Retail News CRM

Author: Mei Ling Tan

  • Cambodia’s Grand Lion Group to Open Marriott Branded Hotel in Siem Reap

    Cambodia’s Grand Lion Group to Open Marriott Branded Hotel in Siem Reap

    Preparations are under way for Cambodian-based Grand Lion Group to open the very first Marriott International branded hotel in Cambodia, a 233-room Courtyard by Marriott Siem Reap Resort in April 2017.

    The Courtyard by Marriott Siem Reap Resort is strategically sited 15 minutes away from the UNESCO World Heritage site of Angkor Archaeological Park, one of the world’s renowned tourist sites which drew over two million global visitors in 2015. In June this year, the European Council on Tourism and Trade (ECTT) announced Cambodia as the ‘World’s Best Tourist Destination’ for 2016, out of 29 candidate countries. Simultaneously, Cambodia was also declared the ‘Favourite Cultural Destination’. The top three source markets to Cambodia are Asia, Europe and the Americas.

    Courtyard by Marriott Siem Reap

    The Courtyard by Marriott Siem Reap Resort will feature 233 stylishly-designed guestrooms with four-fixture bathrooms. In-room amenities will include Marriott’s famous plush bed and bath linen and amenities, high-definition flat-screen television, high-speed internet access, mini-bar and safe. Dining and entertainment options include a casual, all-day dining restaurant, a rooftop bar called The View with stunning views of Angkor Wat, a grand ballroom and a lobby lounge. Recreational facilities will include an outdoor swimming pool and a fitness centre as well as a full-service spa including a relaxation lounge and a foot reflexology area.

    The property will also feature approximately 600 sq m of function space and is expected to create over 200 employment opportunities.

    The Grand Lion Group also plans to open a 250-room resort Marriott branded resort in Cambodia’s beachside playground of Sihanoukville adjacent to a 688-unit residence and a retail mall. Slated to break ground in the 4th quarter of 2017, the sleek USD160 million project designed by Blink Architects, is dramatically designed to change the skyline of Sihanoukville and inject real luxury into this region. Sited four hours by road from Phnom Penh in the south west of Cambodia, the Resort is scheduled to open in 2020.

  • PPCBank set for more digital and retail growth in 2017

    PPCBank set for more digital and retail growth in 2017

    When new Korean shareholders boosted Phnom Penh Commercial Bank (PPCBank) with a $20 million capital increase this year, they had placed the commercial bank, then already among Cambodia’s largest, on a path primed for further growth and pioneering developments.

    As a result of Korean banking know-how and increased capital, PPCBank has been able to further its ambitions in the Cambodian market. Shin Chang Moo, President of PPCBank and an industry veteran with more than 30 years of finance experience in Korea and other countries, said, “The Korean financial industry has come a long way, from emerging to being developed. This gives us the honour of knowing what developments the Cambodian banking industry is facing now and in the future.”

    Understanding banking market evolutions, PPCBank, headed by Shin, has defined priorities for the bank’s business operations in Cambodia’s developing financial industry.To become a leading retail bank in Cambodia and Southeast Asia, PPCB will boost its retail business and focus on promoting digital banking and building up human resources, according to Shin.

    In a first step, the $20 million capital increase has enabled the bank to expand and diversify their loan portfolio with a strong focus on small and medium enterprises (SMEs) – the economic backbone of the economy, Shin said.

    To effectively reach retail customers with their new loan products, Shin said PPCBank was set to open more branches where clients were met with “strong consultations and more financing options through combined and customized products and services.”

    Other than increasing clientele and improving services for Cambodian customers face-to-face in new branches, PPCBank aims to put a strong focus on mobile and digital banking; adding convenience for customers through social network, providing top-up through mobile and transfers to non account holders.

    Lining out their digital and mobile payment strategy, the president explained PPCBank was promoting its “Open Banking System”.“To promote synergies and nationwide networks for the benefit of our customers we aim for collaborations with financial technology companies and utilize third party payment providers to expand banking services to even more people,” Shin explained, adding that he also plans to adapt to customers’ data analytics and integrate services with the third party to serve customers even better.

