Making travel better for women

Song Mei Mei, a brand director for an airport hospitality group, uses her experience as a frequent traveller and mother of two young children to help make travel better for her customers. Photos: Song Mei Mei & Plaza Premium Group

As a mother of two young children and a frequent traveller, Song Mei Mei understands the challenges that a woman goes through when travelling, which means she is able to come up with solutions to help them.

Song works in a company that owns and operates airport lounges and transit hotels globally.

“To build a good customer experience, you must be able to put yourself in the shoes of your guests – understand what they are going through, what they need, and what can be improved on, ” said Song, who is the Plaza Premium Group brand director.

The lack of family-friendly facilities at many airports is one of the pain points of travel that Song tries to address.

“Anything that occupies your children for even a second is bliss. Knowing this, we’ve made special efforts to enhance our facilities for children at all our airport lounges by providing nursing rooms, diaper changing stations in both women’s and men’s toilets, and dedicated kids’ zone playrooms equipped with not just the standard entertainment, but also STEM-based toys that are sustainable and biodegradable, ” she added.

Song (pictured here in New Zealand) travels frequently for both work and leisure. Photo: Song Mei Mei

The enterprising woman is dedicated towards using her voice to support other working mothers, whether it is through designing spaces that make travelling with young children easier, or championing causes and policies that benefit working mothers.

At work, Song, who is in her 30s, has worn many hats and played many different roles because she feels it is important to always keep learning and growing.

“When I first joined the company, I threw myself in the deep end because I wanted to understand the business inside-out, and outside-in, so I rotated between different departments and roles, from operations, customer service and finance, to design, sales and marketing.

“It was a challenging and rewarding process because it helped me understand the business from the ground up. It also laid a strong foundation for me, enabling me to now approach things from a holistic and wider perspective, ” said Song, who joined the family business after working in journalism for several years.

Song during her travels with her husband, in Sicily, Italy. Photo: Song Mei Mei

She was the editor of Hong Kong Tatler’s online publication, Asia Tatler; assistant editor at Macau Tatler; and a reviewer for Hong Kong’s Best Restaurant Guide.

Song has always believed in leading by example.

“My parents showed me the value of being persistent and humble, and the power of hard work. We look at all the different aspects of the business and in order to grow, it’s all hands on deck for us where everyone is part of the team, ” she shared.

Song believes in work-and-family life balance. Photo: Plaza Premium Group

However, Song is not just all about business. As a wife and mother, she believes in leading a balanced life.

“I’m lucky to be part of a family-run business as I have more opportunity to work alongside and spend time with my immediate family. My job does require me to travel frequently, but when I’m with my children, I’m there 100%. So, even though I’m so deeply entrenched in the business, I still get to spend quality time with the family, ” she said.

“Each day of the week is different for me. On one of my favourite days of the week, I play tennis or swim in the morning, bring my daughter to school, then head to the office or attend meetings. I just recently had another child – my son – so that involves some adjustments to my schedule.

“But, in this digital age, our emails are fully integrated into our mobile phones and our calendars synchronised online, so I’m able to connect to the office at all hours from wherever I am, ” she noted.