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Category: Food

Retail News Asia is committed to providing both local and global retailers with the latest Food and Food & Beverage news throughout the Asian market. This on a daily base.

  • Acecook to open instant-noodle buffet restaurant in Vietnam

    Acecook to open instant-noodle buffet restaurant in Vietnam

    Called ‘Acecook Noodles Cup Buffet’, the store allows customers to create and mix instant noodles to their own preference. Customers can also customize their noodles cup design with stickers and pencil crayon provided.

    Besides providing the buffet service, the store also has a dedicated display area for Acecook’s new noodles range as part of its marketing plan. The store is scheduled to launch on December 19.

    “This is also a tribute to the companionship and support of customers for Acecook Vietnam over the past 25 years,” said Kajiwara Junichi, general director at Acecook Vietnam. “I hope the restaurant will be an attractive destination for our customers, who love instant cup noodles and want to experience new things.”

    The launch is part of Acecook’s strategy to increase the cup noodles sales in the country. According to Nikkei, the Japanese instant-noodle maker aims to achieve about 350 million servings by 2022. Acecook estimates cup noodles will account for 9 percent of its sales in the country by then.

    Prior to creating the instant-noodle buffet concept, Acecook Vietnam entered the retail market with its Japanese restaurant chain Ringer Hut.

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  • Crêpe Delicious Celebrating Festive Season with Holiday Set Menus for Home and Office Parties

    Crêpe Delicious Celebrating Festive Season with Holiday Set Menus for Home and Office Parties

    Crêpe Delicious is celebrating Hong Kong’s festive season with Holiday Set Menus for home or office parties. Joyous Christmas-themed dessert crêpes, a sharing platter for couples, spectacular new gelato shake and promotion on Somersby Sparkling Rosé cider also launch the season to be merry at the brand’s fashionable ‘urban cafés’ in trendy Lee Tung Avenue, Wanchai and MOKO, Mongkok, from 10 December 2020 into the New Year to 31 January 2021.

    Three party menus priced HK$980 for 4, HK$1,800 for 8 and HK$2,480 for 12 headlines the festive specials – styled especially for Hong Kong’s restrained party season.

    With convenient ordering for pick-up, takeaway sets tailored for various group sizes feature a signature range of popular Crêpe Delicious favorites including snacks & salads, famous ‘puff pizza’, fresh “From the Kitchen” pastas and risottos, iconic dessert crêpes, and soft drinks.*

    An “Early-Bird” promotion is available for party set menu orders before 15 December 2020, for pick-up or delivery from 21-27 December 2020, includes a complimentary bottle of red wine, or four bottles of Somersby Sparkling Rosé and gift set of two glasses.

    For a festive treat, three new Instagrammable dessert crêpes embrace the Christmas spirit.  Winter Butterfly (HK$98) is a delightful rose crêpe with white peaches and raspberries, topped with rose whipped cream, white chocolate chips and raspberry sauce.  Symbolic butterflies also pay tribute to a Lee Tung Avenue neighborhood celebration of the joyous season along a colorful “Butterfly of Hope” theme decorated with over 300 glass butterflies.

    Rum & Raisin (HK$98) with cream cheese filling and rum raisin is topped with rum & raisin gelato, chocolate sauce, and garnished with colorful raspberries and mint.  Also inspired by the classic French dessert, Mont Blanc (HK$98) has a festive edible gold leaf and candied chestnut topping, with chestnut cream and chocolate chips, and a cute cream snowman on the side.

    The brand’s classic home-made gelato range is extended with Pistachio Green Gelato Shake (HK$58) with green-themed pistachio and gelato, topped with whipped cream and pistachio crunch, a variation of signature pink-colored gelato shake Pink Lady (HK$58).

    To complete celebrations, any diner who orders Somersby Sparkling Rosé (HK$48) cider at Crêpe Delicious (Urban Café) in Lee Tung Avenue will receive a complimentary glass gift set.

