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Nathalie Hostyn is promotions manager for Virgin Express. She represents the airline at trade fairs and festivals and helps promote the brand’s young, hip image. We catch up with the 37-year-old Antwerp native, who’s been with the company for 12 years
How did you come to work at Virgin Express?
I previously worked for an agency that organised events and press conferences, so when I saw the airline had an opening in reservations, it caught my attention immediately. I’ve always enjoyed travelling a lot, so it was a great opportunity for me.
Was the job what you expected?
In the beginning we were a very small team of about 20 people in the reservations department, but when I joined the marketing department two years later as an assistant, the company had grown and flew to more than 10 destinations.
What are the main responsibilities of your job as promotions manager?
I organise events, including annual presentations of the company to travel agencies, sales promotions at home and abroad and I also liase with sponsors. Virgin Express is a partner at many summer festivals, where we always have a stand and try to stage creative marketing on the field.
Do any memorable festival promotions come to mind?
Yes – at Belgium’s Rock Werchter Festival we had an SMS contest. The whole idea behind it was to encourage people to communicate with each other – despite being strangers – at the festival itself. We sent out a word on a text message and people were supposed to find other people who received the same word. Those that found their ‘buddy’ were eligible to win a prize. More than 60,000 people participated, and some were very creative: putting the word on stickers they stuck on their backs, or writing the word on the baseball caps they wore. It was fun – and even those who didn’t win anything enjoyed themselves. Festival events are a good way to communicate the image of the company.
So what image is that?
Young, dynamic, at the cutting edge.
What do you like most about your job?
The variety. You meet a lot of people in Belgium and abroad. We also collaborate closely with other departments, such as sales and catering, so I know people all over the company. I also enjoy working on a project from A to Z; from a brainstorming session with our agency to the finished event or project.
What do you do in your free time?
My children, aged eight and four, keep me pretty busy – and so my husband and I enjoy travelling with the kids. Wine is another passion; my husband has a wine shop in a small village called Haacht, between Brussels and Antwerp. I also like reading crime fiction, especially novels by Dan Brown, or Belgian writer Pieter Aspe.
Do you have a favourite Virgin Express destination?
Lisbon. I really like Portuguese hospitality.
I think this is the smallest country that we fly to, and the capital reminds me of Brussels with its melting pot of different nationalities.
I don’t speak Portuguese, but most people in Lisbon speak English. I really like the old part of town, and the Expo site. Also, we visited Malaga in February, when the weather was already very nice but there weren’t too many tourists, and that was really relaxing too.
What can you tell visitors about Antwerp?
It’s very good for shopping, everything is centrally located, and there are lots of great restaurants. I recommend Pazzo (12 Leeuwensruil, tel: +32 (0)3 232 8692), which has fresh seasonal produce and an excellent range of wines by the glass.
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