Retail News CRM

Author: Mei Ling Tan

  • Tencent finished Q3 with strong result despite regulation

    Tencent finished Q3 with strong result despite regulation

    Gaming and chat specialist Tencent has reported a strong third-quarter profit despite ongoing issues with Mainland China regulatory authorities over its gaming software. Tencent’s share price has fallen by about one third this year, shedding US$165 billion off its value, although last year its share price doubled. In September the company announced a restructuring program aimed at lessening its reliance on games and expanding its interests into areas such as cloud and industrial services in the transport, fintech and healthcare sectors.

    Tencent profit in the September quarter rose 30 per cent to RMB23.3 billion (US$3.36 billion) which exceeded analysts’ forecasts. This was partly due to fair-value gains from the IPO of food delivery service Meituan Dianping.

    Growth in its gaming division was ahead of expectation, but the company was unable to update shareholders on the status of its negotiations with mainland government officials over a regulatory block which has frozen new game approvals. The government has yet to decide on whether or not to allow Tencent to begin charging for features of its popular PUBG Mobile game. Chinese authorities are concerned that many Chinese are becoming addicted to mobile games.

    Those roadblocks were cited as the reason Tencent’s growth rate – a respectable 24 per cent, nonetheless, to US$11.6 billion – was its slowest quarter in more than three years.

    Sales of smartphone games grew 7 per cent year on year and 11 per cent quarter on quarter, while advertising sales, the company’s single largest revenue source, rose 47 per cent

    Revenue from cloud and payment services (WeChat Pay) helped fuel a 69 per cent increase in Tencent’s “other” revenue category.

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  • Naver says its Green Dot is the future of searching

    Naver says its Green Dot is the future of searching

    Naver’s iconic green search bar may one day be a thing of the past – at least in the mobile app.

    Korea’s most popular portal site is experimenting with a new tool called the Green Dot that allows users to search for information not only by text, but also by voice, location and photos.

    The Green Dot was first unveiled last month. It is what the company calls an “interactive search” button located at the bottom of Naver’s app.

    When touched, the button opens a small window that offers various search functions like voice recognition, music recognition and recommendation on trending restaurants and bars nearby. The user can also add short-cuts to frequently used Naver services, from blogs to shopping.

    “Naver’s green search bar was developed at a time when searching online through PCs was about keywords and being linked to [web pages with] text information,” said Kim Seung-eon, the portal giant’s design head, at the Naver Design Colloquium held Friday in Dongdaemun, central Seoul. The annual event invites Naver designers to share their strategies and design insight.

    “But now with mobile, [portals] aren’t just about new information; we listen to music, reserve restaurants and use services that are closely linked to our daily lives. There are so many usages now and ways to input information. The Green Dot integrates all these; it’s the start of a new way to search and connect.”

    Kim added that the Green Dot will be the new design identity of Naver and a core function related to services coming in the future.

    The portal giant also shared the results of its first page overhaul on its mobile app.

    Last month, Naver introduced a new first page of its mobile app that left out news and trending keywords, leaving nothing but the search bar, weather information and the Green Dot.

    Its explanation was that the change was purposed to put a larger emphasis on searching, which accounts for 60 percent of why users turn on the Naver app. The change was available as a beta service.

    According to Naver, some users felt that the blank space was awkward, but the beta service had also showed meaningful results: the amount of time users spent on the app increased 15 percent and the number of searches rose 20 percent.

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  • Gentle Monster opens second store in Singapore

    Gentle Monster opens second store in Singapore

    South Korean eyewear brand Gentle Monster has opened a second store in Singapore at Marina Bay Sands. The launch, coming more than a year since the opening of Gentle Monster’s first store in Southeast Asia at Ion Orchard, is part of the brand’s “13” project. According to the brand, the project is “based on a story of an extreme ecological change the Earth would have to endure in the future due to a tilt of its axis, caused by the Moon being pushed farther away from planet Earth.”

    The concept serves as a metaphor to describe modern-day people who seem “obsessed and overwhelmed by the invalid information they receive daily.”

