ULD management firm Jettainer is looking at Hong Kong as a “key gateway” for its expansion in mainland China as part of its overall plans to expand in the Asia Pacific region.

On the sidelines of TIACA’s Air Cargo Forum in Miami, Thorsten Riekert, chief sales officer of Jettainer, told Asia Cargo News that it will further grow its presence in Hong Kong after earlier announcing its Asia Pacific strategy, which also includes expansion in Singapore.

“We’re in America, Europe and the Middle East, so our strategy is now to further grow in Asia,” Riekert said.

“Right now, we are in Singapore and Hong Kong, and we’ll further grow significantly in Hong Kong. We will use those cities as a gateway to Asia – and we are in discussion with quite a number of customers there.”

Riekert said that right now, some of Jettainer’s customers in Asia include South Korean carrier T’Way Air, VietJet Air from Vietnam, and Cebu Pacific from the Philippines.

Jettainer plans to eventually expand to mainland China, and Riekert told Asia Cargo News that it would use Hong Kong as its launchpad.

“We will enlarge our team [in Hong Kong]; right now, we have the sales force based in Hong Kong, overseeing the market in Asia but also mainland China. We believe that Hong Kong is for us the key gateway to mainland China,” Riekert said.

Although mum on the specifics, he said that Jettainer has a “strategic development plan” on how to grow in Asia, citing demand for ULD management in the region.

From Singapore, Jettainer is looking at the Southeast Asia market.

“We will definitely strongly grow in Asia. This is part of our future strategy to enhance our presence, to enhance the perception of Jettainer and further grow our customer base,” Riekert added, further saying that Jettainer is looking at the whole Asia Pacific region.

Globally, Jettainer works with Etihad, American Airlines, the Lufthansa Group, Avianca Cargo, Austrian Airlines, Eurowings, SWISS, Edelweiss Air, Brussels Airlines, Plus Ultra Líneas Aéreas, Air Astana, Aero Union, Delta Cargo and CMA CGM Air Cargo, among others.

Riekert said that Jettainer manages ULD fleets with only 80% of the units previously required. This potential ULD saving can either be used for growth, to offset shortages or that it contributes to saving costs.

Earlier, Jettainer announced that it is further expanding its presence in the region by 2023, with Singapore and Hong Kong as the main gateways.

The ULD management firm said the goal is to establish its own regional teams in Asia to really understand customer requirements.

Jettainer currently manages a fleet of more than 100,000 ULDs, but it said that the amount could double – especially due to growth in the Asia-Pacific region.

By Charlee C. Delavin

Asia Cargo News | Miami