Japan Travel Trade Weekly News
Keeping you abreast of what's going on in the
Japanese travel and tourism industries.
News consolidated by Travel Vision, Inc. updated every week.
JATA Makes Best Efforts toward Goal of 20 Million Outbound Travelers
in 2010; Opportunity Not to Miss for Market Expansion
January 2008
Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) officially announced on
January 9 its decision to promote "Visit World Campaign (VWC)" that
aims to attain 20 million outbound travelers in 2010.
It sets up two working groups within the organization; one is
"Special Committee for Promoting VWC 20 Million" lead by Takashi
Sasaki, president of JTB and chairman of JATA Outbound Travel
Committee, and the other is "Promotion Office for VWC 20 Million" to
support materially the above Special Committee. This office, appropriated
with a budget over 50 million yen from JATA and afforded with working
staff, aspires to boost overseas travel demand across the industry.
Koji Shinmachi, chairman of JATA, shows determination, saying,
"JATA has been much involved in routine works like negotiations with
administrative authorities and development of human resource, but now
we will exert every possible effort in order to spur market demand
toward 2010."
He is of the opinion that JATA does not preclude the possibility
to work with the administrative bodies in one way or another for the
accomplishment of 20 million goal in outbound travelers as set forth
in the government's basic plan for tourism nation, but primarily it
should act on its own without asking for help or guidance from the
government. He would rather anticipate government's cooperation in
other aspects that travel industry or private sectors cannot deal
with; for example, in the areas of aviation administration, easing of
visa requirements, incentives for workers' holidays, and alleviation
of educational tour restrictions.
Mr. Sasaki says, "We will focus on selected destinations and work
with foreign government's tourism offices and airlines to lead market
demand." He makes a point that scaled-up demand will help travel
agencies create more value and lead them to better management.
"Bigger volume of business will give more freehand to the management
and produce resources for reinvestment for future growth."
He expounds further: "The current ratio of conventional type of
package tour and a new high-yield package tour is approximately
20:80. It is projected the proportion will change at least to 50:50
in five to ten years, or may even be reversed to the advantage of the
latter. Agencies should make a start immediately to adjust themselves
to the oncoming change of the market. It would be too late to do so
after five years."
* General Manager of Promotion Office to Be Chosen from Public by End
of January
Special Committee for Promoting VWC 20 Million is responsible for
the project master plan and the policy making. It consists of
chairman (Mr. Sasaki), vice chairman (a JATA director), and other
members - seven members from the JATA's board, three from airport
companies, two from airlines, one each from ANTOR-JAPAN, BOAR, JNTO,
and CLAIR.
Meanwhile, Promotion Office for VWC 20 Million has four different
functions, namely, (1) strategic team in relation to destinations,
(2) overseas travel promotion council, (3) secretariat for Special
Committee for Promoting VWC 20 Million, and (4) mission of demand
creation. The office will be made up by general manager, assistant
general manager, 10 people from member companies on temporary basis,
plus two to three operation staff and a clerk from JATA.
The general manager is to be selected from the public by the end
of January. Takaya Okuyama, director and secretary general of JATA,
makes a comment on this: "What it takes to be the general manager is
leadership. Personal connection with travel and airline industries as
well as administrative agencies would also be required."
Temporary members from travel agencies are supposed to work for
six-month to three-year period. From the necessity to cooperate with
JATA's regional chapters and mount campaigns countrywide, either
general manager or assistant general manager will be chosen from
Kansai area.
Nippon Express Reorganizes Travel Subsidiaries under NTS, Dissolving
OTS and NNT
The Nippon Express travel unit decided, in a move to reorganize
travel subsidiaries, to dissolve Osaka Travel Service (OTS) and NNT
and let NTS absorb them as of February 1 so that NTS can reinforce
sales power and heighten business productivity. By this measure, NTS
will publish a unified tariff effective from April and expand
business on a nationwide scale. OTS and NNT are to function as West
Japan branch and Chubu branch of NTS respectively.
Up to now, OTS and NNT have been engaged in air ticket sales
under Category Three License of Travel Agency Law but, after being
merged, they can do business nationwide as a Category One travel
agency, utilizing NTS's reservation system. They now share with NTS
the reservation system for Tabi-ist's Grande package tour and the
website "Nsite" for trade use.
Takashi Shirai, director and general manager for sales at NTS,
says, "We are going to focus on sale of tour products that entail
domestic add-on fares."
Revenue of NTS for the fiscal year 2008 was 27 billion yen with
234,000 customers, while OTS's revenue was 3.6 billion yen with
34,000 customers and NNT's revenue was 1.9 billion yen with 18,500
customers. Employees number 90 at NTS, 30 at OTS, and 15 at NNT, so
the consolidated company will have 135 people as workforce.
ANA to Operate Haneda/ Hong Kong Scheduled Charters from April,
Launching Also Asia Strategic Business Unit
ANA is planning to start daily scheduled charter flights between
Tokyo's Haneda and Hong Kong from April 1st. Capitalizing on the
late-evening and early-morning take-off and landing slots available
at Haneda, the airline is working on schedules with departure from
Haneda around 9 pm and arrival in Hong Kong past midnight and with
departure from Hong Kong before dawn and arrival at Haneda around 7
am. Put into service will be Boeing B767 aircraft with a seating
capacity of approximately 200seats.
According to ANA public relations office, the airline will target
business traffic from Haneda and leisure traffic from Narita. "Out of
Narita, ANA will be able to attract leisure traffic with relatively
low fares like Shanghai's Hongqiao in China and Seoul's Gimpo in
Korea," anticipated the airline. ANA is eager to attract traffic
originating also from Hong Kong, but as no immediate business plan to
start.
ANA will newly establish an "Asia Strategic Business Unit" within
its head office organization. Focusing on the slot increase planned
after 2010 both at Haneda and Narita, the airline will include in its
mid-term business plan from FY2008 to FY2011, to be announced in
February, the business expansion plan in Asia with a core market in
China. The newly established Asia Strategic Business Unit aims to
develop strategies to boost the business in China.
3 positions will be assigned, headed by Shinichi Inoue, Director,
Beijing office. By April, the Asia Strategic Business Unit will set
up its primary base for operations either in Shanghai, Hong Kong or
Singapore. In so doing, the airline will be able to identify the
market needs in Asia and promote effective and efficient marketing
activities.
Specific strategies hereafter will be decided later, but ANA
anticipates that business expansion be evaluated beyond the scope of
the global alliance. Also expected to be evaluated is a setup of a
low cost carrier (LCC) with a main network in Asia region which was
presented as one of the strategies at the end of 2007.
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