    To celebrate the opening of the new location, Gentle Monster has teamed up with fashion blogger Yoyo Cao to come up with a special edition of the brand’s popular Cobalt sunglasses model. The limited edition eyewear features a trendy tear drop-shaped frame along with details such as a twisted bridge and an inner template engraved with the word “Yoyokulala”.

    The Gentle Monster x Yoyokulala eyewear will retail at S$368.

    Find out the interior of the store below (5 images) :

  • High tech Nike NYC store opens

    High tech Nike NYC store opens

    Nike opened its newest Nike House of Innovation overnight, a 68,000sqft, six-storey store on Fifth Avenue.

    Nike NYC is described by the sportswear brand as a cross-category premium store, “the pinnacle expression of modern retail, representing the best of Nike global product, experiences and sport innovation”.

    “Nike NYC is designed to be a dynamic store environment, that is just as personal and responsive as digital,” said Heidi O’Neill, Nike Direct president. “This premium destination gives consumers an authentic, immersive and human connection to the Nike Brand.”

    The store is packed with technology, interactive experiential features and zones for both professional athletes and amateurs.

    Nike NYC uses the Nike App to create digitally connected journeys for consumers to discover, learn about and find the products they want quickly and easily. New and expanded Nike App in-store features include Shop the Look, Instant Checkout and updated functionalities with Scan to Try which the company says will give consumers greater opportunity to shop in-store displays, checkout in-store or request to try-on items throughout the store.

    The store is planned as something of a testbed for Nike’s digital service offerings which will “continue to evolve … giving NikePlus members even more choice in their shopping journey”.

    “Powered by digital commerce data and inspired by Nike’s newest retail concept, Nike Live, the ground floor of Nike NYC features the new Speed Shop – offering on-the-go access to the products local members know and love most,” the company said.

    Consumers can shop these curated New York City favourites alongside seasonal picks, visit the Nike Sneaker Bar or reserve items in the Nike App and pick them up in the Speed Shop digital lockers.

    On the fifth-floor is the Nike Expert Studio – the company’s first dedicated floor to provide even more personal service to NikePlus members, including bookable sessions with Nike Experts and the Nike by You Studio, offering members-only exclusive seasonal products, one-on-one styling sessions and even create personalised products.

    Nike NYC features separate product floors for men, women and kids. On the fourth floor is the Nike Sneaker Lab, billed as home to the largest concentration of seasonally current Nike footwear anywhere in the world.

    The entrance to the store – dubbed the Nike Arena – showcases the most immersive seasonal and sport-inspired storytelling moments from the brand.

    The store’s exterior features slumped and carved glass designed to “reflect and create motion that mirrors the movement of athletes”, elevates the Nike Swoosh logo and reflects “the iconic aesthetic of Nike Air”.

    Technology at Nike NYC

    Here’s a quick rundown of the new and existing technology featuring in the new flagship:

    Shop the Look: By scanning a QR code on an in-store mannequin, consumers can browse every single item on the mannequin, check to see if their size is available in-store or online and see available colours. Then with just a tap, they can request for select products to be sent to a fitting room of their choice or receive the items from a store athlete at a designated pick-up spot.

    Nike Instant Checkout: Using Nike Scan, NikePlus members can skip the line and easily checkout from within their Nike App using stored or new payment methods. Members can scan the product(s) of their choice, check out like a traditional Nike App purchase and receive their payment receipt within the app. Nike Instant Checkout stations are positioned throughout Nike NYC so that shoppers can fold and bag products if they choose before leaving the store.

    Nike Scan to Try: While this technology was released earlier this year it has now been refined and expanded. After discovering any product in the store and scanning the item to learn more, shoppers can now simply tap “request to try-on” for various items. Requested products can then be collected at designated pick-up areas in Nike NYC, or they can be reserved to a fitting room location of the consumer’s choice.

    Nike Reserve: Using the Nike App, NikePlus members can reserve product at home to pick up in store. They can shop the product they want in the Nike App and then complete their purchase with an in-store athlete or with Nike Instant Checkout.

    Retail Home: When entering Nike NYC, members will gain access to an array of new features and content via their Nike App homepage.

