Cebu Pacific opens Tokyo office

Cebu Pacific Air opened an office in Japan on Wednesday as part of the airline’s expansion efforts in the Asia-Pacific region and bid to boost its presence in the Japanese market.

The branch office in the special ward of Chuo-ku, Tokyo will serve as the hub for all of the airline’s activities and business transactions in Japan.

“Aside from business-to-business and business-to-customer transactions such as group reservation services, ticket sales and customer support, it will also drive marketing strategies and promotional activities of Cebu Pacific Air in Japan,” the airline said in a statement.

“Our very own branch office in Japan symbolizes the next stage of growth into the Japanese market which has become one of the most important across our network. This is about ... looking to improve our offering to the Japanese customer,” said Mike Szcus, chief executive adviser at Cebu Pacific
 
Heading the Japan office is Tomohiko Matsumoto, who was appointed country manager for Japan in December 2017.

A veteran in the travel and aviation industries with over 25 years experience, he served as country manager and international air cargo manager for Qatar Airways and, more recently, as sales and marketing manager for Japan for Tiger Air Taiwan.

“I am proud to have spearheaded the opening of the Cebu Pacific Air branch office in Japan. There is much opportunity for trade and tourism between Japan and the Philippines. Our vision is to bridge the gap between the Japanese market and Cebu Pacific Air,” said Matsumoto.

Now on its tenth year of operations in Japan, Cebu Pacific mounts 70 flights a week between Japan and the Philippines—between Manila and Narita, Osaka, Nagoya and Fukuoka, as well as between Cebu and Narita—utilizing its fleet of Airbus A330 and A320 aircraft for these routes.

“In 2017, we flew over 435,000 passengers between the Philippines and Japan. Compared to the number of Japanese travelers, there is much room to grow. We want to offer a compelling travel product for the Japanese market—air service that is efficient, affordable and safe,” noted Alex Reyes, vice president for Cargo at Cebu Pacific.

In the first quarter of 2018, Cebu Pacific posted a net income of P1.437 billion, up 12 percent year-on-year, despite the challenges brought by rising global fuel prices and the weakening of the peso versus the US dollar.

Main growth drivers were the slight increase in passenger volume as well as strong uptake for cargo volume.

Cebu Pacific is one of the largest and most successful low cost carriers in Asia, currently offering flights to 37 domestic and 26 international destinations across Asia, Australia, the Middle East, and USA (Guam).

From Japan, travelers can connect to top vacation islands in the Philippines, or to other cities around Southeast Asia, Guam or Australia via Manila or Cebu. —VDS, GMA News