    Value added offerings are also available through the brand’s Membership Programme.  VIP Memberships with any single spending over HK$300 earns a welcome gift of gelato scoop, along with 10% year-round discount and 20% discount during birthday month.  Premium Membership, for a fee of HK$488, earns a welcome gift of gelato scoop plus Cookieboy Family Cookie Pack, with 15% year-round discount and annual coupons including Four Welcome Cash Coupons, Four Free Takeaway Coffee Coupons, Four Gelato Coupons, Four Gelato Shake Coupons, One Cookie and Cream sweet crepe and One Welcome Hong Kong savoury crepe – total value worth HK$888.

    With a focus on highest quality ingredients and dishes freshly made to order, Crêpe Delicious has pioneered a global craze for the iconic French cuisine classic since 2004 – expanding worldwide from Canada to Hong Kong, USA, UK, the Middle East, India and Thailand.

    The brand’s winning success story is owed to a commitment to leading the resurgence in healthy eating, with signature crêpes weighing-in at just 170 calories and 3 grams of fat, with a choice of fillings of seasonal fresh ingredients.

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  • Starbucks opens ‘inclusive’ store staffed by people with disabilities

    Starbucks opens ‘inclusive’ store staffed by people with disabilities

    Today, Starbucks announced the opening of a first-of-its-kind Starbucks store focused on inclusive design in South Korea. Located at Seoul National University Dental Hospital (SNUDH), the store reaffirms Starbucks commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, and expands career opportunities for Starbucks partners (employees) with disabilities.

    “Opening a store focused on inclusive design marks an important moment for Starbucks in South Korea and around the world,” said David Song, ceo, Starbucks Coffee Korea. “We are excited to have this opportunity to bring Starbucks Mission and values to life in our community and expand opportunities for our partners to develop their careers at Starbucks. Through our partnerships with organizations like the Korea Employment Promotion Agency for the Disabled (KEPAD), we hope to lead the way for other business in South Korea to create an inclusive environment for all.”

    Starbucks partners in the disability community had raised the concept for such a store as an opportunity for the company to have a positive impact. From the beginning, Starbucks Coffee Korea partners with disabilities guided store development and operational testing to create a welcoming Third Place community for partners and customers alike. The company also partnered with the KEPAD and other advocates in the disability community to consult on store design and training.

    Anyone who is passionate about access and disability inclusion can work at the new store. Half of the staff are partners with disabilities, and hold positions at nearly every level. In partnership with KEPAD, partners all receive customized training and development, including basic expressions in Korean Sign Language.

    The store’s central art piece demonstrates the positive impact that Starbucks partners with disabilities have had on the company and partners’ hopes to make a place where all people can come together over a cup of coffee. Partners from across South Korea, as well as partners based at the store, contributed individual clay pieces arranged to create the word “Together” in English, mounted on a background of upcycled Starbucks coffee grounds.

    “I’m so proud of this new store and the important role it will play in bringing our community together and enhancing the career development journey of Starbucks Korea partners,” said Elena Choi, assistant manager of the new store, and a partner who is hard of hearing. “Creating an inclusive space expands the ability of partners to learn and grow in their role, and we’re so excited to welcome customers to our new store.”

    The store was designed to be a warm and inclusive space for people with a wide range of disabilities, from customers to partners. Partners are equipped with digital tablets to facilitate communication with customers, and the store floor, back room and bar have all been designed with additional space for comfortable wheelchair access—a first-of-its kind for Starbucks globally. At the Starbucks design lab in South Korea, members of the disability community helped test the store’s unique bar to better optimize the space for partners using mobility aids like wheelchairs.

    “The new store represents our enduring commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion in every market we serve,” said Sara Trilling, president, Starbucks Asia Pacific. “We understand we are still early in our journey, and will continue to learn and expand our design principles. With feedback from partners, customers and the community, we are constantly reimagining how we build stores to.

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  • Sugar producers accuse Thai firms of dumping

    Sugar producers accuse Thai firms of dumping

    Thai companies are allegedly dumping sugar in Vietnam and hurting farmers, according to Vietnamese producers.

    Nguyen Van Loc, general secretary of the Vietnam Sugarcane and Sugar Association, said citing figures from Thailand’s Office of Cane and Sugar Board the average export price of Thai raw and refined sugar is $334 per ton though the cost of sugarcane alone to produce a ton is $410.

