With peak holiday booking season in full swing in the United Kingdom, modern relationship marketing agency MRM Spain, Weber Shandwick and Allevia® have launched “Allevia® Pollen Passport,” a modern-day tool that harnesses the power of CX and Commerce and helps people plan their travel without worrying about allergies and air pollution potentially ruining their trip. Created in partnership with global air quality and pollen data company, Ambee, Allevia’s® Pollen Passport visualizes and interprets allergy risks in more than 100 countries and 70,000 cities around the globe.
The launch coincides with Blue Monday (Jan 20), the well-known UK observance that marks the third Monday of January, dubbed the “saddest” day of the year where the travel industry sees an influx of holiday bookings.
MRM Spain has brought to life a stunning data visualization in partnership with creative data-driven solutions consulting agency, CLEVERºFRANKE. The interactive experience can be accessed on pollenpassport.com, where users are invited to check their next holiday destination for potential allergy risks.
How it Works
Ahead of their travels, passport users can get an accurate forecast by entering their destination and travel date. The platform displays detailed information about allergen levels, filtering through pollen species that will be active during their time of travel. The result will be delivered in a stunning botanical illustration, paired with a dynamic discount code for up to 40% off Allevia, depending on the pollen levels at a user’s specific destination. Five days before users take off, users can revisit pollenpassport.com to get an updated live report of the allergens at their holiday location. In addition, the Allevia® Pollen Passport also unblocks outdoor activity recommendations curated in partnership with Tripadvisor.
Rising Pollen Levels and Air Pollution
Since 2020, global pollen levels have surged significantly, increasing 13% annually since 2020, with air pollution being an additional contributor to allergy flare-ups.* For those planning a last-minute winter sun break, the passport is currently flagging poor air quality in popular destinations including Dubai, Mumbai and Bangkok. For spring and summer holiday planning, the data shows most regions of the world have been impacted by above-average pollen levels in recent years, with the worst-hit including some of UK holidaymakers’ favourite destinations Germany, Italy, France, Spain, Netherlands and Japan.
Nick Linton, head of UK country operations for Opella, comments: “We know how important holidays are and nobody wants a highly anticipated trip ruined by an allergy flare up. We want to help people take control of their health by making it as simple as possible, this tool will really be a great aid to help travellers by giving them information and advice to prepare for their holiday and take control of their allergies before they’ve even left the UK.”
Felix del Valle, Global Chief Creative Officer, MRM Spain, comments: “With this platform, we leverage data and creativity in ways that help Allevia build a helpful and enduring relationship with their UK-consumer base. Rising air quality challenges present a real need for innovations like the Pollen Passport for travellers, and the added commerce integration helps Allevia® meet consumers in the right place at the right time.”
About MRM
MRM is a modern relationship marketing agency dedicated to building enduring brand relationships. MRM’s specialized capabilities help grow relationship lifetime value and span CRM, Customer Experience, and Commerce with data and martech at the core. MRM operates in a borderless, integrated way to enable greater collaboration, creative effectiveness, and pure speed to market. MRM is part of McCann Worldgroup and the Interpublic Group of companies (NYSE: IPG), with 35 offices across North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia Pacific. For more information, please visit www.mrm.com.
About Allevia®
Allevia’s ® allergy relief range can help allergy sufferers manage their symptoms all year round.
Allevia® 120mg tablets effectively relieve symptoms of allergic rhinitis (hayfever, pet, dust and mould allergies) such as sneezing, itchy, red & watery eyes, runny, itchy or blocked nose. New Allevia Hives 180mg tablets (available in stores from March 2025) effectively relieve symptoms of hives (urticaria) and can support symptoms like raised, itchy skin.
Allevia’s® range provides multi-symptom prescription strength relief that acts within 1 hour, lasts 24 hours and is non drowsy*. The tablets contain fexofenadine. Always read the label. *in most people.
*Ambee X Sanofi: Understanding the Global Pollen Dynamics of the Decade, 2020 – 2022
