The Chinese magazine Voyage, aimed at business and luxury travellers, has selected Finnair as best airline.
The award was granted in the We ChangeTravelling category of the 2010 Travel Brand Competition.
The winner wasselected by readers and a committee of experts. In recent years, a key part of Finnair’s strategy has been strengthening thecompany’s position in the Asian market and particularly in traffic betweenEurope and Asia.
Chinese traffic, moreover, is one of the most importantelements of Finnair’s Asian strategy.
“The award confirms that Finnair is a highly valued airline in China; our brandrecognition has increased significantly in the country and our service iscompetitive in the Asian market,” says Mikko Rautio, Finnair’s Sales Manager,China.
Asian economies have grown enormously and Asian consumers are rapidly becomingmore affluent. Of the world’s 25 fastest growing cities in terms of economy, 24are in Asia, and the Asia-Europe traffic segment important for Finnair alreadyhas 15 million travellers per year.
“Finnair’s potential market in Asia is 600 times larger than the Finnishmarket, and there are already 100 million luxury consumers in China,” explainsRautio.
Voyage magazine is part of SEEC Media Group Ltd, one of China’s mostsignificant media groups. The magazine’s circulation is 582,000 copies permonth, and the magazine is also published on the internet. Voyage’s readershipcovers a large section of the Chinese elite, including business leaders.
Finnair has successfully expanded its route network in China and has flowndirect to Beijing daily since 1988. Finnair flies daily from Beijing, Shanghaiand Hong Kong via Helsinki to more than 50 European destinations.