    The Thai government in April unveiled a support package of $325 million to sugarcane farmers hit by drought though Brazil had earlier filed a complaint to the World Trade Organization that Thailand had given support to cane growers that was inconsistent with international trade agreements, Loc said at a forum on Monday.

    A decree issued by the Thai government in March showed signs that it was limiting imports to protect domestic producers, he said.

    The influx of cheap Thai sugar is hurting Vietnamese companies and farmers.

    Tran Ngoc Hieu, CEO of Soc Trang Sugar Jsc in the southern province of the same name, said the area under sugarcane in his province has dropped by over 71 percent since 2017 to 2,400 hectares, and is set to fall to 2,000 hectares next year.

    Annual production has fallen 64 percent to 170,000 tons this year, he said. The competition from Thai sugar is the main reason for the declining figures, he added.

    Thai sugar is also smuggled into Vietnam, and whenever smuggled goods are seized, domestic sugar sales rise.

    Tran Thi Yen, a sugarcane farmer in the central province of Phu Yen, said: “Many sugarcane farmers have reduced their farming area or abandoned the farming due to losses.”

    The Trade Remedies Authority of Vietnam is conducting anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations into Thai sugar.

    Under ASEAN commitments, Vietnam has to allow unlimited sugar imports from member countries at 5 percent tariff.

    Imports of sugarcane in the first nine months surged five fold year-on-year to 1.06 million tons, with nearly 90 percent of it from Thailand, according to the Trade Remedies Authority.

  • Japanese sushi chain Sushiro eyes cross-border expansion next year

    Japanese sushi chain Sushiro eyes cross-border expansion next year

    Sushiro Global Holdings, the Japan-based operator of sushi chain Sushiro, plans to boost its Asian presence with the opening of new restaurant units in Thailand and China.

    The company will be renamed to Food & Life in April 2020. It will launch its first Thailand location in Bangkok next spring, Nikkie Asia reported.

    Sushiro will establish its business unit in China by December this year and intends to open one restaurant by September 2021.

    Commenting on the entry into these Asian markets, Sushiro Global Holdings CEO Koichi Mizutome was quoted by the publication as saying: “Asia has rice culture, and Asian people have a higher tolerance for raw fish.”

    Sushiro expects to ramp up its overseas sales to approximately 10% of total sales in fiscal 2021 by next September with the establishment of new restaurants in China and Thailand.

    The Japanese firm plans to set up 24 to 28 restaurants abroad during fiscal 2021.

    Meanwhile, the chain will slow down its expansion in the home market.

    Several Japanese sushi chains have been under pressure to focus on their growth in foreign markets due to the country’s rapidly ageing population.

  • Starbucks teams with Kate Spade New York

    Starbucks teams with Kate Spade New York

    This Holiday season, Starbucks is collaborating with acclaimed American life and style brand kate spade new york for the first time to offer a curated designer merchandise collection, available for a limited time at select Starbucks stores in Asia.

    The Starbucks X kate spade new york collection embodies the holiday spirit, incorporating colorful and playful designs against a New York City backdrop. Motifs of curious cats, as well as kate spade new york’s signature dots and stripes, ring in the season, is a celebration of joy, femininity, and optimism.

    “Starbucks is excited to partner with kate spade new york to bring this fun and festive collection to customers across Asia,” said Erin Silvoy, vice president, Product, and Marketing, Starbucks Asia Pacific. “The Starbucks X kate spade new york collection was created to inspire joyful connections and optimism for the future, two values at the heart of both brands.”

    “We are thrilled to bring our iconic kate spade new york spirit to the Starbucks customers in Asia this holiday season,” shared Charlotte Warshaw, Vice President, Wholesale, Travel Retail and Global Licensing at kate spade new york.  “The Starbucks x kate spade new york collection reflects the playfulness, color, and optimism that our brand is known for around the world, and we hope the product will spark joy for shoppers throughout the holidays.”

    This unique line-up of Starbucks X kate spade new york drinkware and lifestyle accessories is perfect for holiday gifting or as a special treat for yourself. Highlights include a ceramic mug, stainless-steel tumbler, and a stainless-steel water bottle.

