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INTERNATIONAL
growing period the country has
seen in the past 40 years. From
2010 to 2014, the Philippines
had an average growth rate of
6.2%. In 2013 alone, the Philip-
pine economy grew by 7.2%
despite the major damage
caused byTyphoon Haiyan.
the digital sector, have also es-
tablished operations in the Phi-
lippines such as digital adverti-
sing firm Netbooster and
training provider Proforma-
tion. Even Coface is about to set
up an ofce in the country. The
Philippines has also attracted
French entrepreneurs such as
Mr. Thierry Tea, former Mana-
ging Director of Airbus in the
Philippines, who decided to put
up his own company after reco-
gnizing the country’s potential
in the aeronautics industry (see
article below).
The Philippines
is one of the most
resilient economies
in Southeast Asia
All of these historic visits and
business exchanges could not
have come at a better time: they
coincide with the fastest-
The Philippines, well-positioned
in the aerospace industry
I arrived in the Philippines eleven years ago in October
2004. After having worked in Hong Kong and Shanghai,
I joined the Airbus Helicopters Sales Department in Paris
in January 2004 and quickly wanted to go back to Asia.
While I rst targeted China and Australia, a VIE in Sales
with the Singapore regional ofce came up for a country I
almost never heard of. At that time, the Philippines was not
popular. However, I decided to jump on this opportunity.
I recall Manila had only a few young expatriates then. Most
of the French in the Philippines were either retired, CEOs
or businessmen who started their business 30 years earlier.
It was not easy to nd my place, and the business pace was
slow. There were no helicopters sales from 2000 to 2004.
I therefore had to work hard to sell my rst helicopter. In
2005, we sold about six aircraft. I was promoted to Regio-
nal Sales Manager covering Hong Kong and Micronesia. In
2007, I became CEO of Airbus Helicopters in the Philip-
pines. We grew a great Filipino team from 20 to 60 em-
ployees. When I left in 2012, we had tripled the turnover,
sold 45 helicopters and hired two additional French VIE.
As concurrent Head of Airbus Group, we positioned the
group as a leading partner of the Philippines, supporting
the growth of its carriers (PAL, Cebu, Seair, Air Asia, ITI)
with Airbus and ATR aircraft.
From employee to entrepreneur
I always wanted to have my own business. But if you have
Asian origins in France and want to be an entrepreneur, the
cliché is that you either open a Chinese restaurant, a compu-
ter business or an Asian store. I joined the Airbus Group be-
cause I wanted to prove tomyself that I could work and suc-
ceed in a large European industrial group. It was risky to leave
the expatriate life but I was on the same path as the Philip-
pines; we were both growing! So I decided to create PhilJets.
It was an exciting time since this was when ties between
France and the Philippines were growing as well.
In 2013, I started PhilJets Aero Services Inc. and acquired
a helicopter operator – Zenith Air – that we rebranded as
PhilJets Aero Charter. We joined the Makati Business Club,
which is the equivalent of MEDEF, as well as the Philippines-
France Business Council.
We quickly saw results in our industry. We used to hear
about Malaysia or Vietnam, but slowly the Philippines’
image in France started to look better. Although the poten-
tial has always been there, the reforms in good governance
put in place by the Aquino Administration gave the eco-
nomy a strong boost. There remain, however, a lot to do.
PhilJets and the Philippines’ aeronautics
industry
The creation of PhilJets has been possible thanks to a great
Filipino team that is still today the core of our Group. To
start a company in the Philippines, you need to understand
the environment well, including the local laws and regula-
tions. It takes patience, perseverance, a lot of effort and
investment.
Today we are working on a new business venture, which
is looking at helping other companies to either open their
business or do business in the Philippines. We strongly
believe that the Philippines is well-positioned in the aeros-
pace industry so this is why we are investing in the future
of PhilJets, through MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Ove-
rhaul) training and education projects.
I am convinced the Philippines can be a great hub for aeros-
pace and aviation, but investments are needed in order to
improve the industry’s standards. We are therefore building
a team that can contribute to this objective. Developing
shared services and Business Process Outsourcing in the
aerospace and aviation sectors are part of our next steps.
As for me, the next chapter in my life has just unfolded: my
wife gave birth to our rst child and we are happy to wel-
come Julia, our baby girl, in the Philippines!
MEETING WITH…
THIERRY TEA
FOUNDER AND CEO AT PHILJETS GROUP
IAFEI Quarterly | Issue 31 | 61