City Hall Los Angeles

Don't Forget Your Holiday Shopping List: Fruitcake, Eggnog and the southwestgiftcard

Dallas, TX (Vocus) December 15, 2006 -- Along with the fruitcake and eggnog, you can purchase the Southwest Airlines southwestgiftcardTM at your local retailer. At stores such as Albertsons®, Kroger, Safeway*, and at participating SAM'S CLUB and Wal-Mart locations, the southwestgiftcard is available in $50 or $100 denominations near the check-out lanes or in the greeting card aisle. Unlike some gift cards, the southwestgiftcard comes in a fully-enclosed carrier and has a concealed security code for safer gift giving.    


Click here to get more information about the southwestgiftcard.

"By being at retail locations, we are making it easier for our Customers to purchase travel on Southwest Airlines, just in time for the holiday season," said Kevin Krone, Southwest Airlines' Vice President of Marketing, Sales, and Distribution. "We've made it easier than ever to give the gift of a destination, and allow friends and family to experience Southwest's outstanding Customer Service, frequent flights, and low fares."

According to comScore Networks, a Reston, Va.-based research firm, gift cards are becoming popular gifts with consumers. Recently, MasterCard Worldwide's annual Holiday Shopping insights survey found that 60 percent of the respondents plan to buy gift cards. For Southwest, southwestgiftcard retail sales spiked almost 50 percent on "Black Friday" (the day after Thanksgiving) as compared to a typical November day. Sales continue to grow each day as Christmas Day approaches.

To help with the last-minute holiday shopping, the southwestgiftcard can always be purchased on the airline's web site at http://www.southwest.com/gift_cards and may be redeemed at any Southwest Airlines location, such as southwest.com, Southwest airport ticket counters, or by calling Southwest's toll-free Reservations line (1-800-435-9792). Additionally, the southwestgiftcard never expires, has no usage fees, and won't lose value over time.

Southwest Airlines' Technology and Marketing Departments worked closely with SmartClixx LLC to distribute the southwestgiftcard at retail locations. "We are excited to partner with Southwest Airlines in their launch into retail stores. With our experience in gift card software and multiple retail distribution channels, we look forward to extending their brand even further," said Gary Dinkin, Chief Executive Officer of SmartClixx.

Last November, Southwest launched its southwestgiftcard with tremendous success. Sales trends from last holiday season show that the majority of people buy last-minute gifts, so with the upcoming holidays right around the corner, the southwestgiftcard is a terrific gift-giving option. Some interesting tidbits about the retail gift card market include:

Mercator estimates the market for branded third-party gift cards sold at retailers' card racks was worth $3.25 billion at year end 2005.

According to Bain & Co., gift card sales in the U.S. totaled about $50 billion in 2005, with consumers spending an average of $248 dollars on gift cards in the year-end holiday season alone.

Service provider Stored-Value Systems reports that throughout the year, the average purchase value of gift cards, $40 dollars, has been steady in the past three years.

For an image of the retail southwestgiftcard, click here: http://www.southwest.com/images/swamedia/swagc_carriera50and100.jpg. For a complete, updated list of retail locations, please visit: http://www.southwest.com/gift_cards/approved_locations.html
* Safeway stores include Carrs, Dominick's, Genuardi's, Pavilions, Randalls, and Tom Thumb.

About SmartClixx LLC
SmartClixx LLC works with some of the world's largest retailers providing unique in-house Stored Value Card/Gift Card application software and services without charging per-transaction fees. Security, flexibility, streamlined processes and operations, data mining, and future capability with significant cost savings are just a few reasons why Saks Incorporated, Charming Shoppes, Southwest Airlines, Chico's, The TJX Companies, and many others have selected the SmartClixx Stored Value Card solution. For more information about SmartClixx, please visit www.SmartClixx.com or call (561) 998-8515.

About Southwest Airlines
After 35 years of service, Southwest Airlines continues to offer the best value in airline travel. Southwest's fares top out at only $319 one-way; meaning, Southwest Customers can travel nonstop throughout the country at a very low fare. Southwest offers a very comfortable ride with all premium leather seats and plenty of legroom. Southwest does not charge Customers an extra fee for changing their reservation and continues to offer free amenities. Customers enjoy complimentary pillows, blankets, snacks, juice, soda, and water on all flights. Since 1987, the airline has maintained the fewest overall Customer complaints as published in the Department of Transportation's Air Travel Consumer Report. Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV), the nation's largest carrier in terms of domestic passengers enplaned, currently serves 63 cities in 32 states. Based in Dallas, Southwest currently operates more than 3,100 flights a day and has more than 32,000 Employees systemwide.
   
www.southwest.com

Media Please Contact: Public Relations at (214) 792-4847

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