    The designer collaboration will be available for a limited time starting December 1, 2020 at select Starbucks stores across Asia, including Australia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Indonesia, India, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Taiwan while supplies last.

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  • Starbucks Korea to join the delivery fray

    Starbucks Korea to join the delivery fray

    Starbucks Korea, the nation’s largest coffee chain, has jumped into the delivery fray, in its attempt to boost annual sales in South Korea to 2 trillion won (US$1.86 billion).

    Expanding aggressively its number of stores here, Starbucks Korea has kept growing its presence with its net profit rising 18.5 percent in 2019 from a year earlier, while sales came in at 1.8 trillion won last year, on the cusp of reaching the 2 trillion won milestone.

    The COVID-19 pandemic, however, has served as a bump in the road, slowing the coffee giant’s bid to grab the coveted 2 trillion won title.

    Industry watchers say Starbucks Korea’s decision to enter the delivery service might be its longer-term preparation for the aftermath of the pandemic, which has wreaked havoc on the food and beverage industry.

    Chairs and tables are moved to a corner at a cafe in Seoul on Nov. 23, 2020, as toughened social distancing rules are to only allow takeout and delivery sales at the place.

    Starbucks Korea plans to open a delivery-only store in Gangnam District, Seoul on Nov. 27 as part of a pilot project, and following analysis into demand, it is likely to open another such store in Gangnam District in the middle of next month.

    The delivery-only store has no space assigned for visiting customers, only coffee making stands and a waiting room for delivery persons known as riders.

    In the meantime, other major coffee brands in Korea such as the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Hollys Coffee, Caffe Pascucci and Ediya Coffee are already operating their own delivery services, so they are likely to keep a keen eye on the possible impact Starbucks Korea’s move might result in.

  • Restaurants find silver lining in cloud kitchens

    Restaurants find silver lining in cloud kitchens

    Amid business blues courtesy of the Covid-19 pandemic, cloud kitchens are finding increasing favor from restaurants in Vietnam’s two major cities.

    Nguyen Van Tung saw revenue from the two restaurants he runs in Saigon plunge 70 percent after the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted daily life in Vietnam. He cut his staff from four to two, but the business continued to suffer.

    Then he joined two cloud kitchens, centralized food production facilities set up for multiple restaurants to prepare food, specifically for deliveries. Things began to look up for Tung, then.

    The two kitchens, operated by ride-hailing company Grab, have helped increase revenue, Tung said.

    Another restaurant owner in the city, Ton Nu Quy Nhi, joined a cloud kitchen after demand for her traditional Saigon food surged two to three times amidst the pandemic. Expanding and managing her restaurant would have been expensive and difficult, so she decided to partner with a cloud kitchen service.

    “I don’t know if the business will continue to thrive next year, so I went with the cheapest expansion option, using the cloud kitchen.”

    Tung and Nhi are among many small business owners in Vietnam who want to take advantage of rising demand for food delivery services in major cities.

    There are at least seven cloud kitchens operating in HCMC and Hanoi, three of them operated by Grab, two by South Korean ride-hailing company Baemin and another two by independent companies.

    The cloud kitchens help lower costs, being located outside of high-rent locations. They help established restaurants with dining-in services to expand their delivery operations without adding stress to the existing kitchen, free up parking space taken by the delivery vehicles, and expand users’ reach to new neighborhoods.

    Hoang Tung, founder of the FoodHome cloud kitchen in Hanoi, said that his facility was fully rented and he was mobilizing funds to open a new one in the Old Quarter area.

    Tung said restaurants are moving their cooking to cloud kitchens because they want to focus on selling via apps to access a market of 20 million users that is growing by 30 percent annually.

    Industry insiders said that the Covid-19 pandemic has been a catalyst in the recent transition from traditional brick and mortar kitchens to cloud kitchens.

    Nguyen Ngoc Giao, manager of GrabKitchen, said that this model allows restaurant owners to expand quickly at minimum cost. “Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, opening a physical store carries greater risks than an online one.”

    Huy Ngo, founder of a fast food and dessert restaurant chain in Da Nang City and Hoi An Town, has recently started trying out the cloud kitchen model after having to close five of seven branches due to Covid-19 impacts.

