Korea is a strategic market for Air France more than ever before, said Pellerin Bndicte, general manager of the French airline’s first-class services, because of the global economic crisis.

“About 75 percent of our clients are from international markets, and French ones, who are very loyal and mostly well-known corporates, only take up about 25 percent,” Bndicte told The Korea Herald last week.

“Due to the economic crisis, however, we don’t see a growth in La Premire customers out of France. It has become more important than ever to focus on the international market.”

Bndicte visited Seoul last week to meet with frequent clients of La Premire, Air France’s first-class service, and hear their expectations through small and casual gatherings.

“Each customer is important. There are daily flights to and from Paris and Incheon, and we believe there is room in Korea for the airline to increase the number of customers,” she said. 

Bndicte is the first-ever La Premire general manager, a new post created in January as part of the company’s chairman and CEO’s office. It reflects the company’s ambitions to boost the growth of its first-class department.

The general manager said that several hundred million euros, a part of the reduced costs according to the company’s “Transform 2015” plan, will be invested in purchasing new cabinet equipment for La Premire by 2014.

“They will be one of the best products worldwide, which will meet customer expectations,” she said.

Air France chairman Alexandre de Juniac presented in March a new business plan “Transform 2015” which included two major points: to improve economic performance by reducing operating costs by 2 billion euros ($2.5 billion) to cover debts and letting go of 10 percent of the employees; and to become the leading airline in terms of service and excellence.

In command for La Premire, Bndicte communicates with Air France’s commercial teams worldwide and coordinates everything so that the product and services are consistently delivered at the ultimate level.

The ultimate “French touch” of La Premire will stay, said Bndicte.

La Premire does not offer its passengers Korean food as other cabins do, but only high-end French cuisine planned by master chefs Jol Robuchon, Guy Martin and Jacques Le Divellec.

“It does not mean that we are not listening to our customer expectations. It is because that is what our customers currently want,” said Bndicte.

“They want to experience the unique and ultimate ‘French’ service on board, and haute couture uniforms designed by Christian La Croix. So ‘service la franaise’ is and will be a part of our current strategy,” she said. 

By Park Min-young (claire@heraldcorp.com)