    Shin said speed, convenience and quality of service and attractive overseas remittance options, especially from Korea to Cambodia, were among other customer benefits.

    Looking to continue the path of success from 2016 into 2017, president Shin said that he and PPCBank’s staff are excited to further the mobile growth, offer even more products and services and improve business efficiency – all for the benefit of the customers.

    “The energy we put in won’t be to generate greater business profits but to give our banking service the love, confidence and trust from all customers we serve,” Shin said.

  • China’s Jiangling Motors unit awarded electric car licence

    China’s Jiangling Motors unit awarded electric car licence

    China has awarded its seventh electric vehicle production license to a unit of Jiangling Motors, according to a posting by China’s state planner, as the country accelerates approvals for green car projects.

    Jiangxi Jiangling Group New Energy Vehicle has permission to proceed with a project to make 50,000 pure electric cars, according to a notice dated Monday in a database administered by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

    The notice did not give further details. Government records separately show that Jiangling Motors is a shareholder.

    China’s government has employed a raft of policies that spurred a boom in electric and plug-in hybrid cars since 2015. It aims to cut air pollution that frequently blankets urban areas and to push its car industry to leap-frog ahead of global automakers with long experience making internal combustion engine cars.

    The country is accelerating approvals for electric vehicle-only projects under a special programme, having approved a license for Chinese auto parts supplier Wanxiang Group earlier this month, while officials say they will restrict new factories making traditional petrol cars.

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  • Apple allegedly deepening partnership with Foxconn

    Apple allegedly deepening partnership with Foxconn

    Apple is turning to manufacturing partner Foxconn to facilitate efforts to expand both research centers and business further into Southeast Asia, and open up facilities in China and Indonesia, according to recent reports

    Foxconn has been manufacturing for Apple for over a decade. While Apple’s Indonesian presence is somewhat limited at the moment, Foxconn has been in Indonesia for several years.

    Not clear is what assistance Foxconn may specifically give Apple, beyond access to already-forged business arrangements with local suppliers and businesses.

    In late November, Indonesian Communication and Information Minister H.E. Rudiantara said that the country’s Communication and Informatics Ministry was “finalizing the plan” for an Apple-led research center in Jakarta. Apple has reportedly already selected a few locations in the country for the center.

    Earlier in the year, Chinese media reported that Apple is launching its first research and development center, located in technology incubation area Zhongguancun Science Park, Beijing. According to reports on the matter, the center has a budget of about $15 million, with a long-term expenditure goal of $45 million over the next few years. The center is allegedly seeking to hire around 500 workers, with no particular focus beyond Apple products and software.

  • Indonesia to boost nutmeg exports to Germany

    Indonesia to boost nutmeg exports to Germany

    The Indonesian government intends to encourage local exporters in North Sulawesi to sell nutmeg to Germany, as the country was the number one buyer of the spice in 2016.

    “The (nutmeg) demand from the Germans is high, with exports occurring every week,” said Secretary of Trade and Industry Department Darwin Muksin here on Tuesday.

    According to the North Sulawesi Trade and Industry Department, the export volume of nutmeg to Germany had reached 29 tons and earned US$234,725 in revenue by the end of 2016.

    Muksin added, the demand from Germany showed a positive trend that tended to increase occasionally, with imports arriving almost every month.

    “The export volume to and revenue from Germany is proof that food commodities have not been shaken by the global financial crisis that started in Europe,” he noted.

    The government is optimistic that the exports from North Sulawesi will continue to increase in December 2016, as no postponement of the trade contract has been reported.

    Besides nutmeg, North Sulawesis prime commodities are coconut powder, crude coconut oil, and fisheries products.

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  • Bank Mandiri disburses Rp1.2 trillion for double-track railway

    Bank Mandiri disburses Rp1.2 trillion for double-track railway

    State-owned Bank Mandiri has disbursed Rp1.2 trillion to state-owned railway firm PT KAI for the development of a double-track railway in South Sumatra.