    The new model allows Huy to focus only on ensuring high food quality inputs. The cloud kitchen employees will help prepare food for delivery, which means operating costs are just half or one-third of his traditional physical store.

    Even big and established restaurant chains are also jumping on to the cloud kitchen bandwagon, though it is yet to become a tried and tested concept in Vietnam. Fried chicken chain Otoke Chicken, with 15 outlets, has established a cloud kitchen in Saigon’s Binh Thanh District, seeking to expand its delivery service.

    Details of average investment and rents charged were not available at the time of writing.

    When Grab launched a cloud kitchen in Saigon’s Thu Duc District last year, it had 12 restaurants make food exclusively for GrabFood drivers to pick up and deliver to customers.

    Then Grab had given them space to cook for free, with the restaurants having to pay their utility bills and a commission on orders received.

    Jerry Lim, CEO of Grab Vietnam, had said then the cloud kitchen model has great potential in Vietnam, and that his company would open more such facilities in Saigon, Hanoi and Da Nang.
    However, this concept does not guarantee success for all restaurants. The cloud kitchen service, Now Station, began operations in 2017, but closed a year later.

    Giao of GrabKitchen said there have been cases where restaurants and the service have had to part ways. He declined to get more specific.

    The food delivery services have also come under scrutiny for excessive use of plastic wrappings and cutlery. Giao said his company is studying the possibility of using more environment-friendly materials.

    Tung of FoodHome said that joining a cloud kitchen doesn’t mean young business owners will not fail, but it will help them “fail fast and fail cheap” so they can get back up fast and try out other new ideas.

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  • US doubles purchase of Vietnamese mangoes

    US doubles purchase of Vietnamese mangoes

    The U.S. has imported double the quantity of Vietnamese mangoes in Jan-August 2020, showing potential for further growth in this market.

    The value of mango imports rose 99.9 percent year-on-year to $2.79 million, according to a report by the Agency of Foreign Trade under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, citing U.S. official figures.

    The average import price was $2,064.8 per tonne, up 6.7 percent year-on-year. Most of the imports were of fresh and frozen fruit.

    In terms of volume, Vietnam was the 12th largest mango import market for the U.S. in the said period, accounting for 0.3 percent of the total.

    The Agency of Foreign Trade said the large demand for mango, especially fresh fruit, in the U.S. is an opportunity for Vietnamese companies to expand.

    However, they need to ensure all strict standards on farming, packaging, and origin tracing are met, it added.

    Vietnam exported its first batch of mango to the U.S. in April last year.

    The surge in Vietnam’s mango exports to the U.S. is a rare bright spot in the nation’s plunging fruits exports scenario, primarily as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

    In the first nine months, fruit export value fell 19.1 percent year-on-year to $1.7 billion, with shipment figures of lychees, durians, and bananas plummeting, the agency said.

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  • McDonald’s launches new growth strategy; beats profit estimates

    McDonald’s launches new growth strategy; beats profit estimates

    It will also debut a “McPlant” line of plant-based menu items, though it declined to say which suppliers it would use for faux burger, faux chicken and breakfast items. It previously tested a vegan “P.L.T.” burger by Beyond Meat in Canada.

    The world’s biggest burger chain beat revenue and profit estimates for the third quarter on Monday as customers in the United States ordered more hamburgers and fries in drive-through outlets and on delivery apps to avoid dining out during the pandemic.

    Overall, global sales fell 2.2% in the quarter, an improvement over the previous quarter’s drop, as McDonald’s had already announced in an October update.

    The company’s limited-time promotional deal with rapper Travis Scott, which caused shortages of some ingredients, and other marketing investments also helped sales bounce back from pandemic lows.

    Through 2022, the chain plans to spend about $2.3 billion (£1.7 billion) on capital expenditure, about half of which will build new stores, with some of the rest used for remodels stalled by the pandemic.

    Next year, McDonald’s will focus on core products such as burgers, coffee and chicken, including a new Crispy Chicken Sandwich – something some franchisees have long sought in order to compete with the success of similar products at Popeyes, a unit of Restaurant Brands International and Chick-fil-A.

