It was common sense for Air New Zealand to introduce direct flights from Auckland to Shanghai and Beijing.
The procession of exporters heading off with order books under their arms looking for potential Asian customers necessitated its introduction.
Manufacturers and Fonterra have been doing business up there for some time, red meat exporters have targeted China as having huge potential and now the wine industry has China and other Asian markets in its sights.
Grape growers and wine makers at this week's Romeo Bragato industry conference in Christchurch were told that wine imports in to Asia, excluding Japan, would be worth $US17 billion ($NZ24.1 billion) by 2012 and $US27 billion by 2017, and New Zealand wine makers want a slice of that.
New Zealand Wine Growers chief executive Philip Gregan said wine industry trade delegations have planned visits to Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, China and India, all of which had expressed interest in buying New Zealand wine.
Korea, China and India, in particular, showed plenty of interest.
Asian countries have been minor export markets, with individual countries only buying up to $10 million worth of wine a year, compared to Australia which bought $250 million, an increase of 37% last year, the United Kingdom at $240 million and United States at $160 million.
"There is very big potential, a real opportunity for red wine in particular, and to broaden our base away from sauvignon blanc," Mr Gregan said of Asia.
Asian markets were predominantly for red wine, but there was potential for white given its fit with Asian food.
Asian markets would take some nurturing, he said, but with New Zealand wine exports expected to grow from $800 million this year to $1 billion by 2010, it was necessary to look for new consumers.
Asian wine consultant Simon Tam, from the International Wine Centre in Hong Kong, told the conference that the reputation of Chinese as not being wine drinkers was unfounded.
It was also a market reputed to be for cheap wine which was often mixed with soft drink.
That reputation grew when the world wide glut was dumped in China and it was mixed, but it no longer applied.
Mr Tam said that in the last decade China has become a more sophistication drinking and eating culture and that included wine.
It imported an additional 30% of the volume of alcohol that was consumed, with most of the wine imported from Spain and South America.
Like all wine drinkers, Mr Tam said Chinese had graduated from drinking wine out of flagons and casks to bottles.
"A persistent wine drinking culture permeates every corner of life."
New Zealand wine suited the Chinese palate by not being too strong or too lean, and had a pure and accurate taste.
"Pinot noir has to taste like pinot noir," he said.
"New Zealand is ideally suited, producing wine somewhere in between," he told 600 people at the conference.
There was a domestic wine growing industry in China, but Mr Tam said while it tended to be of mediocre quality, it was what domestic consumers were accustomed to.
China's middle class was growing, often well travelled and wanting more westernised diets and lifestyle, but potential exporters made several mistakes in the way they approached the market, Mr Tam said.
"When you think about China, go there with the same sophistication and dedication that you do when you go to Europe."
There were parts of China that were virtually inaccessible and others where people would not spend less than $NZ20 a bottle.
As with Europe, Chinese customers wanted quality products and services and he said exporters needed to do the same homework on buyers and distributors.
It was also important to put aside what people thought they knew about China. That knowledge was outdated, because of the pace at which the country was changing.
Another mistake for exporters was potential partners over-promising what they could deliver.
Despite what a distributor may claim, the country was too vast for one company to handle nationwide distribution.
Mr Tam said exporters should focus on individual states or cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong or Macau.
Macau, for example, spent $US1.3 billion a year on wine, largely through its extensive gambling facilities.
It was important to check a distributor was licensed for the function he was undertaking and was also financially sound.
Mr Tam said it was also a myth that rules and laws could be circumvented by guanxi, or relationship.
Recently China's largest wine merchant was imprisoned for smuggling, or circumventing laws.
"China is cleaning up its house," he said.
"Doing business in China is no different than doing business anywhere else in the world right now."
Companies were being randomly audited and pressure was coming on any illegal activity.
Carl Robinson, from wine exporter DIVA New Zealand, said the Japanese and South Korean markets were under developed, allowing exporters to become brand leaders while not facing economic, cultural or regulatory hurdles.
The two markets were brand driven and New Zealand's reputation and profile from growing trade between the two regions made them relatively easy markets.
"Business practices in Asia are challenging. However, once established, partners tend to be both honest and loyal."
Asian customers also wanted to know why they should buy products, they wanted personal stories and labelling which was sophisticated but elegant.
"In a market like Japan, for example, packaging and presentation can make the difference between success and failure."
Partnerships and introductions were also important and Mr Robinson said getting an introduction to a potential Asian customer through an existing contact could eliminate 80% of the work needed to close a deal.
The New Zealand Winegrowers Asia marketing executive Kate Garton said the region held enormous promise.
