Hawai‘i Firm Seeks Tourism Vendors Appealing to Chinese Market

Chinese tourism will be essential for Hawaii’s economic growth. Image file from Wikimedia Commons.

A new start up firm called iTRAVLocal Limited (ITL) is looking to help Hawai‘i businesses tap into the growing Chinese market. Last year, there were 120 million outbound travelers from The People’s Republic of China (PRC), and by 2020, there will be a projected 200 million travelers. Hawai‘i is a key location for the Chinese traveler.

ITL is a destinations and activities solutions provider that works in collaboration with the Chinese social media platform WeChat. ITL is looking for local businesses to collaborate within this space. WeChat has over 963 million users with over 50% of these users spending 90 minutes a day.

ITL wants to sign up Hawai‘i vendors who would implement WeChatPay and AliPay or develop mini-programs within WeChat that target and market to Chinese more effectively.

“People conduct their personal and professional lives differently in China. Mobile apps are everything. The majority pays using a digital wallet in China, from street vendors and local wet markets to convenience stores and medical offices. Approximately 94% of this market is dominated by mobile payment,” said ITL co-founder Alex Wong. “In addition, mini-programs are mini-applications which do not require going through the App Store or Google Play. They reside within WeChat and is a huge convenience to the user.”

“I’m encouraging Hawai‘i vendors to implement WeChatPay and potentially develop WeChat mini programs. The key benefit would be increasing business to mainland Chinese customers, who spend more than any other nationality when traveling. The fastest growing segment in tourism is the Chinese,” said Wong.

Mr. Wong will be the moderator for the Hawaiian Tourism Authority Global Summit China: Social Mobile Trends session on Sept. 20, 2017 from 3:45 p.m. to 5 p.m.