    It will also redesign its packaging globally. And soon, it will launch another growth driver that other chains have long had — a loyalty program.

    “MyMcDonald’s” digital program will allow customers who sign up to get tailored offers, the company said. A loyalty rewards program using the MyMcDonald’s program will start as a pilot in the coming weeks in Phoenix and next year across the United States.

    Finally, it will build some locations without any dining rooms to focus on carryout, drive-through and delivery only.

    Despite some sales recovery and better-than-forecast margins, the company is still pressured in key markets outside the United States, including France, Germany and Britain by new lockdown restrictions due to a spike in coronavirus cases.

    McDonald’s total revenue fell about 2% to $5.42 billion in the three months ended Sept. 30, largely recovering from the over 30% plunge posted in the second quarter.

    Analysts on average had estimated revenue of $5.40 billion, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

    Net income surged 10% to $1.76 billion, helped by gains from the sale of a part of McDonald’s stake in its Japanese affiliate.

    Excluding those gains, the company earned $2.22 per share, beating estimates of $1.90.

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  • Dairy Farm announced difficult third quarter

    Dairy Farm announced difficult third quarter

    Dairy Farm International Holdings Limited today issues its Interim Management Statement for the third quarter of 2020. The Group’s overall performance in the third quarter improved relative to the first half.  While the Group’s results continued to be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the impact was partially offset by the receipt of government support.  Grocery Retail performance continued to be supported by operational improvements as part of the Group’s multi-year transformation program, as well as changing customer behaviors as a result of the pandemic. Reduced sales and profit in Health and Beauty and Maxim’s, however, continued to impact the Group’s overall performance.

    The Group’s Grocery Retail businesses reported strong like-for-like sales growth, which led to strong profit growth.  In Southeast Asia, changing customer behaviors, as well as the ongoing execution of the Group’s multi-year transformation plan, supported strong profit growth in Singapore and Malaysia.  Performance in Indonesia, however, was impacted in the period by government restrictions on movement and significantly reduced traffic into hypermarkets and malls.

    The Group’s Convenience businesses reported improved like-for-like sales performance compared to the first half of the year.  However, 7-Eleven Singapore continued to be impacted by reduced footfall.  Better sales performance drove higher profitability compared to the first half.

    The performance of the Group’s Health and Beauty businesses were significantly impacted by the effects of the measures taken by governments to counter the pandemic, as well as the continuing lack of custom from overseas tourists in Hong Kong.  In North Asia, whilst like-for-like sales performance improved compared to the first half, the profitability of Mannings continued to be materially impacted by the lack of tourists.  In Southeast Asia, like-for-like sales were affected by reduced footfall in malls which, in turn, impacted profitability.

    Sales in the Home Furnishings business were higher than the equivalent period last year and like-for-like sales improved compared to the first half.  Strong e-commerce growth and the annualization impact of new stores opened in the prior year more than compensated for the impact of pandemic-related measures on customer visits.  Profitability also improved compared to the equivalent period last year, as a result of lower pre-opening expenses and improved gross margins resulting from the lower cost of goods sold.

    The Group’s 50%-owned associate, Maxim’s, continued to be impacted by government restrictions on movement, as well as a reduction in the number of restaurant customers.  However, mooncake sales performance during the Mid-Autumn Festival was encouraging.  Yonghui’s underlying performance in the third quarter was impacted by reduced sales, while Robinsons Retail’s underlying performance was affected by government lockdown restrictions on its discretionary retail formats.

    The launch of Yuu Rewards, Hong Kong’s largest loyalty program, at the end of July was a significant milestone in driving the Group’s digital transformation.  The popularity of the program has exceeded the Group’s own expectations, with two million members joining in the first month.  High membership engagement has supported the performance of the program sponsors.

    On 16th October 2020, the Group announced it had signed an agreement to deepen its partnership with Philippines-listed multi-format retail group Robinsons Retail Holdings Inc. (‘RRHI’) and to build a leading pharmacy business in the Philippines by combining the Group’s interest in wholly-owned Rose Pharmacy Inc. with RRHI subsidiary South Star Drug Inc.  This transaction, which included the sale of Dairy Farm’s direct interest in Rose Pharmacy Inc, completed on 30th October 2020.

