“As the APAC travel industry stands at the threshold of another inflexion point – one that will see the true blending of online and offline travel to become one world – it is timely for WIT to handpick those pioneers who started early, cleared the roadblocks and paved the way for others to follow,” said Yeoh Siew Hoon, founder and managing director of WIT.
The biggest influencers in Asia’s online travel industry were recognised in the WIT inaugural Hall of Fame ceremony last night.
“As the APAC travel industry stands at the threshold of another inflexion point – one that will see the true blending of online and offline travel to become one world – it is timely for WIT to handpick those pioneers who started early, cleared the roadblocks and paved the way for others to follow,” said Yeoh Siew Hoon, founder and managing director of WIT.
“We honour those who took bold moves to position and transform themselves and their companies and in so doing, lifted the industry in Asia and changed travel for the better. Because we know that whatever the buzz about technology, nothing great happens without people who dream, dare and do,” Yeoh added.
The inductees of the inaugural WIT Hall of Fame, which will now be an annual occurrence, are:
• Agoda and its CEO Robert Rosenstein
• AccorHotels Asia Pacific and its leader since 2003, Michael Issenberg, chairman and COO of AccorHotels Asia Pacific
• AirAsia and its Group CEO Tan Sri Tony Fernandes
• Shinichi Inoue, CEO, Peach Aviation Japan
• Melissa Yang, co-founder, Tujia
• Fritz Demopoulos, co-founder, Qunar and CEO, Queen’s Road Capital
• Deep Kalra, Chairman & Group CEO, MakeMyTrip
• Jane Sun, CEO, Ctrip
The evening was held in conjunction with the WIT Conference 2017 which ends today.