    Senior Executive Vice President of Bank Mandiri Alexandra Askandar in the signing of the agreement with KAI on Tuesday said the special transaction loan has a term of 10 years.

    “The development of a double-track railway in South Sumatra will accelerate the delivery of coal to the coal-fired power plant in Suralaya,” he noted.

    The double-track railway line links the mining area of Bukit Asam in Tanjungenim Baru to Tarahan, Lampung.

    The special loan transaction agreement was signed by Askandar and KAI Finance Director Didiek Hartantyo.

    Askandar said the disbursement of the loan was a form of support for the development of strategic infrastructure projects nationwide, one of which is the transport sector.

    By October 2016, Bank Mandiri had provided Rp37.1 trillion to the transport sector. This is the largest financial commitment in the infrastructure segment which totalled Rp96.9 trillion, or an increase of 53 percent on an annual basis.

    Besides the railway sector, Mandiri has also provided financing for power plants amounting to Rp32.1 trillion.

    Infrastructure financing is included in the corporate loan segment. Mandiri disbursed corporate loans until the third quarter of 2016, amounting to Rp212.4 trillion, up 14.3 percent year on year.

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  • President says high electricity prices due to unnecessary costs

    President says high electricity prices due to unnecessary costs

    President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) revealed on Tuesday that the price of electricity in Indonesia was higher compared to other countries because power companies were saddled with unnecessary costs.

    “Our electricity is expensive because players are burdened by too many unnecessary costs,” the president said when inaugurating a geothermal power plant (PLTP) in Tomposo, Minahasa, on Tuesday.

    He was inaugurating Lahendong PLTP, Unit 5 and 6 and Ulubelu PLTP, Unit 3, which is located in Lampung.

    Jokowi said the price of electricity was also high because there were too many brokers involved in one project. “There are too many people who become brokers,” he said.

    He said that in many countries the price of electricity was lower and electricity management was efficient.

    “Why can they do that while we cannot? There must be something wrong,” the president stressed.

    He also expressed concern over the fact that many districts/municipal cities in the country still often face power outages.

    Electricity concerns competitive edge; it has to meet the peoples and industrial needs so that it should not be more expensive than in other countries, he stated.

    “In Serawak, Malaysia, the price of a hydro power plants (PLTPs) electricity is only two cents while in Indonesia it is seven cents.

    “Electricity from a solar power plant in the United Arab Emirates is only 2.9 cents while in Indonesia it is 14 cents although we are rich in abundant water resources and rivers,” he said.

    He said if large rivers such as the Mahakam, the Musi, and the Bengawan Solo can be utilized to produce electricity, which could be offered at 2 cents, then Indonesias competitiveness will rise.

    “Why are there middlemen between state-owned enterprises? Why should there be middlemen between the private company and the state-owned electricity firm PLN? What are they for? Our country needs efficiency in all sectors or else it will be left behind in the competition era,” Jokowi noted.

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  • Aprindo Foresees 10% Increase in Retail Sales Volume for 2016

    Aprindo Foresees 10% Increase in Retail Sales Volume for 2016

    Indonesian Retailers Association (Aprindo) said that this year’s retail performance has been better than last year. Aprindo chairman Roy Mandey is confident that volume of retail sales will increase 10 percent this year.

    “We are confident of ending 2016 with 10 percent increase in volume of retail sales compared to last year,” Roy Mandey said in Jakarta on Wednesday.

    Roy explained that the figure of 10 percent is equal to Rp200 trillion. Last year, with national economic growth at 4.7 percent, the volume of retail sales reached 8 percent or equal to Rp181 trillion. “Adding processed food and beverages into the equation would take the sales volume to Rp1,630 trillion.”

    Roy said that sales volume increased significantly in November and December, despite some rallies staged during that period.

    As for next year, Aprindo is confindent of achieving similar figure of sales volume because Indonesian economic growth is predicted at 5.4 percent, which will help the growth of retail industry.