    NikePlus Unlocks: NikePlus Member Unlocks are delivered through the Nike App to reward the best of Nike product, to deliver immersive brand experiences, to award activity achievements and to share partner rewards with members. Member Unlocks can be given directly from a Nike Expert in-store or targeted to consumers based on their sport and style interests. Select Member Unlocks may also be delivered to consumers outside of Nike NYC, which they can redeem in-store with an athlete.

    Product Concierge: If a product is unavailable in Nike NYC, an in-store staff member can search inventory across the entire marketplace – online or offline in Nike-owned stores, as well as its reseller network. If found, and available to ship or reserve, customers can have the item held at a local store or have it delivered. This service will be exclusively available on the fifth floor Nike Expert Studio Service Desk.

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  • The Longines Masters of Hong Kong is back

    The Longines Masters of Hong Kong is back

    Anticipation is building as the countdown to the new Season of the Longines Masters Series enters its final stage. The new season of the international Show Jumping Series will start in Paris, home to the European leg of the Grand Slam Indoor of Show Jumping, on November 29 – December 2, 2018 before it continues its journey across continents to Hong Kong on February 15 – 17, 2019, at AsiaWorld Expo and New York on April 25 – 28, 2019.

    Together with Title Partner and Official Timekeeper Longines and hosted by Founding Partner the Hong Kong Jockey Club, EEM held a Press Conference in Hong Kong this week to kick off the seventh edition of the Longines Masters of Hong Kong, alongside its official partners.

    The Longines Masters of Hong Kong attracts each year the best Show Jumping horses and riders on the planet for three days in six competitions, created course designed by Frank Rothenberger, for a total prize money of US$ 680,620.

    For the first time, show jumping riders from Asia will compete in a world class event alongside the international stars of the sport.

    An array of exhibitors will be present from the likes of Longines who will present time pieces at their boutique.

    A dedicated equestrian corner will bring together the likes of Kingsland, Fieldstone, Horse Pilot and Equict.

    Hermès Sellier will invite visitors to experience the brands historic equestrian goods.

    Technology and art will also be featured with the Maserati Simulation Driving Experience

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  • Solid six months for Link Reit

    Solid six months for Link Reit

    Link Reit has improved like-for-like revenue by 7 per cent in the first half year, with car park revenues up 10 per cent and retail up 6.6 per cent. The valuation of Link’s investment properties portfolio reached HK$209.8 billion, an increase of 3.3 per cent compared to March 31.

    In a results announcement, the company said its portfolio “continued to demonstrate its resilience and provide a productive platform for our tenants to thrive” during a time of geopolitical and economic uncertainty.

    “Our efforts invested in asset management have yielded positive results for our retail portfolio,” the company said. “As at September 30, occupancy rate for the portfolio remained stable at 95.5 per cent and the overall portfolio reversion rate stood at 22.5 per cent. Average monthly unit rent improved to $65.7 per square foot (psf) as at September 30, up from $62.4 psf as at March 31.

    Four asset enhancement projects were completed during the six-month period: Fu Shin Shopping Centre, Homantin Plaza, Sam Shing Commercial Centre and Wan Tsui Commercial Complex. Link’s asset enhancement pipeline is filled with projects in various stages, including 10 projects currently underway, five preparing to commence and 19 projects undergoing review.

    On the mainland, Link’s three properties – EC Mall in Beijing, Metropolitan Plaza in Guangzhou, and Link Square 1 & 2 in Shanghai – performed “satisfactorily”, contributing a combined revenue of $490 million and net property income of $390 million. Increases of 22.8 per cent and 25.8 per cent, respectively. The retail portfolio occupancy rate was 98.8 per cent.

    “The latest addition to the portfolio, Metropolitan Plaza, continues to be a growth engine with vast potential to be unlocked. EC Mall’s reversion rate stayed at a satisfactory level and the new tenants have been warmly welcomed by the local community. Reversion rate of retail portfolio stood high at 43.2 per cent. We will continue to tailor asset management strategies to enhance our asset qualities and offerings to the neighbourhoods,” the company said.

    CEO George Hongchoy said Link is “well-placed to sustain its long-term growth trajectory while keeping foundation of business fundamentally sound and resilient”.

    The company is considering acquisitions and/or divestments that can drive sustainable return long term.

