Keeping you abreast of what's going on in the
Japanese travel and tourism industries.
News consolidated by Travel Vision, Inc. updated every week.
Xpress Travel to Restructure Strategy for Japanese Market to Achieve Original Goal Three Years Ahead Mid-May 2008
Hong Kong-capitalized Xpress Travel is going to restructure its
strategy for the Japanese market by mid-summer this year. Xpress
Travel is a travel arm of Japan Xpress, a Japanese corporation of
Xpress Group that is engaged in travel, credit card, and hospitality
service in Asia, Europe, and America. Japan Xpress bought out Nihon
Kotsu Kanko Co. and Crystal Travel Co. and merged them, changing the
corporate name to Xpress Travel, with a further acquisition of Makino
Air Travel Service Co. in Sapporo.
At the end of May 2007, it claimed it would grow much bigger in
size within a few years by means of merger or capital tie-up, but it
is now forced to modify the strategy in a way to match the Japanese
business climate.
It affirms, however, the initial goals remain unshaken, namely,
200 stores of travel agency, 20 sites of accommodation facilities,
and sales of US$400 million and that it will stick to the same method
of merger and capital tie-up to achieve the objectives. These goals,
it says, will be accomplished in three years from now. Currently it
has 25 travel stores and three accommodation facilities.
Yukihiro Sato, general manager for Administration Dept. General
Affairs Div. at Xpress Travel, has this to say about the readjustment
of the strategy, "As we have been too much in a rush up to now, we
have to stop to review the whole process."
He cites the reason of the reassessment, saying the differences
of business environments between Japan and Hong Kong were much
greater than the Hong Kong headquarters had anticipated, including
incurred expenses such as personnel costs and taxes.
Moreover, even if the company comes across with eligible travel
agencies for merger and acquisition, they are too often found fragile
in financial ground. The headquarters is disappointed, therefore, to
learn that there are not so many agencies in Japan that are well run
under a firm policy and make sizable profits.
As an immediate measure, the company hurriedly recruited some
competent staff from NTB, a travel agency that had filed for
voluntary bankruptcy. It says replenishment of human resources is
another way of reinforcing the organizational strength.
As far as the store deployment scheme is concerned, it is going
mainly into the premises of general merchandise stores in Kanto and
Kansai areas as it did in Tsudanuma in March and Tsukuba in April,
since free-standing stores cost a lot more.
It is also planning to handle Chinese visitors to Japan as part
of inbound business. "The idea is conceived from the viewpoint of
making two-way business with a counterpart of the group in the
travel-originating country," he said. "Considering the tough
competition with other agencies, we would have no other choice but
focus on FIT business for that matter." They will use buses owned by
Nihon Kotsu Kanko to make and sell optional tours for those visitors.
RSS
