The word Kulula means "easily" in Zulu, referring to the airline's goal of making flying easier and cheaper. In 2008, with annual sales exceeding $189 million, the company expanded its offerings and advertising.
Kulula painted its jets bright green in early 2010 with white labels identifying each plane with the name "Flying 101" and its different parts, such as "wing" and "loo" (toilet). Head of marketing Nadine Damen said, "The idea is to demystify air travel."
During the spring 2010 World Cup competition in South Africa when the International Federation of Association Football forced the airline to withdraw an ad with soccer themes they claimed infringed on the association's copyright, the airline benefited from the publicity and continued its advertising with a tongue-in-cheek approach.