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  • E-commerce to contribute 11 pc of FMCG sales by 2030: Nielsen

    E-commerce to contribute 11 pc of FMCG sales by 2030: Nielsen

    E-commerce’s contribution to the total FMCG sales is expected to be 11 percent by 2030, according to market research firm Nielsen. E-commerce contributed 0.4 percent to FMCG sales in 2016 and in 2018 it is expected to be around 1.3 percent of the branded packaged FMCG sales.

    “Over the next 12 years, we expect e-commerce itself to be 11 percent of FMCG sales, an 8X growth from its current size, Sameer Shukla, Executive Director – Retail Measurement Services, South Asia, Nielsen (India) said.

    E-commerce is around 10 percent of modern trade, while modern trade at present is 10 percent of FMCG sales.

    “E-commerce channel contribution to India FMCG sales now stands at over 1 percent and has grown at over 101 percent since last year. In specific product categories and markets the contribution is already touching double digits of total category value sales,” he said.

    He added that in categories like diaper there has been an upsurge in e-commerce from 4 percent to 9 percent since July 2016 to September 2018.

    Modern trade itself has seen a growth over the last few years from growing at one-third of traditional trade in 2015 to 2X at present.

    From the third quarter in 2016 to third quarter of 2018, traditional trade grew at 2 percent while modern trade at 23 per cent.

    The growth in modern trade has been classified as 18 percent from metros, 32 to percent from 5-10 lakh towns, 33 per cent from 1-5 lakh towns and 58 percent from less than 1 lakh towns.

    Nielsen also noted that salary weeks witness 15-20 percent higher sales compared to regular weeks in a given month and the tactical play adopted by modern trade retailers around big days or weeks (Republic Day, Independence Day, Diwali etc) is an essential ingredient for success in the fast growing modern trade channel.

    In the third quarter of calendar year 2018, FMCG had a growth of 16 percent largely led by volumes, with 81 per cent share or 13 percentage points and the remaining 3 percentage points from price changes.

    It also noted that north and east have contributed to the 16 percent growth in the third quarter. Rural consumption is growing at a faster pace than urban with an index of 1.4X.

    The market research firm also noted that the FMCG companies in the top 50 contributed 60 percent in value terms, however the smaller manufacturers are driving the growth.

    It noted that companies in the bracket of top 101 to 300 contributed 11 percent in terms of value however their growth was 12.8 percent and in terms of the tail-end companies beyond the top 300, the contribution was 21 percent while the growth was 18.5 percent.

    Regional players are growing at a faster clip at 27.7 percent compared to national players at 11.7 percent.

    The presence of regional players is predominantly in packaged food categories where they clocked 31 percent growth in September 2018 on year. This was nearly 3X times growth witnessed among national players.

    However for the last quarter of 2018, it expects the growth in FMCG to come down to 12-13 percent.

  • Vietnam’s 2018 monthly car sales highest in October

    Vietnam’s 2018 monthly car sales highest in October

    October sales of 28,899 cars made it the best month of the year so far, according to Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (VAMA). This was 3,811 cars more than the 25,088 sold in September or a 15 percent rise, a VAMA report says.

    October sales of passenger cars by VAMA members climbed 25 percent month-on-month to 21,288.

    During the same period, sales of commercial vehicles dropped 7 percent to 7,096 and that of special-purpose vehicles were up 31 percent to 515, the report says.

    While 17,599 domestically assembled cars were sold in October, up 2 percent, the number of imported completely built units (CBUs) sold was 11,300, up 46 percent over September.

    Toyota remained the leading brand last month, with sales rising 30 percent over the previous month to 8,426 units.

    Truong Hai (Thaco) group, local assembler and distributor of brands such as Kia, Mazda, Peugeot and Hyundai, and a significant player in the commercial vehicle segment, reported a 29.2 percent rise over September in group sales to 8,175 units.

    Compared to September, Ford’s sales were 9.2 percent higher at 2,574 units; while Honda sales rose 12.4 percent to 3,475 units.

    In the first 10 months of the year, VAMA members sold a total of 223,326 vehicles, up one percent over the same period last year.

