Managing Leakage

When playing the word association game, “leakage” would likely prompt answers about diapers and plumbing. But leakage appears everywhere. As publishers, we deal with leakage in areas such as circulation and advertising. As you’ll discover in this issue, airports deal with leakage, too. We have two stories in this issue involving leakage, and they couldn’t be more different from one another.

Surprisingly, the first of the stories is quite positive in nature. Bellingham International Airport is an airport that is benefiting immensely from leakage. Its leakage is from Canadian citizens streaming across the border to travel from Bellingham for substantially less money than flying from airports closer to home. This story is not about the “how and why” of differences in costs for air travel for Canadians, but rather a case study of how an airport along the Canadian border is dealing with the growth opportunities the associated leakage is presenting it. Naturally, there are two sides to every leak. For airports on the Canadian side of the border, the word “leakage” likely connotes what sometimes leaks out of diapers and plumbing fixtures. It’s an extremely tough business condition to face day after day.

Our second story involving leakage addresses the losses that airports experience when off-airport parking companies siphon away revenue without making associated investments in the airport community. I’m sure there is more than one example of this taking place; this story highlights a relative newcomer on the scene: Greenbee Parking. Unless you’re actively looking for this company, you may not even know they’re raiding your cookie jar. But in many cases, they are! This story not only tells you more about how the company enters a market and operates without a physical footprint; it also details what some airports are doing to compete with it.

For airports, leakage is a reality that will always exist in some regard. The challenge is to find a way to manage it effectively — no matter what side of the leak you are on.

Cheers,

Paul