If you’re wondering what to get your loved ones this holiday, look no further than the premiere gift guide, “The Flyer’s Collection.” It’s the peak time of year for travel so make sure you fly in comfort. Scratchy fabric seats? Try “Leather in a Jar.” Feeling the tight cabin space? Zip into the “Full Body Compression Garment.” No leg room? Strap yourself into the “Knee Jockey.”

These are just a few of the JetBlue offerings to get you through flying in high season if you were not able to book a JetBlue flight (actual items not for sale). The gift guide lampoon concept is the brainchild of Jim Wood, creative director at JWT. He worked closely with Jamie Chung and stylist Ariana Salvato.

“It’s obvious that the state of the commercial airline industry isn’t good,” notes Jim Wood. “Travelers are charged for everything, given nothing and treated like livestock. JetBlue honestly tries hard to make things better. They recognize their passengers are actual human beings. And they work like hell to make people’s travel experiences better. That said, they also recognize that sometimes people fly other airlines. So, we created The Flyer’s Collection specifically for those times.”

At one point, there were close to 80 products in the gift guide, including a miniature elven cookie factory where elves made macaroons. Through thoughtful editing, 15 products were carefully selected, placed with a bow, and put in the catalog. Unfortunately, the elven cookie factory had to go but other favorites such as the Mind Eraser (memory altering gamma rays for erasing bad flights), Marshmallow Pillow (edible pillow for long flights with no snacks), and Extrago (a shirt with extra cargo space to avoid luggage fees) made the cut.

Wood recalls, “One of the best parts of the shoot was walking the models through the overall concept and then showing them their wardrobe. We chose a really good looking cast and then told them they’d be wearing a luggage shirt and resting on a pillow made of marshmallow.”

As Chung directed the models, he sought to find a balance between sly humor and outright camp. “The models had to be over the top, yet the look we were going for was a subtle humor. We tried to make ‘The Flyers Collection’ look like any other high-end gift guide, until people read a little closer and got the punchline.”

Adds Wood, “All of the ideas were in place before the shoot, but we needed a way to bring them to life in a way that felt elevated and premium. Jamie helped us get there. Not only did he add a host of details and accents to each individual item, his lighting gave the overall project a real polish.”

Besides small props such as the Knee Jockey and Leather in a Jar,  Salvato also handled 750 lb. airplane seats and enlisted the manpower to rig it to an airplane wall. She additionally oversaw the wardrobe and a mock pop-up shop. Used to having at least a month to prepare for window displays, Salvato managed to turn around a raw space into “The Flyers Collection” store in less than a week. All of the gift guide products will be displayed in the faux storefront in the high-traffic Meatpacking District neighborhood of NY.

The JetBlue holiday campaign will be taking over New York City this month. The catalog will be an insert in the December issue of New York Magazine and distributed in car service vehicles around New York City. Ads will run in subway cars and there will be a full cover-wrap on Metro NY. Banners ads will be placed on the New York Post, New York Magazine, AOL online, and Facebook websites. A mock pop-up store on 9th avenue between 14th and 15th street is now open. If you are in New York be sure to visit the store and keep an eye out for “The Flyers Collection”!

-Helen Shih

>Explore The Flyer’s Collection
>View Jamie Chung’s Portfolio
>View Ariana Salvato’s Portfolio
>View The Flyers Collection at Creativity Online

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Ad Agency: JWT NY
Client: JetBlue
Creative Director: Jim Wood
Art Buyer: Cheryl Masaitis
Photographer: Jamie Chung
Wardrobe, set, and prop stylist: Ariana Salvato
Producer: Elle Sullivan Wilson
Pop-up Shop Set Builders: Mike Myers and Composition Workshop
Location: Pier 59