On May 16, Naniwa Tourist (headquarters in Chuo-ku, Osaka; President: Kazuo Yamashita) held a 50th anniversary celebration at the ANA Crowne Plaza Hotel Osaka in Kita-ku, Osaka, with 200 people in attendance. The company was established in 1969 by five people in their twenties in Tanimachi 9-chome, Osaka, and has been working with ANA since its inception. At the Okinawa International Ocean Expo in 1975, ANA transported 8,000 people from Tokyo and 2,000 people from Osaka. In recognition of this achievement, the company became the first ANA group passenger agency to sign a contract. In addition, the company attracted attention for its pioneering media sales initiative of attracting customers through newspaper ads at ANA's "Wings of the Citizens" event, held to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Okinawa's return to the mainland, and it also attracted a large number of customers on ski tours to Hokkaido, building up a track record. After that, the company signed a sales agency contract with ANA in 1998. It has continued to sell more than 10% more air tickets every year, and in 2014, it signed an exclusive contract as one of only three ANA sales centers in the country. Furthermore, in 1994, the ANG Association was established, which is made up of contracted facilities. The number of members, which was originally 30, has now grown to over 70, and the company has grown to the point where it can secure sales of over 300 million yen. Chairman Tsutomu Yamashita reminisced about these 50 years, and also shared his heroic tale of how, when ANA overbooked a Sapporo-Itami flight, he managed to shift 116 passengers to the next day. "President Kazuo Yamashita is in the prime of his career. I believe he will lead the way for all employees, grow together with them, and meet everyone's expectations. I would appreciate the guidance and encouragement of everyone gathered here today," he said, asking for support for President Yamashita. As guests, ANA's Executive Vice President and Representative Director Takashi Shiki and Senior Executive Officer and Kansai Branch Manager Yuko Arai gave speeches. Vice President Shiki said, "We would like to continue to work together with Naniwa Tourist, who is the exclusive dealer of ANA products." Arai said, "Chairman Yamashita taught me that in business, it is important to be trusted as a person as well as the company's credibility. I also heard that a company with many employees who know they can rely on this person will thrive. I would like to ask for your continued support for ANA, along with Naniwa Tourist." Representative Yasuhide Nakayama, a friend of President Yamashita, "attended" the event via video. "I don't think there have been many smooth times in the company's 50-year history. An airplane uses the headwind as buoyancy to lift the aircraft. I hope that they will ride the updraft even if they face difficulties from now on. People's connections are becoming weaker in the world, but I would like to ask for your support for the second-generation President Yamashita, based on the love between Chairman Yamashita and President Yamashita."