aerobd.news : Etihad Airways is renowned for taking inflight luxury to the next level. While first class passengers on its newest aircraft will enjoy enclosed suites, they will also now enjoy a designer experience thanks to a tie-in with with fashion brand, Christian Lacroix. Inflight experience specialists Buzz have created this exclusive brand partnership, which is the first time fashion design house Christian Lacroix has been associated with an airline.

The amenity kit designs include vegan leather debossed with Christian Lacroix’s signature Paseo print. The Paseo design, inspired by the embroidery of a torero’s cape, is reminiscent of Mediterranean influences, a theme often present in Christian Lacroix Maison. Both the male and female embossed bags come in two rich colors, plum for women and grey for men.‎ A second phase will see new kits in burgundy for ladies, and black for men.

Calum Laming, Etihad Airways’ VP for guest experience, said: “The new kits perfectly balance fashion and style to demonstrate Etihad Airways’ continuous commitment to first class travel, and to providing unparalleled experiences at every phase of our guest’s journey with us.”

The bags will initially be introduced on the airline’s A380 flights between Abu Dhabi and London, New York, Sydney, Melbourne and Mumbai, and then fleet-wide in early 2017.

And in business class…
Etihad is also refreshing its range of business class amenity kits to feature six new designs, inspired by key destinations in its global network. Buzz again facilitated a designer collaboration, this time between the airline and luxury travel brand, Luxe City Guides.

Each kit contains a customized Etihad Airways LUXE City Guide which corresponds to the showcased city, covering everything from hotels and restaurants, to spas, bars and shopping. The new cities featured are Abu Dhabi, New York, São Paulo, Rome, Melbourne and Bangkok.

Leonard Hamersfeld, Director at Buzz, said: “This collaboration brings together two luxury brands and delivers Etihad Airways passengers a truly valued lifestyle gift for their journey. It is an exciting design-driven collaboration that integrates a luxury travel product and elevates the amenity offering beyond the essentials.”