I'm puzzled why bmi serves HAJ, NAP, VCE and LIN until last year seemingly without the same brand image problem
Because they were established in those markets.
Starting up a new operation is a capital-, manpower- and time-intensive venture and it takes time until your product achieves market acceptance.
bmi has neither time nor capital and it's a no-brainer for a brand leader to use bmi equipment to operate into established markets.