Evening Standard drops cover price in City Airport deal
Associated Newspaper’s Evening Standard has brokered a deal to become the exclusive media partner of London City Airport that will see the weekday newspaper distributed for free to all incoming passengers.
The move is expected to boost the paper’s print run by more than 10,000 copies overnight and is set to grow alongside London City Airport's expansion. Under the agreement, said to be “a long term deal”, the Evening Standard will be the only London newspaper to have branding across the airport through new digital screens in both the check-in and departure lounge areas.
It will also see the launch of a dual branded Eros card, offering cardholders a range of exclusive discounts on air fares and on purchases at retail outlets, bars and restaurants at the airport.
Offers on the card will include 15 per cent discounts on all BA non-UK bound flights (excluding Amsterdam) and 20 per cent discounts on Austrian airlines flights to Vienna, Bangkok and Tokyo from the Docklands airport. More flight offers are expected follow.
Richard Gooding, chief executive of London City Airport, said: “There is a very natural synergy between the Evening Standard and London City Airport. Both our natural brands target a premium London audience that are influential and demand quality in both their newspaper and their travel hub.
“The Eros Card is an easy, convenient and quick way to buy a paper – just like London City Airport is for catching a flight.
“Readers of Evening Standard will benefit from the multitude of offers that are available with the new card. We look forward to our ongoing successful relationship with London’s quality paper.”
Andrew Mullins, managing director of the Evening Standard, added: “We are delighted to be announcing this strategic alliance with London City Airport. There are tremendous synergies between both brands and we share a similar influential and affluent audience demographic.
“The new partnership card being launched is the first in a series of tie-ups which will provide a unique opportunity for both organisations to target the City elite with a range of exclusive offers that will add value to their busy lives.”
The deal comes amid a new marketing push for the Evening Standard which has seen its average six month circulation rise 6.73 per cent to 288,957 in the last official audit in March.
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