    Roy revealed that the growth of Indonesia’s retail industry is better compared to that of other countries. The United States, for instance, only saw 0.1 percent increase in retail industry. “Indonesia’s [retail sector] is better [in terms of growth], more so because inflation rate is low.”

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  • Air cargo transport in Asia to double by 2035

    Air cargo transport in Asia to double by 2035

    Airborne logistics networks are expanding in Asia as demand for air cargo delivery in the region is forecast to roughly double in volume over the next two decades.

    Garuda Indonesia and budget carriers are rapidly expanding operations to capitalize on the increase of goods traded via e-commerce as well as electronic products and parts. But with other transporters, including global leaders, stepping up competition, the industry may undergo a shake-up.

    Indonesia has more than 13,000 islands, and Garuda, the country’s national airline, plans to establish an airborne logistics network connecting the core islands. As a first step, Garuda is eyeing a 40% increase in the number of its domestic freight bases to 100 by the end of 2017.

    Domestic demand for airfreight delivery is strong due to Indonesia’s growing middle class, Muhammad Arif Wibowo, president and CEO of Garuda, said. With the increase in e-commerce giving consumers faster access to goods and growing demand for fresh food, land and maritime transportation alone cannot handle the increased freight volume, Wibowo added.

    In the first nine months of 2016, Garuda chalked up $155 million in sales in its freight business, up 13% from a year earlier. While this accounts for 5% of Garuda’s consolidated sales, the carrier intends to raise the ratio to more than 10% as its initial target, Wibowo said.

    Flying high

    Global routes for air cargo transportation are roughly divided into five major networks: Asia/Pacific-Europe, Asia/Pacific-North America, Asia/Pacific, Europe-North America and North America.

    Asia is leading the sector’s growth. Japan Aircraft Development Corp., a consortium of Japanese commercial aircraft developers, forecasts that demand for airfreight services in the three Asia/Pacific networks will grow on average 3% per year and roughly double from the 2015 level by 2035. The average growth of demand on the Europe-North America route and within North America is projected at around 1% each.

    Ocean shipping in Asia is currently slowing. According to the Japan Maritime Center, the volume of ocean cargo transportation dropped 3% in terms of the 20-foot equivalent unit in 2015 from the previous year and logged a 2% year-on-year fall in the January-October period of 2016.

    The slowdown in ocean shipping possibly reflects the consolidation of plants and increased local production by manufacturers.

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  • Oman Air wins Malaysian foreign airline of year award

    Oman Air wins Malaysian foreign airline of year award

    National carrier Oman Air won a prestigious airlines award in Malaysia, the airline announced on Wednesday. Oman Air was awarded the Foreign Airline of the Year by Sector to Middle East award at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Awards 2015.

    Oman Air was chosen based upon its achievements in 2015, including growth, sales performance, international recognition and service excellence.

    This latest recognition is among an ever- increasing list of awards for Oman Air, which overcame competition from other airlines operating in the Middle East, including last year’s winners.

    Gateway of choice

    The KLIA Awards has been in existence since 2006, in recognition of aviation partners’ contributions in achieving the vision of KLIA becoming the gateway of choice in the region.

    This year’s ceremony took place at the Sama Sama Hotel, KLIA, Petang, and the award was accepted by Oman Air’s Country Manager in Malaysia, Zainuddin Mohamed. Also present at the ceremony were Malaysian Minister of Transport Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, Malaysia Airports Chairman Tan Sri Dr Wan Abdul Aziz Wan Abdullah and Civil Aviation Department Director General Datuk Seri Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, as well as other key personnel from the aviation industry.

    Commenting on the award, CEO of Oman Air Paul Gregorowitsch noted, “Oman Air is undertaking a very ambitious expansion programme, and it is gratifying to have our achievements and contribution to the industry recognized by KLIA. We continue to grow in all markets, including South East Asia, and our success is based on our consistently excellent product and on-board experience. Oman Air is always striving to “be the best”, and testament to this is our ever growing list of industry accolades and awards.”

