in the Speciality Communications division.

Spafax has worked with major airlines like Air Canada

Air Canada

Air Canada is the flag carrier and largest airline of Canada. The airline, founded in 1936, provides scheduled and charter air transport for passengers and cargo to 178 destinations worldwide. It is the world's tenth largest passenger airline by number of destinations, and the airline is a...

, British Airways

British Airways

British Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...

, Emirates, American Airlines

American Airlines

American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...

, LAN Airlines

LAN Airlines

LAN Airlines S.A. is an airline based in Santiago, Chile. LAN is currently positioned amongst the largest airlines in Latin America, serving Latin America, United States, the Caribbean, Oceania, and Europe. It is a member of the Oneworld airline alliance...

, Virgin America

Virgin America

Virgin America, Inc. is a United States-based low-cost airline that began service on August 8, 2007. The airline's stated aim is to provide low-fare, high-quality service for "long-haul point-to-point service between major metropolitan cities on the Eastern and West Coast seaboards." San Francisco...

as well as with brands and government organizations like Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Mercedes Benz Canada and The Canadian Tourism Commission

Canadian Tourism Commission

The Canadian Tourism Commission was created in 1995 to promote in order to capitalize on a major international industry.The CTC states that it "is dedicated to promoting the growth and profitability of the Canadian tourism industry by marketing Canada as a desirable travel destination and...

.

Sparksheet is Spafax's corporate blog. The content of this corporate blog is written to business-to-business

Business-to-business

Business-to-business describes commerce transactions between businesses, such as between a manufacturer and a wholesaler, or between a wholesaler and a retailer...

focused audience on industry topics like marketing, social media and content related to consumers in transit.

History

Spafax started as Bath Spa Factors in Bath, England in the 1930s as a garage servicing Rolls-Royce and Bentley cars. From there, they evolved into a parts distributor with a European network. In order to communicate with the sales force, Bath Spa Factors decided to take advantage of Betamax

Betamax

Betamax was a consumer-level analog videocassette magnetic tape recording format developed by Sony, released on May 10, 1975. The cassettes contain -wide videotape in a design similar to the earlier, professional wide, U-matic format...

to create films with local talents, from there a film division was born. Spafax Television was one of the earliest customized programme producers that built up a blue chip client base that included the likes of Reuters

Reuters

Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...

and Marconi. And then Duncan Hilleary, one of Spafax's earliest contributors, arrived on the scene in 1986 and pitched a plan for an airline network.

He and filmmaker Jeremy Hunter partnered with the newly named Spafax Airline Network resulted in a contract to produce advertising and video productions for British Airways

British Airways

. The video production, a monthly magazine-style programme called The World Traveller Show featuring different locations around the world, led to contracts with different airlines, including Singapore and Northwest.

In 1993 Hilleary pioneered the outsourcing of in-flight entertainment (IFE) to British Airways (BA) with a dedicated team located in a BA office in Buckingham Palace Road and re-launched BA’s IFE with a new programming strategy, a new graphic identity and media brand. This new approach was also one of the first to offer tangible benefits to the airline in the form of substantial savings against the BA (IFE) budget. The dedicated BA IFE team took ownership of all aspects of the passenger audio-visual experience and succeeded in winning the Avion Award for best overall in-flight entertainment for British Airways at the WAEA in both 1995 and 1998. From 1995 to 2004, Spafax has expanded to Canada, Asia, South America, and the UAE. Spafax now has 8 offices worldwide from London to Dubai.

From that small garage, Spafax has grown into a multinational based on four continents, serving more than 60 clients in the industry. Its multicultural background (and its expertise in creating bi-cultural publications) is an undeniable asset in today’s global marketplace. Managing a diverse client base with a diverse employee base, Spafax is a poster child for the positive aspects of globalization.

Operations

Spafax office locations:

London
Montreal
Toronto
Santiago
Orange County
Kuala Lumpur
Dubai
Singapore

Client List

Spafax Clients (in no particular order)

