How is Midwest Airlines like Schlitz beer? A traveler angry over how Midwest’s wider business seats now cost an extra $50 explains. [Upgrade: Travel Better]
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wow.. the link has been consumeristed
Wow! The Consumerist Effect!
It really is a great letter. Bravo!
Well, somehow this post is saving me money and I like it. Simple and to the point.
If it’s any consolation, the old Shlitz recipe is back and tastes great! I never thought I’d get to taste the beer that my grandparents used to drink. Maybe that’s a sign for Midwest? I doubt it though. haha
That was a really good letter.
Google didn’t even cache it before it went down . . . Anyone have a record of it?
Site appears to be functioning fine at this point.
YMMV
His math is off. Even though there might have been 3 people who took advantage of the $50 seating, that doesn’t mean that Midwest only made $150. Now there is more capacity on the flights overall, letting Midwest sell more seats.
But I do wish Midwest wouldn’t have made the change. It was such a fantastic product.
Excellent letter on that site.
Also R.I.P. Schlitz old school. Another reason for Schlitz’s downfall was that they didn’t want to market a “diet” beer so “Tastes Great, Less Filling” Miller Light cleaned their clock in that market…
If they get rid of the cookies, there will have to be a staged mutiny.
@Oryx:
Lol! YES!!
Interesting comparison…Schlitz to Midwest Express.
When I think of those customers trying to squeeze into those metal seats, Hamm’s comes to mind.
When I think of those customers complaining about the smaller seats and crummy service, Blatz comes to mine.
It sounds like Midwest is pulling a JetBlue… The latter used to be my favorite reasonably-low-priced airline until they pulled a stunt like this, now I comparison shop and often fly other airlines. However, JetBlue didn’t make their seats smaller or lower the pitch, they just dropped a row and upped the price on those seats, which isn’t all that much, but makes them too much more expensive than their competition, since they have less available seats per plane that do not require the additional fee. The funny thing is that those seats are usually empty now, and were even worse when they first started the program…
Some never learn and totally misunderstand their strongest customer demographic.
It’s a quality letter, and I appreciate the effort that went into the Schlitz analogy. But…I can’t relate to his ire over the seats. At 105 lbs., I prefer a narrower seat and find the larger ones uncomfortable. I like that Midwest is offering me the option to pay less for something that suits me.
@misslisa: That’s just it, though – you aren’t paying less. You’re paying the same price and getting less. If Midwest had kept the old seats at the old prices, and added narrower seats for lower prices, *that* would be paying less for something that suits you.