IndiGo, the largest airline in India by market share, has appointed veteran of loyalty programmes Nik Laming to lead its frequent-flyer business, as the airline seeks to shift from its low-cost roots to defend its market share against feisty Air India.
Laming, a Singapore-based consultant with over 30 years of experience, joins at a critical time. While InterGlobe Aviation Ltd.-operated IndiGo flew 124 million passengers in 2025, it faced a 2% dip in market share in November and a record ₹22.2 crore fine in December following operational issues.
The recruitment marks a shift for IndiGo as it scales its BluChip programme in order to compete with Air India’s Maharaja Club. Since the September 2024 launch, BluChip has brought in 10 million members, reflecting the carrier’s urgency to secure customer stickiness amid its international expansion and the introduction of premium services.
The move comes as the global travel loyalty market is projected to hit $52.6 billion by 2030. For IndiGo, which recently introduced business-class ‘Stretch’ cabins, a robust loyalty driver has become a necessity to transition from a budget airline to a global contender.
“The search for a loyalty head started 8-9 months ago, and the airline was looking globally for a candidate who could build a programme that would bring them repeat customers,” said an industry executive aware of the development.
The civil aviation regulator, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), is yet to release December passenger traffic numbers.
- IndiGo has tapped Nik Laming, a Singapore-based loyalty veteran, to professionalize its rewards division.
- The BluChip programme has reached 10 million members in less than 18 months, making it one of India's fastest-growing loyalty schemes.
- The hire signals IndiGo’s transition from a Low-Cost Carrier to a full-service airline, offering premium services such as 'Stretch' business class.
- The move comes as IndiGo tries to move past a disastrous December that saw 4,500 cancellations and a ₹22.2 crore fine.
- IndiGo is directly aiming at Air India’s Maharaja Club to secure high-yield, frequent international travellers.
According to the executive mentioned above, Laming was onboarded about a month ago. While Indigo did not respond to Mint’s queries, Laming has yet to respond to Mint’s queries via LinkedIn.
For the airline, which has 63.6% domestic aviation market share, getting its loyalty programme correct comes at a time when it cancelled 4,500 flights in the first week of December.
Building ‘Bluchips’ loyalty
The cancellation of the flights came on the back of revised pilot rest rules and night-flying norms, throwing its schedule off-kilter. Several thousand fliers were left stranded at airports after flight cancellations, forcing the government to step in, impose fare caps across the sector, and subsequently fine IndiGo.
In January, after posting its quarterly results, IndiGo said its loyalty programme had 10 million registrations. The registrations come in less than 18 months since the launch of the loyalty programme. This made it one of the fastest-growing customer loyalty programmes in the country.
"IndiGo has a straightforward earn and burn loyalty points program. As they look at larger international operations, they are shedding their low-cost carrier image into a fit-for-purpose airline,” said Mark D. Martin, aviation expert and chief executive at Gurugram-based Martin Consulting.
“This means their customer loyalty programmes also need to be reworked. At present, it is a late starter, compared to a full-service carrier like Air India. The programmes are not comparable at this moment either," he added.
As of today, under the loyalty programme, IndiGo customers need to register with the airline first. They accumulate IndiGo BluChips points on every IndiGo flight, based on their spend. Members get an upgrade in the tier-based loyalty programme. As a key differentiator, IndiGo said these loyalty points would never expire "for active members", unlike many other loyalty programs across different airlines, and promised straightforward redemption.
For instance, a user earns 8 BluChips per ₹100 spent on base fare (plus fuel surcharge, if any) on IndiGo flights and IndiGo codeshare flights (marketed by IndiGo but operated by Turkish Airlines and Qantas). Subsequently, IndiGo tied up with credit card companies, hotels, and apparel companies to earn loyalty points.
The global market for Travel Loyalty Programmes was valued at $29.1 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach $52.6 billion by 2030, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.4% from 2024 to 2030, as per a January report by global market insights firm Market Glass Inc.
Key takeaways
- IndiGo has tapped Nik Laming, a Singapore-based loyalty veteran, to professionalize its rewards division.
- The BluChip programme has reached 10 million members in less than 18 months, making it one of India's fastest-growing loyalty schemes.
- The hire signals IndiGo’s transition from a Low-Cost Carrier to a full-service airline, offering premium services such as 'Stretch' business class.
- The move comes as IndiGo tries to move past a disastrous December that saw 4,500 cancellations and a ₹22.2 crore fine.
- IndiGo is directly aiming at Air India’s Maharaja Club to secure high-yield, frequent international travellers.