How JPA Design and PTP Are Transforming the In-Flight Experience and Why Professional Studio Photography Matters
In an era where sustainability, comfort, and brand experience are all equally critical, the collaboration between JPA Design and Plane Talking Products (PTP) is timely. Their joint initiative, titled Unwrap the Future, reimagines onboard products and services for airline passengers across economy to business class, with a focus on reducing plastic packaging waste while enhancing comfort and creating a more welcoming boarding experience.
Earlier this year, I had the privilege of being commissioned by JPA Design to produce a series of professional photographs to showcase this groundbreaking range of new onboard products. Utilising studio photography, including styled shots with a model, we captured not just the products themselves but the thoughtful design philosophy that underpins the project. It became immediately clear that Unwrap the Future represents more than just a series of innovations in textile and service design, it reflects a shift in how we think about travel, sustainability, and human connection.
JPA Design
JPA Design is a globally respected, multidisciplinary agency specialising in hospitality, transportation, and product design. With studios in London, Dubai, Singapore, and New Zealand, the agency operates at the intersection of experience, innovation and craft.
Over its 30+ year history, JPA Design has built a reputation for creating transformative environments across the globe. Their work spans aircraft interiors for elite airlines such as Cathay Pacific and Delta Air Lines, luxury hotel design, premium resort spaces, VIP airline lounges, luxury train interiors, and an expanding portfolio in healthcare and wellness sectors.
JPA’s strength lies not only in the beauty of their designs but in the way they consider how people engage with and move through these spaces. They create environments and objects that aren’t just visually compelling, they are immersive, responsive, and human-focussed.
By weaving together disciplines like interior design, industrial design, branding, and program delivery, JPA Design ensures that every project they undertake tells a coherent and compelling story about the brand and the people it serves.
Unwrap the Future: A Partnership for Positive Change
The Unwrap the Future initiative with PTP represents an evolution in how airlines think about sustainability and passenger experience. Traditionally, many in-flight comfort items, from blankets to amenity kits, have been heavily reliant on plastic packaging and disposable materials, resulting in significant waste.
Recognising the urgent need for a shift, JPA Design and PTP developed a range of innovative products that seamlessly blend functionality, aesthetic refinement, and environmental responsibility.
In premium economy cabins, passengers are greeted with a blanket that is not only luxuriously comfortable but also ingeniously designed. Attached neatly to the seat’s backrest dress cover, it eliminates the need for plastic wrapping and frees up space on the seat. Once unfurled, the blanket reveals a generous drawstring pocket that holds a pillow and a smaller secure compartment for personal belongings like smartphones. This thoughtful design ensures that essential items remain close at hand, enhancing both comfort and convenience.
Meanwhile, in business class, the focus shifts to elevating the sleeping experience. The mattress topper, secured with an elegant bow inspired by global fashion influences, is designed to be unwrapped without waste. Cleverly integrated magnets attach the mattress securely to the seat, ensuring stability during sleep — a subtle but powerful enhancement that transforms the experience of rest at 35,000 feet.
This is more than just good design. it’s a strategic move towards sustainability without compromising luxury. Every element anticipates and responds to real passenger needs while supporting airlines’ goals of reducing environmental impact.
Redefining Amenity Kits: Personalisation and Human Connection
Another striking innovation introduced by Unwrap the Future is the personalised approach to amenity items. Instead of distributing standard, pre-packed amenity kits that may contain unnecessary items and generate unnecessary waste, the cabin crew now offers a curated selection of refined essentials. Passengers select only the items they wish to use, and these are presented in a practical, reusable bag that can be hung from a coat or headphones hook.
This system does more than reduce environmental impact. It restores the human touch to the in-flight experience, fostering a more personalised interaction between crew and passenger. It also respects passenger autonomy and comfort by giving them control over their onboard environment.
The result is a seamless, refined service that is more sustainable, more elegant, and more attuned to the evolving expectations of today’s travellers. The collection launched at the World Travel Catering & Onboard Services Expo (WTCE) where over 3,000 attendees from all over the globe were able to interact with the first prototypes of Unwrap the Future.
Why Professional Studio Photography Matters for Brands Like JPA Design
When JPA Design commissioned me to capture the Unwrap the Future collection, they recognised the critical role that professional studio photography plays in storytelling and brand building. In an age of instant digital content, a strong visual narrative remains indispensable, especially for brands that operate at the intersection of luxury, innovation, and experience. For a design agency like JPA, whose work is grounded in the tangible qualities of material, form, light, and spatial interaction, photography becomes an extension of their design ethos.
Professional studio photography offers several unique advantages:
Clarity and Precision: All of the textures, details, and design features are rendered with precision. This was vital for showing how the blanket’s hidden pockets and mattress topper’s magnetic attachments function in real-world conditions.
Controlled Lighting: In the studio, lighting can be controlled to emphasise material richness, fine detailing, and the overall aesthetic tone. Subtle textures in textiles and reflective surfaces on seating are faithfully captured.
Brand Consistency: Carefully directed photography maintains visual consistency with a brand’s identity; clean, considered, and elegant in the case of JPA.
Storytelling Through Staging: Incorporating a model allowed us to show the products in use, turning abstract objects into lived experiences. It enabled us to communicate comfort, convenience, and human connection in a direct, relatable way, with some of the photography more akin to lifestyle photography.
By investing in professional photography, JPA Design ensures that its groundbreaking work is presented to the world in a manner that matches its ambition and quality, creating lasting impressions that drive brand equity and client trust.
A Vision for the Future of Travel
The partnership between JPA Design and Plane Talking Products demonstrates that sustainability and luxury are no longer opposing forces in the travel industry. Instead, thoughtful, innovative design can bring them into dynamic conversation.
From the elimination of single-use plastics to the reimagining of the in-flight experience as a personalized and responsive journey, Unwrap the Future is setting a new benchmark for what passengers can expect when they fly.
Through strategic collaborations, visionary design, and a commitment to both human experience and environmental stewardship, JPA Design continues to redefine what it means to create spaces, products, and journeys that are transformational.
Through professional photography, the spirit of these innovations is faithfully captured, ensuring they resonate beyond the cabin, inspiring future partnerships and mindful projects.
See more examples of my studio product photography and email richard@richardbollphotography.com to discuss images for your next annual report.
