JetBlue teases premium announcement – some predict ‘Junior Mint’ product

08.08.2024 - 16:50 / thepointsguy.com / Joanna Geraghty / Marty St George / Morgan Chase / St George

Could a JetBlue domestic first class be around the corner? Some top industry analysts think so.

Speculation on the topic gained momentum last week when the New York-based carrier reported its quarterly earnings, with executives using the occasion to lay out a far-reaching plan it's calling "JetForward" — a strategy meant to return the carrier to profitability for the first time since before the pandemic.

The plans include pushing back deliveries of 44 new Airbus jets, and the ongoing network shake-up TPG has reported on for months, in which JetBlue is trying to double down on its East Coast leisure roots.

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But leaders also left breadcrumbs to a potential major announcement in the coming months — about some sort of premium product.

"We plan to announce additional exciting improvements to our product later this year. So stay tuned," CEO Joanna Geraghty told analysts.

President Marty St. George echoed the tease.

"Stay tuned in 2024 for additional announcements about JetForward's plan to offer more products and perks that our customers value," St. George said. "Including enhancements to our premium offerings."

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To be clear, JetBlue leaders didn't get any more specific than that.

But analysts on Wall Street are already predicting what that might mean.

"We expect JetBlue to enter the domestic first class market in 2025," wrote Jamie Baker, industry analyst at JP Morgan Chase, joking that the carrier could consider naming such a cabin "Junior Mint" — an ode to its international business class-style Mint cabin that's been a hit with customers since launching a decade ago.

JetBlue hasn't confirmed any such plans, nor has it publicly used the "Junior Mint" term.

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What else could potentially be on the table?

It certainly wouldn't be far-fetched to see plans for some sort of retrofit for aircraft with its legacy Mint seats, now a decade old, which are a quite different experience than its newer suites and studios unveiled this decade: They're arranged in a 2-2 configuration instead of 1-1, and don't have universal direct aisle access.

Ultimately, time will tell what JetBlue has in store.

What is clear, though, is that JetBlue is doubling down on premium.

Its forward-looking plan unveiled last week does call for around $400 million in spending between 2025 and 2027 on "products and perks ... to capture [a] growing share of premium customers."

The carrier certainly isn't alone in that focus.

Budget airlines have made waves in recent months, announcing fundamental changes meant to boost their