ASEAN COMMUNITY OF ENTREPRENEURS
SPOTLIGHT
2
Dato’ Syed Razif and YB Datuk Mas Ermieyati binti Samsudin, Deputy Minister of Tourism and Culture Malaysia, during the launch of Sutra.my.
business is positioned, who you want to
collaborate with as well as where is the
direction of your business. It is through
this positioning strategy that we have
established our subsidiary companies”,
the
Group
Managing
Director
elaborates on the unique positioning
of Sutra Travel Management Group
of Companies.
The United Nations World
Tourism Organisation (UNWTO)
defines tourism as comprising
activities of persons travelling to
and staying in places outside their
usual environment for more than
one night for leisure or business.
Razif notes that understanding the
reason or purpose behind travelling
is key in developing a product or
package that caters to the
unique and individual needs
of the travellers. He cites
that the needs of someone
travelling for their studies
or religious pilgrimage as
obvious examples.
Discussing the current
tourism
landscape,
Razif
opines that it is extremely
fragile and sensitive. Each
time a major event occurs in
3
the world, the impact appears
as if it would reverberate to
60
“Our business strategy is based on all four pillars.
When you know where your business is positioned,
you would also be able to identify who you want
to collaborate with as well as the direction of your
business. It is through this positioning strategy that we
have established our subsidiary companies.”
Dato’ Syed Mohd Razif Al Yahya
the whole industry. However, Razif
cautions industry players that the
impact from such events would often
be limited or localised to a specific
market. Some market may be neutral
or unaffected. He cites travel for
business and religious purposes as
examples of stable markets.
Dato’ Syed Razif giving a speech during an
event in Sunway Putra Hotel, Kuala Lumpur.
Sri Sutra Travel is awarded the General Sales
Agent (GSA) for Europamundo in March 2016.
ASEAN COMMUNITY OF ENTREPRENEURS | ISSUE 2 : 2016
“Because of this, I am always
sensitive and proactive. When
incidents such as a terrorist attack
or epidemic occur in any part of the
world, I would analyse which market
I should concentrate on. Often, when
something happens, an opportunity
will also arise.
We
must
identify
this
opportunity. Hence, that is why
market intelligence, information
and understanding is so important
in today’s business. We must be
sensitive to the economic, political
and security development among
other things”, Razif explains.
As the industry continues to
expand, it is pertinent that businesses
are able to capture all the relevant
information to help decision makers
make informed decision. This is where
technology comes in. Sutra Travel