The archive · Product Ideas · Product decision · 2025
Saudia 'The Coolest Ihram' cools pilgrims' garment with patented fabric — Loeries Bronze
Saudia and Landor re-engineer the 1,400-year-old Ihram with cooling fabric that lowers skin temperature by up to 2°C — 8,400+ pilgrims protected at Hajj 2025.
Saudia Airlines
What it had to solve
Every pilgrim performing Hajj must wear the Ihram — a simple garment unchanged for more than 1,400 years — while walking up to 60 km in temperatures that can reach 51°C, exposing them to serious heat risk. Saudia, the airline that has carried more pilgrims than any other, wanted its post-rebrand promise of innovation to become something pilgrims could literally wear.
How it works
Hajj pushes pilgrims to the limits of human heat tolerance: walking up to 60 km over five days in temperatures reaching 51°C, in dense crowds, wearing only the Ihram — a garment that has not changed in more than 1,400 years. Saudia, the airline that carries more pilgrims than any other, decided the product itself was the problem worth solving.
With Landor and brrr®, a US cooling-fabric company, Saudia created The Coolest Ihram: the first Ihram made with patented cooling fabric, using cooling minerals, active wicking and rapid drying to lower skin temperature by up to 2°C, with UPF 50+ sun protection — while remaining compliant with the religious requirements of Ihram for both men and women.
The garment debuted at Arabian Travel Market 2025 and was first deployed during Hajj 2025, where it protected more than 8,400 pilgrims with 100% pilgrim satisfaction. The Ministry of Hajj endorsed it for wider use, and it became available through Saudia's e-commerce and official Hajj travel agencies worldwide.
The launch delivered a 20% uplift in positive brand sentiment on lower-than-benchmark media investment. The work took Bronze in Design — Fabric Design at the Loeries 2025 and went on to a Cannes Lions Bronze, D&AD shortlistings and a One Show Merit, cementing The Coolest Ihram as one of the year's most awarded product innovations.
Why it lands
- The insight is a product truth: the Ihram is the only thing every pilgrim wears, so improving it improves the entire journey.
- The cooling fabric solved a real physical problem — heat risk during Hajj — rather than merely adding a message.
- The religious constraint became the creative constraint: the fabric had to be compliant, which made the engineering itself the story.
- Saudia owned the innovation from its core business — carrying pilgrims — so the idea could not be copied by a competitor's ad budget.
What it did
First deployed during Hajj 2025, the garment protected more than 8,400 pilgrims and recorded 100% pilgrim satisfaction, and the Ministry of Hajj endorsed it for wider use. Its launch delivered a 20% uplift in positive brand sentiment, and the work took Bronze in Design — Fabric Design at the Loeries 2025, with later recognition at Cannes Lions, D&AD and The One Show.
What you can take
When a product has not changed in 1,400 years, the biggest idea is the product itself: re-engineering a sacred constant as protection gave an airline a story no rival could copy.
Since then
The Coolest Ihram became one of the most awarded pieces of work in the Gulf's creative year: Bronze in Design — Fabric Design at the Loeries 2025, a Cannes Lions Bronze in PR, D&AD shortlistings and a One Show Merit. Beyond the trophies, Saudia reported 100% satisfaction among the 8,400+ pilgrims who used it at Hajj 2025, a 20% uplift in positive brand sentiment, and an endorsement from the Ministry of Hajj. The product is now sold through Saudia's e-commerce and official Hajj travel agencies, anchoring the airline to the millions of pilgrims who travel each year.
Sources
- Loeries 2025 Night 1 — All the winners
- The Coolest Ihram — D&AD Awards Archive
- Saudia — The Coolest Ihram case study
- Saudia unveils 'The Coolest Ihram', a high-tech Hajj & Umrah innovation
spotted an error? The archive wants to know.
Your turn
You just read one. Describe the brief you are staring at, and see who has been given the same problem.
Free account · 3 free questions · no card