A passionate aviation professional, luxury travel entrepreneur, and global citizen with more than 15 years of international experience, Gabriel Meza Madrid serves as the CEO of Dubai-based aircraft management and charter company Jet Luxe.
Hailing from a family of pilots, Gabriel and his brother Sam spent most of their careers in the aviation industry. Over the years, both became obsessed with efficiency and improving the customer experience. They soon realized that although aviation is incredibly innovative, many elements of the industry need improvements. For example, a charter’s booking and payment process is much more cumbersome and problematic than it should be. Issues like banking procedures, time differences, public holidays, and currency issues slow down the process of booking a flight, which is very frustrating when an individual wants to fly immediately. So, Gabriel and Sam decided to develop a fintech product to streamline the payment processes of private jets.
Making processes better
Soon, Gabriel and Sam left their full-time roles and went all out for their start-up journey, growing the team to twelve. Gabriel states, “Our obsession with efficiency had us working day and night on a solution. In parallel, we were offering aircraft management and charter services, which is our area of expertise.” Through this process, aircraft owners approached Jet Luxe, and frustrated with jet management’s status quo, they requested the firm to take over their aircraft.
Eventually, their approach was very well received, and they started multiplying. Jet Luxe’s customers would say, “We are tired of the lack of transparency in business aviation,” and “you’re doing a great job, let’s do more together.”
Since its inception, Jet Luxe’s primary differentiator is its transparency, efficiency, honesty, and the ability to offer exceptional experiences. The market wanted Jet Luxe to continue developing its charter and management business, to which the company obliged. So, the organization was developed to streamline processes, making aircraft ownership and charter flights much more effective without compromising on experience and quality.
Fixing broken processes
Jet Luxe manages and operates private jets. However, the organization’s primary focus is its customer service; it helps solve various travel issues, creates investment opportunities, and enhances the overall experience of private jet travel.
Gabriel states, “We differentiate because we know our clients’ concerns, frustrations, and aspirations. From here, we can diversify our service profile and offer more agile solutions than bigger operators in this space. As a start-up, if we see an issue in the market, we can respond to it extremely quickly. We have the investment and manpower to make change happen rapidly.”
Jet Luxe provides focused attention and 24/7 global personalized services for its clients. The organization also offers an investment option named INVICTUS Patron for its mature business aviation users, who can sponsor an aircraft and enjoy a proven return on investment.
Handling failures and success
Over the years, Gabriel has seen and faced a lot of failures. However, these failures have taught him to give maximum effort and try everything in his capacity to make things happen.
He says, “When the outcome isn’t as we had hoped – that’s okay. When we fail, we learn. Yes, the stakes are extremely high, and we will always try our very best to deliver exceptional outcomes, but if failures occur, we learn and move forward. 90% of factors are within our control, and the remaining % we need to learn from. There is always an opportunity to grow.“
Gabriel believes that success can’t be defined through a single channel- one needs a well-rounded life. He states, “We need professional fulfillment and business success but also a peaceful, well-rounded life. Success is being clear about and achieving your objectives. For me, these are wealth, health, and peace.”
The driving force
Gabriel is a problem solver and finds change very exciting. His vision is to keep seeing problems, finding solutions, and driving disruption. He always wants to keep bringing new perspectives and fresh outlooks to the table. He states, “What drives me for a successful journey is finding ways to disrupt and adapt processes. This might not sound exciting, but when you discover a process that creates massive savings and value – it motivates you to continue.“
Preparing for the future
As the CEO of Jet Luxe, Gabriel plans to expand the fleet to meet the enormous demand. The organization is also increasing its concierge services, account management, and travel management options. Its future perspective will always be agile, as it can’t predict market conditions or client preferences perfectly. Jet Luxe can lead with a commitment to taking a disruptive approach to the business model.
At the topmost level, Gabriel also wants to support and encourage the respective authorities to enable better access and movement for the sector. He says, “Business aviation provides jobs and substantial economic contributions, and it enables the world to keep moving. So, we’re here to help governments appreciate and understand the value of business aviation. From becoming more sustainable and greener to creating more financial contributions – business aviation should be better understood and supported.“
Jet Luxe is also committed to thoughtful and powerful strategic alliances with new organizations. It partners with new disruptive companies starting from fintech to fuel and interior designers to catering service providers and linnen suppliers.
Jet Luxe expects to balance growth and scale with continued consistent services being provided.Gabriel states, “We will grow, expand, and diversify, but we will never weaken our services. For example, we won’t dilute the concierge or account managers ratio per aircraft or partner. This will remain extremely important for our long-term quality control and management.“