Pacific World seeks trade licence for Shanghai office

By Ingrid Kwok Shanghai Leading regional destination management company Pacific World is seeking a greater market share in China by applying for its one-year-old Shanghai representative office to become the first Pacific World Limited company in China. Pacific World Shanghai assistant manager Ms Cindy Zhang said Pacific World's head office applied for the licence last year. The group has worked in partnership with China International Travel Service (CITS) in Shanghai and Beijing for more than two decades. Ms Zhang said it relied on CITS' ground services, but Pacific World had already been operating independently in some areas of the country. "Though we are not yet an independent company, we have started booking event venues and doing liaison work with local suppliers for event organisers," Ms Zhang said. "We do hope to provide better services for our clients in future by being an independent company. CITS was one of the first travel agents in China. They have their own way of thinking and doing things, which is sometimes quite different from our mentality." Ms Zhang added that the licence would mean more flexibility for Pacific World in Shanghai. "We want to work in our own style and provide services up to international standard," she said. "What we should do is to be more efficient and flexible to clients' needs. We will carry on with our 'can do' spirit." The licence to become an independent company would mean Pacific World Shanghai could operate in much the same way as other Pacific World operations in the region. Managing director of Pacific World in Hong Kong Ms Peggy Lau is anticipating approval for the licence, but in the local authority's own time. "At present, the Shanghai office is like a department of the Hong Kong office," Ms Lau said. "Once they become a limited company, they can do what we are doing now, though it will still be under the direction of the Hong Kong office." She says the limited company in Shanghai will be a major step forward. "It will reduce our workload. It can book venues in Shanghai for us and conduct site inspections for our clients," she added. "We are expecting the big day to come because it will help Pacific World's development in China." Ms Lau said she hoped the licence is approved within six months.