As the only legitimate gaming city in China and a meeting point for eastern and western cultures, tourism is at the heart of Macau’s economy.
In the decade since the handover the city has witnessed gaming liberalisation and the implementation by the mainland of the “individual visa scheme” both of which have boosted the tourist trade.
Last year Macau visitor arrivals reached 22.9 million but the infrastructure needs that boom requires have still not been met. We interviewed two entrepreneurs from the industry — one managing a travel agency and the other in the bakery business, to assess what the future holds.
For Andy Wu Keng-kuong the fate of any travel agency is in the hands of the boom and bust theory but he sees service quality as playing an important role. Wu is managing director of Gray Line Tours (Macau) Ltd. and president of Travel Industry Council of Macau.
He says the city has suffered from the mainland’s tightening of the individual visa policy and the global financial crisis. First quarter visitor arrivals plummeted 20 percent year-on-year. Nevertheless, this might not be a bad thing as the sector can use it as an opportunity to rally and forge a tourism sector with a distinctive Macau flavour.

Diversifying customer base
On finishing his pre-university course in Hong Kong after a high school education in Macau, Wu joined his family-run travel agency in 1988. He has also attained an MBA in recent years through continuing study.
Wu believes that the tourism business was boosted by the construction of the Macau International Airport and in 1995, he set up Gray Line Tours (Macau) Ltd with his family.
The biggest change, he believes, lies in the diversification of sources of customers. Prior to the handover, visitors to Macau were mainly from Hong Kong. In his company’s case, Hong Kong customers accounted for 70 percent of the total customers, whereas after the handover, with the better security situation and the mainland’s favourable Hong Kong-Macau travel policy, mainland tourists have come to the fore, with double digit annual increases in their numbers.

Service quality
Wu says tourism in Macau is on the right track despite a period of stagnation in 2006, as the amount of talent required to handle the gaming liberalisation boom didn’t materialise.
“Facing a rich variety of foods on a buffet table, you can only try one item due to your poor digestion. I guess that really makes you feel bad,’’ is a metaphor he uses to describe the skills gap.
Back then, he says, there were plenty of customers but tour agencies were too busy to handle them. His own company had to concentrate on foreign tour groups despite the attractive profit margins mainland tourists offered, because, with a big shortage of human resources, an expansion make them lose focus and quality.

Zero-free tours crackdown
“Though the central government has lent full support to Macau, we can’t always rely on mercy and help. With more large scale infrastructure and hotels coming on stream , there will be sufficient hardware facilities to meet tourists’ demand. To be in line with this, people in tourism sector should improve themselves in such aspects as service quality and language ability. There should also be regulation of the irregular business conduct of ‘zero fee tours’, this is paramount,’’ says Wu.
He also believes Macau should expand its flight network to provide travelers with easy and efficient transportation services and provide more customer-oriented hospitality services to attract customers to stay longer. Matching quality tourism services and big visitor numbers should be the ultimate target, adds Wu.

Baking a perfect tourism cake
“Happy travel in Macau, classic bakeries at Choi Heong Yuen ” – these are the buzzwords from Choi Heong Yuen Bakery’s advertisement which is familiar to many Hong Kong and Macau people.
As one of Macau’s leading bakeries, offering cakes, cookies and snacks during its long history of 74 years Choi Heong Yuen has witnessed all the ups and downs of Macau’s tourism industry.
Its managing director Vong Ioc lai says the city has many, many treasures to offers both Chinese and western toursist alike. With the gradual optimization of software and hardware facilities and the operation of new tourist facilities, he says macau can cement its place as a true international destination.

Export growth
It’s 16 years since Vong returned to Macau to manage his family bakery business after attaining his accounting degree in the US in 1993.
Since then business has flourished as a result of the significantly improved security situation and growing numbers of tourists. At present, they operate 11 shops, compared to two only before the handover. Moreover, they have benefited from the government’s promotional activities overseas.
Choi Heong Yuen Bakery has also grown their export volume to foreign countries, from 5 to 40 percent of total business. Despite the economic recession the bakery is able to stay strong thanks to its export expansion.
In terms of the overall development of the tourism sector, Vong says: “On a macro-basis, Macau has clearly defined gaming and tourism as its mainstay industries and will develop in this direction. In pursuit of this it’s crucial to boost the city’s international standing and service quality. There is also a lot of room to improve foreign language skills. In addition, an efficient transportation network is needed to solve congestion problems.

Food streets
Vong sees Taipa’s old district – Taipa village – is a perfect spot for a food or bar street. However, due to legakl restrictions, most of the characteristic residential houses in that area cannot be reshaped into restaurants and bars. This hampers the district’s development, he says.
He suggests that the government implement a preferential policy or issue special licenses to encourage investment, and to develop Taipa’s old district into food, haute cuisine or bar streets on a gradual basis. This would not only give the district a facelift, usher in vitality, prosperity and visitors, but also offer tourists more nightlife and leisure choices. This will make tourists prolong their trip in Macau and stimulate spending.
Choi Heong Yuen Bakery shops offer tourists distinctive product packaging and promotional tv clips imbued with distinctive Macanese cultural characteristics.
Vong confesses, having witnessed Macau being transformed into an internationally prominent city from a laidback enclave, has boosted his sense of recognition of the country and SAR. This is why he hopes to promote Macau and spread its name to travelers from all over the world through the development of his bakery business, using as a medium his delicious creations.

by Yuci Tai