  • DFS and Flemingo team with Pernod on promotion

    DFS and Flemingo team with Pernod on promotion

    The Mumbai Duty Free joint venture of DFS Group and Flemingo International teamed up with Pernod Ricard India recently for its third edition 2016 ‘Taste of Luxury’ promotion at Mumbai’s Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport Terminal ‘T2’.

    This offers the lucky winner the opportunity to try and win a luxury BMW X1 Expedition under this exclusive offer for participants spending $80 or more on Pernod Ricard luxury portfolio products.

    These products include Pernod Ricard’s leading Sotch whisky brands, including Chivas Regal, Royal Salute, The Glenlivet and Ballantine’s.

    Those who are eligible to enter simply complete a lucky draw entry ahead of the closing date January 31 where the winner will claim the BMW X1 Expedition prize.

    LUXURY PROMOTION…

    Commenting on the promotion, Nodjame Fouad, Marketing Director, Travel Retail Asia Pacific said: “At Pernod Ricard, we have always believed in delivering luxury experiences to our consumers at various touch points. This promotion at the Duty Free store of Mumbai international airport is one such touch point where consumers can enjoy our luxury brands and experiences”

    Manishi Sanwal, Managing Director, Mumbai Duty Free added: “In our constant quest to offer a greater value to our customers, we bring back the very successful ‘Win a BMW Car’ promotion yet again in this festive period of December-January.

    “We are extremely delighted to have partner brands like Pernod Ricard, who are always willing to support with greater excitement and engagement in their promotions”.

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  • Lippo Malls Indonesia Retail Trust Has A Yield Of 9%: 3 Things Investors Should Know

    Lippo Malls Indonesia Retail Trust Has A Yield Of 9%: 3 Things Investors Should Know

    Lippo Malls Indonesia Retail Trust was listed over nine years ago on November 2007. It was the first real estate investment trust that focused on Indonesian retail malls in Singapore’s stock market.

    Today, LMIRT remains the only REIT in Singapore with that focus. The REIT currently has a portfolio of 19 retail malls and seven retail spaces that are all located in Indonesia. At end-2015, LMIRT’s portfolio had a total net lettable area of over 765,000 square metres.

    At its current price, the REIT has a distribution yield of 9%. For perspective, this is nearly three times higher than the SPDR STI ETF‘s yield of 3.2%. The SPDR STI ETF is an exchange-traded fund that tracks Singapore’s market barometer, the Straits Times Index.

    Here are three things that current and prospective investors in LMIRT may want to know about now:

    1. Performance in the first nine months of 2016

    In the first nine months of 2016, LMIRT saw growth in a number of important metrics in Singapore dollar terms. Its gross revenue, net property income, unitholders’ distribution, and distribution per unit saw year-on-year growth of 8.6%, 7.5%, 13.2%, and 10.9%, respectively.

    2. Historical growth

    lmirt-results-chart
    Source: LMIRT 7th annual general meeting presentation

    From the two charts above, we can see that LMIRT has managed to grow its revenue, net property income, and distribution income over the past five years from 2011 to 2015 in rupiah terms. The growth rates have been strong, with the REIT’s revenue and net property income more than doubling and distribution income climbing by 80%.

    There’s growth in Singapore dollar terms as well for LMIRT, but the depreciation of the rupiah against the Singapore dollar over the past few years has left its mark. For instance, the REIT’s distribution income has stepped up by only around 30% from 2011 to 2015 in Singapore dollar terms.

    This highlights the fact that investors in LMIRT are subject to currency risks.

    3. The diversity of the REIT’s income sources

    It is important that a trust does not depend too heavily on any particular trade sector for its rental income so as to prevent high concentration risk.

    The chart below shows the trade sector breakdown for LMIRT’s property portfolio by rental income and net lettable area:

    lmirt-trade-sector-breakdown
    Source: LMIRT 2016 third quarter earnings presentation

    We can see that the REIT does not depend on any individual trade sector for more than 17.6% of its rental income.

