Hoping to reel in more locals, Ocean Adventure makes Gerald Anderson endorser

OCEAN ADVENTURE has named actor Gerald Anderson its very first brand ambassador after 14 years in the business of a marine and wildlife park in Subic Bay.

“We were waiting for [someone] perfect,” said Arthur D. Tai, CEO of Subic Bay Marine Exploratorium, Inc., operators of Ocean Adventure and the Camayan Beach Resort.

Mr. Tai said that besides the fact that Mr. Anderson hails from Subic, he was chosen because of a similar advocacy of “caring for the animals and the environment.”

The park, located at Camayan Wharf in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, features attractions such as encounters with dolphins, sea lions, and other marine animals; an acrobatic show; a show where one can learn how to make fire from indigenous materials; and a meet-and-greet with animals from the park’s Wildlife in Need rescue center.

“We’re gonna get our message out there,” Mr. Tai told BusinessWorld, shortly after the Nov. 16 launch at the SEDA Hotel BGC in Taguig City.

He also said that once it turns 15 years next year, the park will be more aggressive in marketing itself.

“Traditionally, we’ve had a mix of international and local patrons. But really, as we look over the years, those who have supported us have been our Filipino guests, and what I think we’re going to do is to reach out more and more to that community, percentage-wise,” he said. According to him, locals — many of them families who may even make annual trips — make up almost 80% of their customer base.

“We’re also a regional hub for the type of research we do, for the type of entertainment that we are… We’re the best in Asia. But what we’re going to do is… extend that and reach out to our natural market,” he said — hence the entry of Mr. Anderson.

Mr. Tai added that since much of Ocean Adventure’s market comes from families, the park wants to strengthen its identity as a “purposeful destination for multi-generational families,” where visitors would, for example, hold family reunions in Ocean Adventure, stay in the Camayan Beach Hotel, and make the trip a “five- or six-day retreat.” — Zsarlene B. Chua