    The well-being of our employees and customers remains a top priority, and the Group continues to take a number of measures to mitigate the impact of the pandemic, including the adoption of a range of health and safety measures.  Given the extraordinary circumstances, we would like to express our deep gratitude for the continuing dedication and resolve of team members in putting customers first during these difficult times. 

    Dairy Farm remains committed to its multi-year transformation which is delivering sustainable improvements to the business over time and continues to pursue the strategic initiatives which will drive medium- to long-term growth.

    Dairy Farm is a leading pan-Asian retailer.  The Group, together with its associates and joint ventures, operates over 10,000 outlets – including grocery retail, convenience stores, health and beauty stores, home furnishings stores, and restaurants – employing some 240,000 people, and had total sales in 2019 exceeding US$27 billion.  Dairy Farm International Holdings Limited is incorporated in Bermuda and has a standard listing on the London Stock Exchange, with secondary listings in Bermuda and Singapore.  It is a member of the Jardine Matheson Group.

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  • Foodpanda grows q-commerce with more than 2,500 7-Eleven stores across Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan and the Philippines

    Foodpanda grows q-commerce with more than 2,500 7-Eleven stores across Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan and the Philippines

    What’s more convenient than a convenience store? An online one, of course – delivering food, and essentials to customers’ doorsteps quickly, at the touch of a button. foodpanda, the leading delivery platform in Asia Pacific, marks a new milestone with the announcement of more than 2,500 7-Eleven stores on its app, making the leading convenient store available in Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia and the Philippines.

    With this partnership, foodpanda brings hundreds of 7-Eleven items including hot food, ready-to-eat insta-meals, snacks and alcohol and even pre-paid mobile phone cards into customers’ hands within an average delivery time of 20 minutes. Deliveries can be made anytime, anywhere, 24/7 via foodpanda.

    In the beta phase for integration into the foodpanda “shops” feature, the number of 7-Eleven orders on foodpanda shops grew 50% month-on-month over the past six months. 7-Eleven stores on foodpanda offer over 1,000 unique items on average across the four markets.

    The most convenient convenience store, powered by technology

    As a pioneer in quick commerce, or q-commerce, foodpanda believes in using technology to better the lives of their customers. With 7-Eleven – a brand synonymous with convenience – on the foodpanda platform, consumers enjoy easy access to the choice and variety for their daily essentials.

    In the Philippines, the largest variety available from a 7-Eleven store via foodpanda is almost 1,600 unique items. In Taiwan, consumers have a preference for post-dinner orders from 8pm to midnight, especially for snacks. We see similar trends across the other markets in Asia as foodpanda continues to provide consumers with better varieties and access to on-demand convenience.

    Industry watchers like IGD have predicted growth in online grocery retail with more brick-and-mortar retailers partnering with delivery and technology companies to grow their online footprint, even prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. This is in line with the rise of the ‘convenience economy’ over the past few years, as consumers get accustomed to food and grocery deliveries. COVID-19 has accelerated this evolution and process. IGD reported that online grocery penetration is expected to remain at elevated rates post-COVID-19 as consumers stay home more. The report also predicts that consumers will continue using online deliveries when social distancing measures are lifted to save time.

    As a leading platform for on-demand deliveries in the Asia Pacific region, foodpanda supports the entire delivery ecosystem to ensure that it satisfies consumers’ appetite for greater choice and convenience through its expansion plans. This partnership underscores foodpanda’s dual focus on growing its core food delivery business as well as its q-commerce offerings.

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  • Starbucks to open its first coffee store in Laos

    Starbucks to open its first coffee store in Laos

    Starbucks is to make Laos debut next year with its first store opening in the capital city of Vientiane.

    Laos will become Starbucks’s 17th market in Asia, with the first store scheduled to open in the third quarter of next year.

    Starbucks Laos will be managed by Coffee Concepts (Laos) Limited, part of Maxim’s Caterers Limited, a part-owned subsidiary of Dairy Farm International. Through Coffee Concepts, Starbucks operates more than 800 stores across Hong Kong, Macau, Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore and Thailand.

