Wizz Air already carries millions of passengers across Europe and beyond. Roaming data was a natural extension of that journey, but running a mobile product wasn’t the business they were in. Their co-branded eSIM store, powered by Breeze, puts a branded eSIM in front of their passengers while Breeze carries the tech, the support and the updates underneath, with eSIM Go delivering the platform.
Why an airline needs a mobile partner
Wizz Air is one of the largest low-cost airlines in Europe, with a fleet of more than 180 aircraft and close to 1,000 routes connecting central and eastern European cities to destinations across the region and the Middle East.
Their passengers land in a new country and want their data to work straight away. Meeting that demand used to mean international wholesale telecoms, coverage in every destination, provisioning, billing and support. That’s a business in its own right, and not the one an airline wants to run.
Wizz Air wanted a new ancillary line that earned its place: something genuinely travel-related that saved passengers money rather than just adding a charge. eSIM did both. It opened a fresh revenue stream and took one job off the passenger’s plate when they landed, which fed straight back into loyalty.
Their concern was going into a market they didn’t know well without pulling their team off the day job, and being sure the numbers held up. Breeze set out the year-ahead financials, showed how the branded platform would work, and made the commercial boundaries clear from the start. Support, coverage and the platform sat with Breeze, so Wizz Air could focus on the go-to-market strategy.
What their passengers get
Wizz Air’s passengers never see an international wholesale contract, and they never see eSIM Go. They buy travel data from a brand they already fly with, install it, land, and it works.
Passengers meet the eSIM after they’ve booked, when they’re already thinking about the trip. Wizz Air promotes it through the places passengers already pay attention to: the mobile app, the newsletter, post-booking messages, loyalty programme communications and social. The strongest conversions land in the 48 hours before take-off, when a reminder to sort data reads less like a sell and more like a favour. Passengers get nudges along the lines of “don’t forget your eSIM”, which puts connectivity next to a passport and sunscreen as a travel essential rather than an afterthought.
The service earns its keep
Roughly a third of eSIM customers come back and buy again: a 33% repeat rate measured between February and May 2024. For an ancillary line that’s the number that matters most, because it means passengers tried it, it worked, and they chose it again. A single Easter promotion lifted eSIM sales by 11%. Alongside the revenue, Wizz Air gets a clearer read on how passengers use their ancillary services, and one more reason for passengers to rate the airline highly.
From signing to first activation
What’s on record is how light the lift was for Wizz Air: they launched a fully branded platform with minimal in-house resource and cost, with the build, the coverage and the support sitting with Breeze.
The partnership has kept moving rather than settling. The eSIM is being brought into the WIZZ Discount Club, with extra savings for members, and Wizz Air have begun extending eSIM benefits to their own staff. Seasonal promotions keep the product in front of passengers through the year, including a summer push and one tied to the airline’s 20th birthday.
“Breeze was outstanding both in terms of financial forecasts and in how much they understood our business and our passengers. The team provided a very comprehensive projection for the year ahead, set clear boundaries and made everything transparent from the outset. We carried 60 million passengers in 2023 so the sky’s the limit in terms of growth. We feel very positive about the future of this partnership.”
Dora Farkas, Product Portfolio Manager, Wizz Air
Their brand, our infrastructure
Breeze is a low-risk way to bring eSIM to your customers as a branded product. The partner owns the brand; Breeze run the platform, the coverage, the support and the updates. It suits established brands that want to add connectivity to a wider offering, and brands that are new to eSIM or don’t have the in-house resource to launch alone.
Give it a go
Your brand, your customers, your rules. Talk to us about launching your own co-branded eSIM store with Breeze.