    But, LMIRT is still exposed to some form of concentration risk since all its assets are related to the retail industry in Indonesia. So, any downturn in Indonesia’s retail scene could affect the REIT’s earnings.

    Investors can perhaps rest a little easy for the time being given that Indonesia’s economy is forecast to grow by 5% in 2016 and 5.1% in 2017, according to data from the Asian Development Bank. From 2011 to 2015, the country’s economy has expanded at an annual rate of between 4.8% and 6.2%.

  • Christmas is over, but not the shopping

    Christmas is over, but not the shopping

    The shopping frenzy continues after Christmas as Orchard Road and neighbourhood malls lay on the post-Christmas sales to reel in the crowds.

    Mall tunes have been switched as well, as many people head out to shop for the Chinese New Year, on Jan 28 next year, or to stock up for the new school year.

    Ms Donna Tan, 33 , an administrative executive who was at the Nex shopping mall in Serangoon, said she was taking advantage of the current sales to get both Chinese New Year clothes and school shoes for her daughters, aged 10 and 14.

    She said: “There isn’t much time left for Chinese New Year shopping actually. The sales are also good now, so we took today and yesterday off to shop.”

    In total, she spent about $300 at Nex, Changi City Point and Tampines Mall over the past two days.

    Student Salwa Mayra, 19, waited for the post-Christmas sales to score better deals.

    Ms Salwa, who went shopping in Orchard Road and at Nex, said she bought clothes at Zara at half the usual price. Others, such as Ms Miki Chua, 40, a teacher, also decided to wait until after Christmas to beat the crowds.

    “I looked around during the Christmas period but it was too crowded, so I decided to come back now,” said Ms Chua, who had bags from Forever 21 and Etude House.

    Stores such as H&M and Robinsons continued to offer discounts of up to 70 per cent.

    Several malls and department stores reported healthy post-Christmas crowds and sales.

    A Tangs spokesman said the sales figures for Monday, the day after Christmas, were “quite encouraging”, without giving details. The sale at Tangs goes on till Jan 2.

    A spokesman for the orchardgateway shopping mall also said that the crowds on Monday were on the “positive side”.

    Takashimaya Singapore said that while there was just a 5 per cent increase in crowd figures on Boxing Day this year compared with last year, Takashimaya Department Store achieved a “double-digit increase in sales” over last year’s figures.

    Ms Stephanie Ho, general manager at Frasers Centrepoint Malls, said overall traffic at the company’s malls, which include Causeway Point and Waterway Point, was boosted by up to 20 per cent.

    “This may be attributed to promotions, including post-Christmas and back-to-school sales, over the long festive weekend,” she said.

    Despite healthy crowds, a survey conducted by e-commerce solutions company SAP Hybris that was released earlier this month found that only 39 per cent of shoppers still enjoy browsing in purely brick- and-mortar stores.

    More popular were stores with both a physical and digital presence, which 68 per cent of those surveyed cited as their top shopping option. Consumers were also less interested in more new-age services such as mobile payments through a digital wallet.

    Singapore Polytechnic senior retail lecturer Sarah Lim said that while an increase in transactions or crowds may not translate into an increase in sales due to marked- down prices, clearing stock is also important.

    “They have to make room for new stock, especially because Chinese New Year is coming soon. Also, crowds have the tendency to attract more crowds, who may end up buying,” she said.

  • Number of shoppers at Boxing Day sales down by 6.7%

    Number of shoppers at Boxing Day sales down by 6.7%

    The number of shoppers venturing out to the Boxing Day sales fell 6.7% on last year in another challenging period for struggling UK retailers, figures show.

    Hardware and technology stores particularly struggled, mainly because buyers do not need to inspect the products in person, according to the UK Retail Traffic Index figures published by Ipsos Retail Performance.

    However the leisure and health and beauty sectors bucked the trend with year-on-year growth in stores, and clothing and footwear shops only saw a relatively small drop in footfall of 3.2%.

    Ipsos said the build-up of store footfall in the run-in to Christmas was slow, and the last-minute rush to the shops was not as intense as retailers hoped for.