Air Canada Air Canada Air Canada is the flag carrier and largest airline of Canada. The airline, founded in 1936, provides scheduled and charter air transport for passengers and cargo to 178 destinations worldwide. It is the world's tenth largest passenger airline by number of destinations, and the airline is a...	Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz is a German manufacturer of automobiles, buses, coaches, and trucks. Mercedes-Benz is a division of its parent company, Daimler AG...	Canadian Tourism Commission Canadian Tourism Commission The Canadian Tourism Commission was created in 1995 to promote in order to capitalize on a major international industry.The CTC states that it "is dedicated to promoting the growth and profitability of the Canadian tourism industry by marketing Canada as a desirable travel destination and...	MSN MSN MSN is a collection of Internet sites and services provided by Microsoft. The Microsoft Network debuted as an online service and Internet service provider on August 24, 1995, to coincide with the release of the Windows 95 operating system.The range of services offered by MSN has changed since its...	Bell Canada Bell Canada Bell Canada is a major Canadian telecommunications company. Including its subsidiaries such as Bell Aliant, Northwestel, Télébec, and NorthernTel, it is the incumbent local exchange carrier for telephone and DSL Internet services in most of Canada east of Manitoba and in the northern territories,...
Investors Group	BainUltra	Alaska Airlines Alaska Airlines Alaska Airlines is an airline based in the Seattle suburb of SeaTac, Washington in the United States. The airline originated in 1932 as McGee Airways. After many mergers with and acquisitions of other airlines, including Star Air Service, it became known as Alaska Airlines in 1944...	Air Transport International Air Transport International Air Transport International LLC is an airline based in Little Rock, Arkansas, USA. It operates worldwide cargo and combi charters for the express package industry and freight forwarders, as well as for the United States Department of Defense and the automotive industry. It also wet-leases aircraft....	Bombardier Bombardier Aerospace Bombardier Aerospace is a division of Bombardier Inc. and is the third-largest airplane manufacturer in the world. It is headquartered in Dorval, Quebec, Canada.- History :...
Virgin Atlantic	Virgin America Virgin America Virgin America, Inc. is a United States-based low-cost airline that began service on August 8, 2007. The airline's stated aim is to provide low-fare, high-quality service for "long-haul point-to-point service between major metropolitan cities on the Eastern and West Coast seaboards." San Francisco...	American Airlines American Airlines American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...	Caribbean Airlines Caribbean Airlines Caribbean Airlines Limited operating as Caribbean Airlines is the national airline of Trinidad and Tobago. The airline is also flag carrier to Jamaica through its subsidiary, Caribbean Airlines-Air Jamaica Transition Limited or Air Jamaica....	AeroMexico Aeroméxico Airways of Mexico, SA de CV , operating as Aeroméxico, is the flag carrier airline of Mexico based in Colonia Cuauhtémoc, Cuauhtémoc, Mexico City. It operates scheduled domestic and international services to North America, South America, Central America and the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia...
Air Tahiti Air Tahiti Société Air Tahiti Société Anonyme is a regional airline with its head office on the property of Faa'a International Airport, in Faaa, Tahiti, French Polynesia, near Papeete. Air Tahiti's network covers 46 islands within French Polynesia, plus the island of Rarotonga...	LAN Airlines LAN Airlines LAN Airlines S.A. is an airline based in Santiago, Chile. LAN is currently positioned amongst the largest airlines in Latin America, serving Latin America, United States, the Caribbean, Oceania, and Europe. It is a member of the Oneworld airline alliance...	Teatro Municipal de Santiago	Fundación CAP	Fairmont Hotels & Resorts
Scandinavian Airlines	Finnair Finnair Finnair Plc is the flag carrier and largest airline of Finland, with its headquarters on the grounds of Helsinki Airport in Vantaa, Finland, and its main hub at Helsinki Airport. Finnair and its subsidiaries dominate both the domestic and international air travel markets in Finland. The largest...	British Airways British Airways British Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...	Air France Air France Air France , stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the French flag carrier headquartered in Tremblay-en-France, , and is one of the world's largest airlines. It is a subsidiary of the Air France-KLM Group and a founding member of the SkyTeam global airline alliance...	KLM
Swiss International Airlines	Royal Jordanian Airlines	Egyptair EgyptAir EgyptAir is the flag carrier airline of Egypt and a member of Star Alliance. The airline is based at Cairo International Airport, its main hub, operating scheduled passenger and freight services to more than 75 destinations in the Middle East, Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Americas...	Etihad Airways Etihad Airways Etihad Airways is the flag carrier of the United Arab Emirates. Established in July 2003 and based at Abu Dhabi International Airport, Etihad commenced operations in November 2003....	Qatar Airways Qatar Airways Qatar Airways Company Q.C.S.C. , operating as Qatar Airways, is the flag carrier of Qatar. Headquartered in the Qatar Airways Tower in Doha, it operates a hub-and-spoke network, linking over 100 international destinations from its base in Doha, using a fleet of over 100 aircraft...
Emirates	Sri Lankan	Air America Media	Pakistan International Airlines Pakistan International Airlines Pakistan International Airlines Corporation commonly known as PIA, is the flag carrier airline of Pakistan. The airline has its head office on the grounds of Jinnah International Airport in Karachi. and operates scheduled services to 24 domestic destinations and 38 international destinations in 27...	Air Mauritius Air Mauritius Air Mauritius Limited, stylised as Air Mauritius, is the flag carrier of Mauritius. The airline is headquartered at the Air Mauritius Centre in Port Louis, Mauritius. Its main base is Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport...
Asiana Airlines Asiana Airlines Asiana Airlines Inc. is one of South Korea's two major airlines, along with Korean Air. Asiana has its headquarters in Asiana Town in Osoe-dong, Gangseo-gu, Seoul...	Korean Air Korean Air Korean Air Lines Co., Ltd. , operating as Korean Air, is both the flag carrier and the largest airline of South Korea, with global headquarters located in Seoul, South Korea. Korean Air's international passenger division and related subsidiary cargo division together serve 130 cities in 45...	China Airlines China Airlines China Airlines is both the flag carrier and the largest airline of Republic of China . Although not directly state-owned, the airline is owned by China Airlines Group, which is owned by the China Aviation Development Foundation...	Philippine Airlines Philippine Airlines Philippine Airlines, Inc. operating as Philippine Airlines, is a flag carrier of the Philippines. Headquartered in the Philippine National Bank Financial Center in Pasay City, the airline was founded in 1941 and is the first and oldest commercial airline in Asia operating under its original name...	Malaysia Airlines Malaysia Airlines Malaysian Airline System Berhad , DBA Malaysia Airlines , is the government-owned flag carrier of Malaysia. Malaysia Airlines operates flights from its home base, Kuala Lumpur International Airport, and its eastern hub in Kota Kinabalu. It has its headquarters on the grounds of Sultan Abdul Aziz...
Singapore Airlines Singapore Airlines Singapore Airlines Limited is the flag carrier airline of Singapore. Singapore Airlines operates a hub at Changi Airport and has a strong presence in the Southeast Asia, East Asia, South Asia, and "Kangaroo Route" markets...	Air Mauritius Air Mauritius Air Mauritius Limited, stylised as Air Mauritius, is the flag carrier of Mauritius. The airline is headquartered at the Air Mauritius Centre in Port Louis, Mauritius. Its main base is Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport...	Qantas Qantas Qantas Airways Limited is the flag carrier of Australia. The name was originally "QANTAS", an initialism for "Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services". Nicknamed "The Flying Kangaroo", the airline is based in Sydney, with its main hub at Sydney Airport...