  • Korean brands stars on China’s Singles’ Day

    Korean brands stars on China’s Singles’ Day

    South Korean retailers benefited from another record-setting Nov. 11 Singles Day shopping extravaganza led by Alibaba Group of China. Since 2009, Chinese retail giant Alibaba Group has transformed Singles’ Day, which falls on Nov. 11, into an online shopping festival with large discounts offered for 24 hours.

    Over 40 percent of shoppers made purchases from international brands, said Alibaba.

    Among the countries that sold products to Chinese customers on Sunday, Korea ranked third after Japan and the United States.

    Korea placed at No. 3 on the list in 2016, but fell two ranks last year after the deployment of the U.S.-led terminal high altitude area defense (Thaad) antimissile system.

    The incident soured relations between the two countries and provoked a boycott movement against domestic brands in China.

    The exact volume of Korean goods purchased on Sunday was not disclosed, but it was evident that the shopping spree had an impact on local companies, as some of them reported record-breaking figures on Monday.

    Korea’s top beauty and personal care brand LG Household & Health Care Ltd. said on Monday that overall cosmetics sales during this year’s around-the-clock shopping gala rose 50 percent from a year ago at Tmall Global, a major e-commerce platform managed by China’s Alibaba Group.

    Sales of household items also jumped 73 percent during the same period.

    LG Household & Health Care raised 23 billion won (US$20.3 million) in sales of its flagship cosmetics label the History of Whoo during this year’s Singles Day event, up 72 percent from last year.

    Sales of luxury cosmetics brand su:m37 also jumped 82 percent during the same period mainly driven by increased demand for its Water-Full skin-care product line.

    The brand sold 26,500 sets of Water-Full line on November 11, up 208 percent from a year ago. It sold 24,400 sets of its Time Energy skin moisturizing solution, up 48 percent during the same period.

    Korea’s largest cosmetics company AmorePacific Corp. also scooped up sales on Sunday event.

    Sales of Yoonjo Essence, an activating serum of its premium cosmetics brand Sulwhasoo, hit 10,000 in just 60 seconds after launching sales at Tmall.

    Pre-order sales of Hera’s Rouge Holic lipstick also quintupled this year from last year.

    Korea’s fashion and retail conglomerate E-Land Group that manages 19 brands on Tmall raised 72.3 billion won in revenue on November 11 alone.

    Korea’s largest manufacturer of instant noodles Nongshim Co. also raked in record sales of 800 million won at Alibaba’s online shopping mall Taobao on the event day, more than tenfold from its daily average sales and up 25 percent from last year.

    The company attributed record sales to its top-sellers Shin Ramyun and Kimchi Ramyun.

    Alibaba clocked in sales of US$30.8 billion in the 24-hour shopping gala that began at 12 a.m. Sunday, beating last year’s US$25.3 billion.

  • SK unit to supply batteries to VW

    SK unit to supply batteries to VW

    SK Innovation is supplying electric car batteries to Volkswagen Group along with existing suppliers LG Chem and Samsung SDI, the Korean battery maker said Wednesday. The Volkswagen Group brands plan to launch 50 new fully electric models by 2025, and the group said it needs more battery supplies in a statement Tuesday. SK Innovation was the last of the four battery suppliers selected by the carmaker.

    SK Innovation will start supplying batteries to Volkswagen cars in Europe from 2019. LG Chem and Samsung SDI are also strategic partners in the auto company’s European operations.

    From 2022, SK Innovation will also supply batteries for the North American market.

    The group’s electric car production in China will source batteries from Chinese partner Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) from 2019.

    SK Group’s battery arm is planning on covering Volkswagen orders by setting up new facilities in Europe and the United States. Currently, the company is mulling three locations in the United States, it said, without giving details about the production capacity or the amount of investment. As for its newly-planned European plant, the company said it is considering multiple locations including Hungary, where it is already building a plant.

    When all planned factories are in place, SK Innovation’s battery production capacity will increase to 20 gigawatt-hours per year by 2022, the company said. Despite being a latecomer to the market, SK Innovation has been rapidly expanding its battery business. Daimler and Kia Motors are also using SK batteries.

