Retail News CRM

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.

  • Fave launches takeaway platform in Singapore

    Fave launches takeaway platform in Singapore

    Southeast Asian digital merchant-platform Fave has launched a food takeaway service in Singapore.

    Fave Takeaway will allow customers to pre-order their meal selection and make payment via the app’s digital wallet FavePay before picking up their order at participating stores. Customers can expect to collect their order within 30 minutes (or less) depending on the restaurants’ speed of service.

    Takeaway is part of Fave’s strategy to further digitize Southeast Asia’s F&B sector by allowing merchants to serve more customers beyond the capacity of their outlets while diversifying their revenue streams and increasing productivity.

    “As the [Singapore] government continues to push for a digital and seamless economy, Fave is helping SMEs adapt to the new landscape and in a more cost-effective way by giving them the tools to enable them to serve their customers in the best and efficient way possible,” said Fave co-founder and CEO Joel Neoh. “The introduction of Takeaway is our way of enabling that our merchants get the most out of the platform by increasing productivity and revenue.”

    “Queueing makes up a large portion of the average Singaporean’s time, but it is not something we would want to do when we are in a rush,” said Fave Singapore MD Ng Aik-Phong. “With the introduction of Takeaway, we hope to bring convenience and efficiency to our consumers while improving our platform for both merchants and consumers.”

    More than 200 merchants are participating in the launch of Takeaway with more to follow in the coming months.

    The new feature follows the launch of Fave’s Table Ordering service in May this year.

  • Sri Lanka’s Island Tea opens its first branch at home

    Sri Lanka’s Island Tea opens its first branch at home

    Sri Lankan retail tea chain Island Tea has opened for the first time in its home territory with its first branch in Ella.

    The Ceylanka Trading-owned chain has blossomed in the Philippines over the past two years with more than 35 branches selling specialty Ceylon teas and fusion blends. The brand offers a range of popular drinks, including a variety of milk teas as well as fruit teas & green teas.

    Following the signing of franchise agreements in Columbo between ITC’s marketing director for the Philippines, India and Qatar Minodh de Sylva and Wild Holidays Limited chairman Vijith Welikala, the brand plans to expand in key Sri Lankan cities with an offering that is distinct from other local tea houses.

    As well as Sri Lanka, the firm also plans to further expand in the Philippines, India and Qatar this year.

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  • Starbucks Launches Bar Mixato in Starbucks Reserve Roastery Shanghai

    Starbucks Launches Bar Mixato in Starbucks Reserve Roastery Shanghai

    Starbucks today announced the new addition of Bar Mixato to the Starbucks Reserve Roastery in Shanghai, further elevating the multi-sensory experience of China’s coffee wonderland. Starbucks unique interpretation of the modern café and bar experience, Bar Mixato brings together the craftsmanship of specialty coffee and the artistry of cocktail concoctions to offer a novel nighttime third-place experience that will enthrall coffee lovers and bar-goers alike. It features a full bar menu, which includes the global debut of 11 innovative coffee- and tea-based cocktails specially created and available only at the Shanghai Roastery.

    “The Roastery has been at the forefront of innovation since its opening two years ago, epitomizing Starbucks relentless efforts to create imaginative new experiences that exceed customers’ expectations,” said Belinda Wong, chairman and chief executive officer, Starbucks China. “The launch of Bar Mixato elevates the nighttime third-place experience with the exquisite fusion of coffee and cocktail art, to delight customers with unique Starbucks Experiences throughout the day. As Starbucks Innovation Lab in China, we will continue to leverage the Starbucks Reserve Roastery to pilot and gradually scale new products and offerings that our Chinese customers love.”

