Skift Take
Finnair is trying to reinvent itself, in part by taking a hard look at 10 to 20 second-tier cities in China, as well as routes in other parts of Asia. What happens, though, when larger competitors get around to taking up some of the same opportunities?
While competitors are focusing on major cities in China, Finnair has embarked on a strategy of also flying to second-tier cities such as Chongqing and Xi'an, and it is going outside its own ranks to serve customers originating from China with subcontracted cabin crew for linguistic and cultural reasons.
Skift caught up with Finnair CEO Pekka Vauramo days before he was to mark his first year in the post on June 1, 2014, and discussed the airline's strategy and efforts to remake its cost structure and product.
Skift: I understand that next week is your first anniversary at Finnair. What would you say is the airline's biggest accomplishment over the last year?
Pekka Vauramo: New openings in China and Asia I would really rank high. We opened last year Hanoi, Vietnam, and Xi'an in China. I think they are important and both of them very interesting, new destinations for us. Primarily because it is a second-tier city in China, and we've been flying up until two years ago only places like Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, but then we opened Chongqing two years ago and one year ago Xi'an and we had a fairly strong start for our Xi'an flight, which is important for our future.
Skift: For while you've been going after under-served markets in Asia. Is it too soon to say what you've learned from the experience so far?
Vauramo: It might be too early. What I'm saying it is important -- the experience from Xi'an especially, and Chongqing, as well -- is that these are the first second