    But Tim Denison, director of retail intelligence at Ipsos Retail Performance, said: “Boxing Day remains a genuine and important event in the retail year.

    “Finite stockpiles mean that shoppers have to be quick off the mark to secure the best bargains, creating a thrill that is sufficient for many to brave queuing up before opening time.”

    Barclaycard had predicted almost a quarter of Britons (23%) would shop in the Boxing Day sales, down from 32% last year.

    The figures suggest the incentive to buy in the sales has weakened following widespread discounting, including Black Friday and Cyber Monday, that continued well into December.

    But post-Christmas shoppers were still predicted to go on a £3.85 billion bargain hunt on Boxing Day, spending £2.95 billion on the high street and £900 million online, according to VoucherCodes.co.uk and the Centre for Retail Research.

    The New West End Company was also expecting a bumper Boxing Day due to international shoppers, projecting a spend of £55 million.

    Myf Ryan, chief marketing officer at Westfield shopping centres, said Boxing Day sales continued to be an important date in the diary.

    The company said shoppers spent £500,000 every hour at its centres during the Christmas period, and there had been growth in visitors from Hong Kong and the US.

    Retail analysts ShopperTrak said Boxing Day footfall fell 14% year-on-year, and suggested this was due to Christmas falling on a Sunday, creating an extra bank holiday, as well as record levels of pre-Christmas discounting.

    ShopperTrak UK director Steve Richardson said: “While Boxing Day is usually a peak day for in-store traffic, this year footfall dropped by 14% year-on-year, as consumers made the most of having the extra bank holiday off.

    “There was also another dynamic impacting Boxing Day footfall, namely the unprecedented levels of extended pre-Christmas discounting by retailers, which may have resulted in sales ‘fatigue’ amongst shoppers.

    “While Boxing Day traditionally kicks off the January sales in earnest, with so much discounting throughout December, this year saw much less impetus on customers to take to the High Street on Boxing Day itself in order to bag a bargain.”

    Westfield centres saw shoppers queuing from 2am on Boxing Day, and more than 300,000 people had visited by the time stores closed, Ms Ryan said.

    A shopper from Hammersmith paid £75,000 for a new Bentley, making it the day’s biggest purchase.

    Other extravagant buys over the Christmas period included a £140,000 diamond ring and a £15,000 transaction by a Middle Eastern princess at Gucci.

    Ms Ryan said international numbers of shoppers had increased across Westfield’s centres.

    She said: “Tourist spend at Westfield London in November was up 14% year-on-year and luxury spend up 21%. The big international luxury spenders were China, up 44%, the US, up 99%, and Hong Kong, up 191%.

    “We expect to see high growth again during the busy Christmas and sales shopping period.”

  • Balenciaga opens Osaka pop-up

    Balenciaga opens Osaka pop-up

    French fashion maison Balenciaga has opened a new pop-up store in Osaka, adding to the five standalone boutiques already retailing in the Japanese city.

    The Parisian label has its sights set on pushing its newest ‘it’ handbag – the Bazar Shopping Bag – onto the Japanese clientele.

    The new Osaka pop-up shop will house the original Bazar Shopping from the latest collection, as well as holiday and resort versions. Also for sale are pouch and wallet versions of the bag.

    The colourful tote bag, designed by Demna Gsvalia, featured in Balenciaga’s Autumn/Winter 2016 collection. The Bazar Shopping Bag — already a hit with fashionistas such as Pernille Teisbaek, the co-founder and creative director at Social Zoo Direct — is part of Gvsalia’s first accessory line since taking the helm of Balenciaga this year.

    Despite being compared to a heavy-duty laundrette carryall, the Balenciaga accessory retails for a whopping £975 per unit and has been hailed a best-seller on major fashion e-platforms Net-a-Porter and MatchesFashion.com.

    Balenciaga is known for ‘it’ bags, since the Arena handbag, designed by Nicholas Ghesquire over ten years ago.

    The pop-up shop is located within a portion of the Hankyu department store in Osaka. It is open from now until the end of December.

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