The ninth edition of ILTM Asia 2015 opened yesterday in Shanghai with a forum that revealed the ongoing evolution of the Chinese luxury traveller today. Alison Gilmore, Senior Exhibition Director of the ILTM (International Luxury Travel Market) Portfolio also highlighted that half of the top ten ‘super-rich’ cities in the world are now in Asia and advised the 500 global travel suppliers present that “it’s not what you do, it’s the way that you do it.”
Also speaking at ILTM Asia's Opening Forum at The Portman Ritz-Carlton Shanghai, Sean Rein, Founder of China Market Research Group and author of The end of Copycat China, revealed that today’s Chinese traveller is looking for "more than just a regular holiday" - hotels and travel companies need to curate services specifically for individuals in the Asia market. He observed that current Chinese trends are leaving luxury products behind to focus on luxury experiences. In essence, he summarised:
"It’s about doing something different. Chinese and Asian guests now want great, individual experiences that are tailored to them. The new luxury is not buying a branded bag, it’s swimming with dolphins, hiking mountains, visiting far flung amazing places – and then sharing the images on your phone. Wechat and Wechat Moments are now as important a part of the travel experience as anything else.”
Professor Dr. Phil Klaus MBA, MRes continued the discussion about the importance of the personalised customer experience in 2015, urging the audience to "compete for their customers, not against their competitors.” He offered insights into ensuring that companies re-focus on customer experience as the key component to their business.
“80% of the time and money invested from hotel groups goes into the moment up until the purchase, but the experience for customers really comes after the purchase. Post purchase is big business these days. It generates 24% of revenue, but actually over 45% of profits.”
Earlier in the day, two educational seminars further emphasised the rise in spending power from China. The first explored ‘Generation AAA - Asia's new affluent consumers’ and gave an insight into how Aspirational, Ambitious and Affluent 18 to 34 year old Asian people are set to become the number one priority of marketers from all four corners of the world.
The second seminar was entitled ‘Staying Relevant to the Chinese Luxury Traveller in 2015. Hurun Report’s Rupert Hoogewerf invited guest speakers Forrest Lin and Yu Hui to analyse the latest UNWTO report that revealed how China is now firmly established as the largest outbound market in the world, surpassing the US for the first time this year, with a total expenditure of $102 billion USD.
Following the ILTM Asia Opening Forum, luxury travel experiences from across the world will meet in one-to-one mutually matched appointments with almost 500 high-end travel agents from 21 countries across Asia, each specialising in creating and planning luxury travel for their high net worth clients.
ILTM Asia continues at the Shanghai Exhibition Centre and closes at 5pm on Thursday 4 June. For further information, please see www.iltm.com/asia or follow @ILTM_events.