Publishing

Part of Spafax's services includes publishing. They specialize in custom publishing and has published many award-winning publications since its establishment. Here is a sample list of Spafax's publishing clients

enRoute Magazine	Bell Mobile	Mercedes Benz
inLAN	IG & Review	Fairmont Magazine
Pure Canada	onAir	HomeSpa

As publishing becomes more digitized these days, Spafax now offers custom publishing for both online and offline production.

On May 14, 2009, Spafax announced a new partnership with Mercedes-Benz and on September 22, 2009, Spafax agreed to a collaboration with MSN.ca by providing them with their award-winning travel content.

Publications

Spafax is responsible for many publications for both online and offline such as enRoute Magazine, inLAN, Fairmont, onAir, Pure Canada, HomeSpa, Royal Wings and many more. Spafax recently expanded it’s service to non-travel related brands such as Review for Investors Group, Mobile for Bell Canada

Bell Canada

Bell Canada is a major Canadian telecommunications company. Including its subsidiaries such as Bell Aliant, Northwestel, Télébec, and NorthernTel, it is the incumbent local exchange carrier for telephone and DSL Internet services in most of Canada east of Manitoba and in the northern territories,...

and Santiago, Chile’s Teatro Municipal.

Entertainment

Spafax's main clients are airlines, which started the company. They offer custom in-flight entertainment and branding services to their clients; from publishing to in-flight entertainment media.

Media Sales

Advertising and media sales is part of Spafax's umbrella of services. This aspect of their service is created to offer advertising opportunities to their list of clients. Example of advertising and media sales opportunities under the Spafax umbrella:

Interactive

In lieu of current trends and digital development, customized digital branding is a part of the services offered by Spafax. Currently, a new branch of the company called Spafax Interactive has been established to meet the market needs. Types of services typically covered are web design, web development, social media marketing and communication, content strategy, internet marketing, content management, search engine optimization (SEO) and web publishing.

Articles & External Links

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