Spirit Airlines is out of bankruptcy, hitting its target to emerge in the first quarter, after a crippling few years. CEO Ted Christie says the carrier is leaner and ready to take on competitors, including rival Southwest Airlines.

Earlier this week, Southwest shocked customers by announcing it will start charging for checked bags for the first time in its half-century of flying, a huge strategy move for the largest domestic U.S. carrier. (There are some exceptions to Southwest new bag rules, which take effect in late May.)

“I think it’s going to be painful for a little bit as they find their footing, and we’re going to take advantage of that,” Spirit’s Christie said in an interview Thursday.

Southwest had been a standout in the U.S. by offering all customers two free checked bags, a perk that has endured recessions, spikes in fuel prices and other crises while most rivals introduced bag fees and raised them every few years.

Spirit Airlines, on the other hand, made a la carte pricing common in the U.S., with fees for seat assignments, checked bags and other add-ons. It’s a strategy most large airlines, except for Southwest, have copied in one form or another.

As Southwest starts charging for bags and introduces its first basic economy class, which doesn’t include a seat assignment or allow free changes, Spirit could possibly win over customers, Christie said.

Southwest said it would get rid of its single-class open seating model last year.

“There at least was an audience of people who were intentionally selecting and flying Southwest because they felt that it was easy. They knew they were going to get two bags,” Christie said. “Now that that’s no longer the case, it’s easy to say that they’re going to widen their aperture and they’re now going to look around.”

Spirit is far smaller than Southwest and even smaller than it was last year, but it competes with the airline in cities like Kansas City, Missouri; Nashville, Columbus, Ohio; and Milwaukee. If customers look on travel sites like Expedia, where Southwest is a new entrant, Spirit’s tickets could be cheaper and appear higher in results, Christie said.

Other airline executives have also said they expect to win over some Southwest customers.

Delta Air Lines President Glen Hauenstein said at a JPMorgan industry conference Tuesday that there are consumers who choose Southwest based on its free-bag perk “and now those customers are up for grabs.”

Spirit, for its part, has recently been offering more ticket bundles that include things like seat assignments and luggage.

The carrier is now focused on returning to profitability. It posted a net loss of more than $1.2 billion last year, more than double its loss in 2023 as it grappled with grounded jets because of a Pratt & Whitney engine recall, higher costs, more domestic competition and a failed acquisition by JetBlue Airways.

Spirit has rejected multiple recent merger attempts by fellow budget carrier Frontier Airlines. Christie said Thursday that nothing is “off the table” and that a fifth-largest airline as a low cost carrier in the U.S. makes sense, but that the airline is focused on stabilizing itself after bankruptcy.

Through its restructuring process, which started in November, Spirit said it reduced its debt by about $795 million. The transaction converted debt into equity for major creditors. The carrier also received a $350 million equity infusion.

Spirit plans to relist its shares on a stock exchange but hasn’t set a date yet.

Donatella Versace announced Thursday that she is stepping down as chief creative officer of Versace, ending her nearly 30-year-long stint at the Italian luxury fashion empire’s helm.

Versace, 69, took on the role to lead the luxury fashion house after her brother and its founder, Gianni Versace, was fatally gunned down outside his Miami Beach mansion in 1997.

‘It has been the greatest honor of my life to carry on my brother Gianni’s legacy,’ Versace wrote on Instagram. ‘He was the true genius, but I hope I have some of his spirit and tenacity.’

Following her brother’s death — and despite not having a background in design or fashion — Versace quickly became a living embodiment of the Versace brand and remains a beloved figure within the fashion industry.

The 69-year-old’s iconic pin-straight blond hair and her unparalleled ability to bring together the industry’s top models, including Naomi Campbell and Cindy Crawford, for the fashion house’s out-of-this-world runway shows became as emblematic of the brand as its gold mythological logo.Emmanuel Gintzburger, CEO of Versace — whose parent company is fashion conglomerate Capri Holdings — said that the brand ‘is what it is today because of Donatella Versace and the passion she has brought to her role every day for nearly thirty years.’

‘The universal values she stands for and her love for uncompromised creativity anchored Versace far beyond a brand or a company,’ he said in a statement. ‘Working alongside her has been an incredible privilege and pleasure.’

Dario Vitale, the former design and image director of Italian brand Miu Miu, will lead the fashion house as its new chief creative officer, the company said in a statement.

“I want to express my sincere thank you to Donatella for her trust in me, and for her tireless dedication to the extraordinary brand that Versace is today,” Vitale said in a statement. “It is a privilege to contribute to the future growth of Versace and its global impact through my vision, expertise and dedication.”

Versace will stay on at the company as its chief brand ambassador.

‘I will remain Versace’s most passionate supporter,’ she said. ‘Versace is in my DNA and always in my heart.’