    According to Starbucks US, the launch is part of its strategy to expand its network across the region.

    “We’re excited to bring the Starbucks Experience to Laos, which has a rich history of coffee production and thriving coffee culture,” said Michael Conway, executive VP at Starbucks International Licensed Stores.

    Michael Wu, chairman and MD at Maxim’s Caterers, added: “We look forward to continuing to deliver the unique Starbucks Experience to customers in the market to earn the trust and respect known by customers around the world.”

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  • Profit up for Yum China despite Covid-19

    Profit up for Yum China despite Covid-19

    Yum China has reported a flat third quarter to September, with sales up 1 percent year on year to US$2.35 billion.

    The company said operations improved during the period, but sales were still impacted by reduced traffic at transportation and tourist locations, a delayed and shortened school-holiday season, and other lingering effects of the Covid-19 outbreak.

    “Dine-in volume has been recovering, while delivery and takeaway remained popular options,” the company said in a statement. “Our primary focus continues to be safety, efficiency, and driving traffic.”

    The fast-food company, which completed a secondary listing on the Hong Kong stock exchange during the quarter, said it has launched digital and membership campaigns offering strong value propositions to consumers to drive a recovery in sales post-pandemic.

    Yum China achieved productivity improvements and improved operating profits through trimming costs and improving productivity, however, the company now plans to increase staffing levels in the coming months to balance service and efficiency.

    Same-store sales declined 6 percent year on year, excluding foreign exchange, but the results included the consolidation of the Huang Ji Huang chain since April and a further 25 percent ownership of the Suzhou KFC operator since August.

    The company opened 312 new stores during the quarter taking its count to 10,150 at the end of September.

    Operating profit rose 86 percent from $300 million to $556 million (excluding foreign exchange impact), largely due to the gain from remeasuring the contribution of the Suzhou KFC business, of which Yum China now owns 72 percent. Net income increased 96 percent to $439 million.

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  • Panda Express calls out fake eatery in Kunming

    Panda Express calls out fake eatery in Kunming

    A restaurant named Panda Express in the southwestern Chinese city of Kunming has been closed for investigation after the American chain of the same name said it was unauthorized and infringed its trademark.

    The US fast-food chain, which serves American-style Chinese cuisine, said it would consider taking legal action, while the Kunming restaurant – which has an almost identical panda logo – was closed and the management of its landlord, Chenggong Seazen Wuyue Plaza, told news portal Thepaper.cn it was reviewing the outlet’s credentials.

    The Chinese version’s listing on food review portal Dianping said its operations were suspended. The restaurant declined to take calls on Thursday from us.

    In an official statement, Panda Restaurant Group – the US company – said: “This restaurant is not affiliated in any way with Panda Express and Panda Restaurant Group. We have trademarked the Panda Express name and likeness in China for use by Panda Restaurant Group.”

    On Monday, the China Cuisine Association had issued a notice on behalf of Andrew Cherng, co-founder and co-chief executive of Panda Restaurant Group, saying the Chinese outlet was an imitation and advising the public not to be misled.

    Last week, there was excitement on Chinese social media as word spread that a Panda Express had been operating in Kunming for some time. On Dianping, some customers said they had visited it because they had enjoyed the chain’s food in the US, but others said the food was different.

    Photos posted on Dianping showed that the Chinese restaurant’s panda logo was similar to that of the US chain, but the panda’s mouth differed and it bore the words “panda theme restaurant” instead of the American company’s “Chinese kitchen” or “gourmet Chinese food”.

    Previously, management of the plaza said that the restaurant was not a fake, and that the plaza had signed a contract with an intermediary, Shenzhen Xiguifu Catering Management.

    Business information website Tianyacha showed that Shenzhen Xiguifu was established in 2018 and had a wide range of operations including investment consulting, catering equipment wholesale, catering services and beverage production.

    The Shenzhen-based intermediary did not respond to requests for comment from us.

    Founded in 1983, the real Panda Express has more than 2,000 restaurants in the US. It had revenues of US$3.5 billion last year, according to Forbes.

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