    Its share of this year’s global battery market, excluding China, was 2.2 percent based on accumulated battery sales through the end of September, according to data from market tracker SNE Research, growing from 1.4 percent the same period last year.

    LG Chem is still the largest local player, with a 17.5 percent market share, followed by Samsung SDI, with an 8.2 percent market share.

    “With SK Innovation, LG Chem, Samsung and CATL, we have found strong partners for the long-term supply of cells for our electric vehicles,” said Stefan Sommer, a Volkswagen board member responsible for components and procurement.

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  • Sabah to produce more sustainable palm oil

    Sabah to produce more sustainable palm oil

    Deputy Chief Minister of Sabah Datuk Seri Wilfred Madius Tangau said during his closing address at the 16th Annual Roundtable of Sustainable Palm Oil Conference today, the state is committed to having more palm oil produce to achieve both the Roundtable of the Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and the local Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO), concurrently.

    In 2017, Sabah produced more than 5.2 million metric tons (MT) of crude palm oil (CPO) accounting for more than 30% of total Malaysian palm oil produced.

    Between January and October this year, Sabah produced some 1.55 million MT of CPO of which 28% were certified.

    About 400,000ha of plantations are RSPO certified, of which 3,960ha belonged to smallholders. Sabah has some 623 small players.

    “Therefore Sabah can play an important role in the sustainable palm oil industry. Sabah is one of the largest producer of RSPO certified palm oil,” said Tangau.

    On assisting smallholders in the state, he said while incentives such as grants for planting comes from the federal government, land titles fall under the state government’s purview.

    On the government’s move to make MSPO certification mandatory by end of 2019, Tangau welcomed the move.

    “We will assist in whatever (way) we can. I’m happy the federal government is spending money to do that, but whether we achieve that target, is another story,” he added.

    Sabah saw an economic growth of 8% last year and palm oil has played a part in it. Tangau said one of the biggest challenge in this country is the high dependence on foreign labour as it is difficult to get locals to work in plantations.

    The state government is also looking towards stepping up downstream activities instead of just being active exporters of CPO.

    On another note, RSPO co-chairman Datuk Carl Bek-Nielsen said the challenge lies on bridging the gap between supply and demand of sustainable palm oil as the uptake for certified palm oil globally stood only at 65%.

    “This is as disappointing as wet gunpowder and it sends a discouraging, hypocritical message of “do as I say but not as I do. And I will be clear, the growers expect action and whilst the grower fraternity has just shown a willingness to change, to innovate, to now halt deforestation, to now stop any new plantings on peat soils, they also expect that the NGOs, CGM, retailers alike, including the Secretariat of RSPO now direct just as much attention and energy towards improving uptake and not just pursuing higher standards for the growers,” he said in his closing remark.

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  • China retail sales surges in October

    China retail sales surges in October

    Official figures for China retail sales show an 8.6 per cent year-on-year increase in October. That’s a little shy of the 9.2 per cent achieved in September and the same pace of growth for the first 10 months of the year.

    The data was released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), which blamed the slowing growth rate on delayed consumption ahead of the 11.11 Singles Day shopping festival. Many products sold on Singles Day are pre-ordered, but not settled until the 24-hour sale commences, to boost the event’s topline figure.

    The NBS said sales in rural areas rose by 9.7 per cent in October, a faster rate than the 8.4 per cent in urban areas.

    Online spending soared 25.5 per cent to reach RMB 7 trillion during the first 10 months of this year.

  • Asia rice: Indian rates up on firmer rupee; Thai harvest to shore up stocks

    Asia rice: Indian rates up on firmer rupee; Thai harvest to shore up stocks

    Rice prices in India nudged higher this week as the rupee firmed, while Thai exporters eyed fresh demand from the Philippines. India’s 5 percent broken parboiled variety was quoted around $363-$371 per tonne this week, versus $362-$369 last week.

    “As the rupee has started to appreciate, we have to adjust export prices,” said an exporter based at Kakinada in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.

    The Indian rupee rose 0.4 percent on Thursday to its highest level in nearly 8 weeks, trimming exporters’ margins from overseas sales.

    In southern and eastern states, supplies have started to arrive from the new season crop but they are expensive due to higher fixed government buying prices, said a Mumbai-based exporter.

