gategroup has been selected by Vueling as its new Retail-on-Board and catering partner across the airline’s network, marking the start of a strategic collaboration focused on improving the onboard experience through smarter retail, stronger culinary delivery, and more connected technology.
As one of Europe’s leading carriers and a key player in Spanish connectivity, Vueling is continuing to invest in making travel more simple, modern, and enjoyable. Through this new partnership, gategroup will support that ambition with a 360º digital retail ecosystem designed to strengthen both customer experience and operational efficiency.
At the core of the partnership is gateretail’s integrated suite of retail technology. This will give Vueling access to real-time insights, advanced data analytics, and digital touchpoints that help streamline onboard operations while opening the door to new inflight service opportunities. The goal is not only to improve how retail is delivered in the cabin, but also to make the offering more relevant, convenient, and responsive to passenger needs.
The partnership also extends beyond retail. gategroup will provide a scalable, future-ready catering and Retail-on-Board model that combines culinary quality with operational consistency. Through gategourmet and Evertaste, Vueling will benefit from curated meal solutions tailored to passenger preferences, alongside healthy meals for crew and pilots produced through centralized facilities designed to ensure safety, reliability, and standardization across the value chain.
For both companies, the collaboration is also about long-term innovation. Continuous innovation sessions between gategroup and Vueling teams will help shape new retail and product concepts, allowing both partners to stay ahead of changing customer expectations and wider industry developments.
Christoph Schmitz, CEO of gategroup, said the partnership reflects a shared focus on creating a more seamless and user-centric passenger journey. Melanie Berry, Chief Customer Officer at Vueling, added that the collaboration will help introduce new retail and culinary concepts while using advanced technology to make the inflight offer more relevant and enjoyable for customers.
Together, the partnership highlights a clear ambition: to deliver a more connected, efficient, and engaging onboard experience across Vueling’s network.
About Vueling
Vueling, a company belonging to the IAG group, is a benchmark airline in Europe and key to connectivity in Spain.
It is a leader in its main base in the Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat, and in other relevant markets in Spain such as Bilbao. It also leads the connection between the peninsula and the Balearic and Canary Islands. At an international level, it is working to strengthen its presence in bases such as Paris-Orly or London-Gatwick. The company has a network of around 250 routes a year connecting 30 countries. In 2025, it has operated more than 225,000 flights and carried 38 million passengers.
With more than 5,000 employees, Vueling is Europe’s only Top Employer airline. The company is strongly committed to the decarbonisation of the sector and, as part of the IAG group, has committed to reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050 through the implementation of the FlightPath Net Zero strategy.
True to its digital DNA, Vueling was the first airline to sell tickets through the mobile application and to have a digital boarding pass with a QR code. The airline also has a team of more than 600 people working in its innovation hubs in Barcelona and Zaragoza.
About gategroup
gategroup is a leading global provider of airline catering, retail-on-board, and hospitality products and services. Headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, the company serves millions of passengers through a network of nearly 200 locations in more than 60 countries. By leveraging innovation and operational expertise, gategroup partners with the world’s leading airlines to create exceptional travel experiences. Learn more at www.gategroup.com
As Lufthansa marks 100 years of connecting the world, the airline is using the moment not just to celebrate heritage, but to sharpen what comes next. Its Future Onboard Experience (FOX) initiative, rolling out from 2026, is designed to make long-haul travel feel more personal, more premium, and more distinctly Lufthansa across every cabin class.
gategroup is playing an important role in that evolution, working closely with Lufthansa’s culinary, product, and inflight service teams to elevate the long-haul dining experience. Over the past year, the collaboration has taken shape through hands-on culinary workshops, tasting sessions, and operational planning, all aimed at building a dining concept that holds up in the air and still feels curated on the plate.
In First Class, FOX introduces a refined culinary approach built around minimalist but intense flavour profiles. Dishes are designed with a small number of carefully chosen components, letting ingredient quality do the talking. Classic fine dining technique is the backbone, with subtle global influences woven in, and presentation that feels elegant and restrained, surprising through balance rather than complexity.
The onboard rhythm is equally considered. Guests will experience a sequence of smaller courses, including a trilogy of amuse-bouche, a starter, and dessert. For the main course, the concept offers flexibility without losing its sense of occasion, with a choice between a signature dish or smaller-portion selections. It’s a format that feels premium, but also modern, giving guests more freedom to shape the meal around their appetite and timing.
Behind each First Class menu cycle is a deliberate development process. Max Herzog, Executive Chef at Studio 508, has led a series of joint culinary development workshops to create dishes specifically for Lufthansa. These concepts are refined through tastings and collaborative iteration before being presented to a dedicated jury, which ultimately selects the dishes served onboard, ensuring every menu reflects Lufthansa’s premium ambition and FOX philosophy.
Business Class is a highlight of the program in a different way, by putting choice front and center. Building on the popularity of the Lafer menus on short- and medium-haul routes, Lufthansa and gategroup are bringing the concept to long-haul in collaboration with Johann Lafer. With FOX, guests can decide what they want to eat, and when. The new Sky Selection makes the second meal customizable, spanning sweet and savoury options, bowls, cakes, snack plates, and regional favourites. Before sleep, guests can also pre-select breakfast, from smoothies and egg dishes to freshly baked bread rolls.
Upgrades extend well beyond the premium cabins. Premium Economy moves closer to Business Class with enhanced appetizers, three main-course choices, new tableware, and an expanded tray presentation. In Economy Class, long-haul guests will, for the first time, be offered a choice of three main dishes, making individuality part of the standard experience, not an exception.
For gategroup, the work is both creative and operational. Alongside menu development, trend insight, and culinary craftsmanship, the partnership leans heavily on execution at scale, refining dishes for inflight conditions and building the production and quality-control systems needed to deliver consistency across the network.
As Olaf Mauthe, Head of Inflight Service at Lufthansa, notes, FOX is a key element of Lufthansa’s ambition to develop its onboard experience holistically, and the close partnership with gategroup is a critical success factor in bringing new culinary concepts into operation.
Herman Anbeek, President Europe gategroup, echoes that sentiment, congratulating Lufthansa and its employees on the centenary milestone and underscoring the shared focus on innovation, culinary quality, and consistency. With FOX set for launch across all long-haul cabins this year, the collaboration is less about a single menu change and more about a broader shift, towards an onboard experience that feels thoughtfully designed, distinctly Lufthansa, and genuinely more personal at altitude.
About gategroup
gategroup is a leading global provider of airline catering, retail-on-board, and hospitality products and services. Headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, the company serves millions of passengers through a network of nearly 300 locations in more than 68 countries. By leveraging innovation and operational expertise, gategroup partners with the world’s leading airlines to create exceptional travel experiences. Learn more at www.gategroup.com.
