Away Rewrites Aluminum Luggage Economics

Plus: Delta and Spanx push airline lifestyle merchandising

Author

Avinash Duggempudi
October 01, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes

Travel Unpacked

Here's what's happening this week in the world of travel and travel accessories eCommerce:
- Delta and Spanx team on travel-wear drop.
- Away launches hybrid Aluminum Edge to reset mid-tier.
- Consumer-voted awards prove trust badges lift conversion.
- Stanley’s fall hues fuel seasonal refresh cycles.
- Herschel’s quilted capsule taps tactile design demand.

⏱️THE MINUTE READ

Juvenon suspected upper-funnel spend were fueling growth, but pixel reporting undervalued them, pushing spend to the bottom funnel.

With Fospha’s Halo, they unified DTC and Amazon sales and uncovered the truth: TikTok was 9X stronger than reported, DTC performance was under-credited by 2.9X, and upper funnel became their growth engine.

  • 📈 +18% revenue growth QoQ

  • 📉 20% CAC improvement YoY

  • 🚀 10X upper-funnel SoW growth

📌WEEKLY MUST-KNOWS

Delta Air Lines and Spanx are releasing a limited-edition travel-wear capsule as Delta marks 100 years and Spanx turns 25. The airline-to-apparel tie-up signals airlines leaning into lifestyle merchandising to extend brand equity and unlock new DTC and loyalty revenue. Expect ripple effects in airport retail, co-branded drops, and member‑exclusive bundles.

Away introduced Aluminum Edge, a hybrid frame-plus-polycarbonate line with zipper-free locks and a gasket seal, priced from $425. By splitting the difference between poly and full aluminum on durability and price, Away is resetting category benchmarks and expanding the premium economy tier. Competitors will face pressure on materials, warranty positioning, and mid-tier price architecture.

The only travel-retail awards voted entirely by consumers named 2025 winners and revealed that “Voted by Shoppers” badges lift purchase intent by 22% to 31%. That evidence makes third-party trust marks a proven CRO lever for PDPs, paid media and in-store displays. Brands and operators in duty free and DTC should plan creative refreshes to capitalize.

Nothing’s CMF Headphones Pro debuted globally with 100-hour battery life, hybrid ANC and LDAC at sub-$100 price points, with US sales starting Oct 7. Long-endurance audio at this price resets the value bar for long-haul travel use cases and bundles. Travel retailers and DTC brands can lean into tech-accessory cross-sells and holiday gifting.

⚡QUICK READS

Stanley’s New Fall Colors – Juniper, Cashmere, Espresso Gold: Stanley rolls out fall colorways across core tumblers and bottles, a palette play that drives seasonal repeat purchase and AOV via bundles.(More)

Herschel Supply Quilted Capsule Collection – Backpacks, Totes & Crossbodies: Herschel debuts a quilted capsule across backpacks, totes and crossbodies, adding tactile differentiation that can lift conversion in fall merchandising windows.(More)

The Year’s Best Travel Watch Now Looks Even Better: Nomos refreshes its Club Sport Neomatik Worldtimer with three Night Navigation references, sustaining demand for high-design travel complications ahead of Q4 gifting.(More)

Timex Launches Timex Atelier, Debuts Marine M1a As First Expression: Timex unveils the Marine M1a under its new Atelier line, signaling accessible quiet luxury positioning and a DTC-first launch that favors owned-channel storytelling.(More)

ClickZ is a ClickZ Media publication in the DTC eCommerce division