    India’s rice exports dropped 9.6 percent to 5.8 million tonnes between April and September from a year earlier, as leading buyer Bangladesh trimmed purchases due to a bumper local harvest, a government body said earlier this week.

    Meanwhile in Thailand, benchmark 5 percent broken rice prices were quoted at $380 – $398 per tonne, free on board (FOB) Bangkok, unchanged from last week.

    “There have been some minor deals with markets like Japan but they have had no impact on prices,” a Bangkok-based trader said.

    “Thai rice exporters are now watching the Philippines closely because their government will open the bidding process next week.”

    The Philippines’ National Food Authority has issued an international tender to import up to 500,000 tonnes of rice with offers to be opened on Nov. 20.

    “We see this as a major deal ahead of December,” another trader in Bangkok said, pointing out that during the mid-November to early-December period, the market expects an increase in supply due to the seasonal harvest.

    In Vietnam, rates for 5 percent broken rice remained in the $415-$420 a tonne range seen last week.

    “We haven’t signed any new export deals over the past month as domestic supplies are scarce,” a trader in Ho Chi Minh City said. “We wouldn’t be able to secure sufficient rice if we got any new contracts now.”

    Egypt received offers for more than 500,000 tonnes earlier this week, including 50,000 tonnes from Vietnam, the trader said, adding that they were not sure if they will bid in the Philippines’ state grains agency tender.

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  • What is the hot new “Boundaryless Retail” trend?

    What is the hot new “Boundaryless Retail” trend?

    Chinese consumers are quickly adapting to buying groceries online for immediate delivery from local offline stores, according to a new joint study conducted by JD, Walmart, Tencent and JD Daojia. In China, where over 15% of consumption takes place online, compared to just 9% in the US, consumers have been faster to embrace online grocery shopping.

    Over 67% of Chinese consumers actively use services like JD Daojia, which can deliver goods from local offline shops, including Walmart, to customers in under an hour.

    An increasing number of online shoppers in China view a guarantee of product authenticity as the most important factor when buying goods, with price often viewed as secondary in importance to considerations like product variety, speed of delivery and after-sales service.

    Consumers carefully consider purchases that can improve their lifestyle, reflect their individuality and be delivered in a convenient way that fits in with their busy modern lives.

    Omnichannel integration in the Chinese supermarket industry is expected to be a major trend going forward, as online and offline players in the industry are increasingly combining resources to meet the diverse needs of modern-day shoppers: bringing together the convenience and diversity of online shopping with offline retail’s immediacy of service and superior user experience.

    Boundaryless Retail is a reality gaining in popularity as “The increasingly diverse needs of consumers require a correspondingly dynamic approach” said Kenny Li, VP of JD.com.

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  • Muji reopen largest store outside Asia

    Muji reopen largest store outside Asia

    Muji Canada is reopening its original Toronto location next week as its first flagship store in the country’s east. The Muji Atrium opened four years ago as the company’s first location in Canada. While the previous store occupied 5658sqft of retail space, the new flagship store will reach 19,110sqft spread over two floors, becoming the largest Muji store outside of Asia.

    “During the four years since we expanded to Canada, we opened seven additional stores and gradually increased our range of products and services,” said Muji Canada president Toru Akita.

    “By allowing us to reach out to more people and to further convey our philosophy, the Atrium flagship store will open a new chapter for Muji in Canada.

    “Through interactive events, innovative projects, and new partnerships, we wish to connect and evolve together with local communities and contribute to the creation of a better quality of life.”

    The location will carry Muji Canada’s full range of merchandise of more than 4000 items – including household goods, apparel, and food – and offer many products and services only available in select Muji flagship stores around the world, such as a coffee counter serving ethically sourced coffee and an aroma bar that will allow customers to create customised fragrances from more than 40 essential oils.

    Muji Atrium will feature two new customisation services for customers to personalise their products for the first time outside of Japan, including a digital fabric printing service and laser engraving service

    Muji Atrium will be the only location in Eastern Canada to carry books, made-to-order curtains and rugs, the Muji Labo collection, maternity wear, a brand new activewear collection and more.

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