    Bar Mixato extends Starbucks passion for coffee to the theater of cocktail mixology, conjuring new creative expressions of coffee, while adding a novel dimension to cocktails to meet the discerning tastes and growing thirst for unique experiences among consumers in China. Customers at the Starbucks Reserve Roastery may now enjoy Starbucks ReserveTM Coffee expertly handcrafted by Starbucks Coffee Masters by day, and connect over coffee- and tea-inspired cocktails mixed with precision by Starbucks Mixologists by night. Altogether, Starbucks has launched seven Bar Mixatos at Starbucks Reserve stores across Shanghai, Beijing, Tianjin and Shenzhen since the concept was first introduced in China in May.

    Located on the second floor of the Starbucks Reserve Roastery, the bar was personally designed by Starbucks global design officer, Liz Muller. It is helmed by Timothee Becqueriaux, winner of the globally prestigious 2019 Chivas Bartender Competition (China region), and his team of more than 20 talented Mixologists, who are not only experts in cocktail mixing, but also coffee and tea aficionados. From the use of ingredients to mixing techniques, they have reinterpreted traditional cocktails to create drinks with unique taste and aesthetic profiles, providing an unprecedented sensory experience for customers.

    Headlining the comprehensive bar menu are 11 unique coffee- and tea-based cocktails specially created by Starbucks China in collaboration with leading bartenders in the industry. Classic cocktails, Italian aperitivo, wine, draft beer and mocktails are also available, as is a thoughtfully curated selection of complimentary food choices that customers can pair with their favorite cocktails. The menu will be refreshed quarterly based on the flavors of new Starbucks Reserve coffees.

    Since opening in December 2017, the Roastery has played a leading role in Starbucks retail innovation, incubating new offerings such as Modern Mixology, a new beverage category boasting natural fruit ingredients. With the addition of Bar Mixato, the Roastery will expand to serve as the hub for Starbucks cocktail innovation, before launching to other Bar Mixatos locations nationwide.

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  • Crystal Jade restaurants opening in the Philippines

    Crystal Jade restaurants opening in the Philippines

    Philippines specialty store retailer SSI Group will play host to Chinese restaurant chain Crystal Jade in the territory.

    The firm has contracted with Crystal Jade Management to own and operate the brand in the Philippines as part of its expanding F&B portfolio.

    “The strategic partnership with SSI group is yet another proud moment for Crystal Jade,” said Crystal Jade Culinary Concepts Holdings CEO Douglas DeBoer. “We are excited to join in partnership with such a renowned specialty retailer which has successfully brought so many iconic international brands to the Philippines. Crystal Jade is dedicated to bringing authentic, quality Chinese cuisine to contemporary audiences around the world, and we look forward to delighting consumers across the Philippines very soon.”

    SSI president Anthony Huang said the opening of Crystal Jade in the Philippines is aligned with his company’s desire to provide consumers with complete lifestyle offerings through global partnerships “that cater to the eclectic and sophisticated taste of the Filipino consumer”.

    SSI will initially open a Crystal Jade Hong Kong Kitchen outlet early next year at Central Square in Bonifacio Global City, before rolling out Crystal Jade’s other three international dining concepts – which include Crystal Jade Golden Palace, Crystal Jade La Mian Xiao Long Bao and Crystal Jade Go.

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  • Kyoto coffee chain % Arabica opens store in London

    Kyoto coffee chain % Arabica opens store in London

    Kyoto coffee chain % Arabica has made its debut in the UK with its first store in London.

    Located right by Covent Garden’s piazza, a tourist destination, it is surrounded by a shopping hub and close to West End theatres.

    Meanwhile, the brand has already established its presence in Paris and Berlin, with future plans of setting foot in Switzerland and Spain as part of its European strategy.

    The brand opened its first-ever shop in Hong Kong at Discovery Bay in 2013 with its headquarters situated in Hong Kong, before planting its world-recognized flagship in Kyoto. Now trading in more than 11 countries, Arabica has more eight stores in the works and plans to continue to expand in new international markets.

  • Coffee Day enters Joint Venture with Japanese retailer

    Coffee Day enters Joint Venture with Japanese retailer

    Indian cafe chain Coffee Day has partnered with Japanese sales-floor support-service business Impact HD to grow its retail network in India.

