Have you heard of Rico? If you answered “no”, you’re missing the birth of probably a cult airline brand icon that may just reach the heights of what Richard Branson is to Virgin Atlantic, or what the Singapore Girl is to Singapore Airlines. And I’m not kidding.

When Mary Kirby first told me about Rico on Twitter, I was totally kicked – watching videos of this edgy, furry, lovable character chilling in one of Air New Zealand’s new seats. This is the same airline that brought us those body-paint safety videos and flatbed seats in Economy. Given that I was scheduled to speak at the Aviation Outlook Summit, where Rob Fyfe was present as well, I couldn’t help but corner him for a quick chat about Rico. You heard him first, on SimpliFlying

So, what do you think about Rico? A brand icon, or hot air? Let’s discuss in comments, and over on Twitter…

At the edge of the world, a small airline is pushing the envelope when it comes to doing the right things. This is a hallmark of a brand that is going places, even in times of adversity. If you haven’t already heard, Air New Zealand yesterday revealed a revolutionary flat-bed seat in Economy Class that will re-define the way we travel (Check out Crankyflier’s firsthand coverage here). This prompted a lot of commentary around the world, and I really liked one from Arun Rajagopal (in addition to Cranky’s) with his focus on branding. Arun is a creative supervisor with Wunderman in Muscat, Sultanate of Oman. He is an award-winning copywriter, a co-author of the marketing book ‘The Age of Conversation’ and blogs at www.arunrajagopal.com. His interests include airlines, travel, marketing and social media. And here’s how Arun explains Air New Zealand is re-defining the flying experience (first published on his blog) Pic credit: Flickr – source 1. Be bold in your marketing Air New Zealand is not shy of stirring a little turbulence in your …