    The joint venture plans to rapidly build market share in the region’s neighborhood retailing sector, launching a minimum of 450 Coffee Day Essentials branded stores in quick succession.

    Coffee Day Group holds a 51 percent controlling share in the joint venture.

    “With about three times the population of Japan in the same standard of living as the Japanese, the multi-retail market environment in which food and daily necessities are purchased on a daily basis remains unexplored,” read a statement released by Impact HD. “In India, kirana stores account for 98 percent of the total, and the remaining 2 percent are hypermarkets and supermarkets that incorporate foreign capital and know-how.”

    The joint venture will convert lagging Cafe Coffee Day cafes into Coffee Day Essentials neighborhood convenience stores.

    The Impact HD JV was among the last major decisions made by Coffee Day Group founder and chairman VG Siddhartha before he took his own life in July.

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  • Habit Burger Grill Opens in Korea

    Habit Burger Grill Opens in Korea

    America’s Habit Burger Grill is eyeing South Korea expansion in partnership with consulting firm Bridging Culture Worldwide.

    “South Korea, with its savvy consumers, open-minded culture and interest in global brands is an ideal marketplace for The Habit Burger Grill’s expansion,” said John Phillips, chief global business partnership officer at the company.

    He said Habit Burger Grill wants to attract multi-unit franchise partners and ensure mutual success for both parties.

    With the partnership, Bridging Culture Worldwide will support The Habit Burger chain with its international expansion plans in Asia-Pacific region.

    Founder and CEO of Bridging Culture Worldwide, Don Southerton, said: “South Korea has embraced premium western brands and The Habit Burger Grill delivers exactly what consumers are seeking – great food and excellent service. With its distinctive fresh-off-the-grill Charburger and hand-crafted sandwiches, fresh salads and other menu items, we know South Koreans will appreciate all that The Habit Burger Grill has to offer,”.

    Bridging Culture Worldwide is a business consultancy providing strategic planning and market entry service to Korea-based global businesses as well as support for western firms entering Korea.

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  • McDonald’s Singapore sleepwear deal crashes app

    McDonald’s Singapore sleepwear deal crashes app

    A deal by McDonald’s Singapore offering free sleepwear along with McNuggets and McWings delivery orders crashed the brand’s delivery app and site within an hour, angering customers.

    The deal went live on Monday October at 6pm, offering a set of limited-edition free-sized men’s or women’s pajamas with a bonus sleeping mask for customers who entered a promo code.

    Online commentators blamed McDonald’s for being insufficiently prepared for the surge in traffic, with some suspecting the firm had deliberately taken down the site rather than admit the sleepwear was out of stock.

    Fans are getting a second chance to purchase the limited edition loungewear later today.

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  • Vietnam coffee chains ready for a marketshare battle

    Vietnam coffee chains ready for a marketshare battle

    Major Vietnam coffee chains are targeting new customers by adopting take-away business models on city streets.

    In Ho Chi Minh City, the largest of the local Vietnam coffee chains, Highlands Coffee, which is majority-owned by Jollibee Foods, has been selling its product in coffee booths set up at roadsides from 7am – 9am when traffic is at its busiest.

    According to Highland’s staff, the company will be building more sidewalk trolleys to serve the increasing needs of customers on the road, most of whom drive motorcycles. Instead of going into the coffee shops, customers now can just stop on the roadside and grab a coffee to go.

    Other major coffee brands, including Passio and Vinacafe, set up morning coffee booths on some busy streets a few months ago. As the new model is easy to run and needs low-cost investment, the Vietnam coffee chains have been able to lower their prices to attract more customers.

    Targeting low- and middle-income customers, Vietnamese coffee company Trung Nguyen has recently launched a small-scale coffee franchise called E-Coffee. According to Vo Thi Ha, communications director of Trung Nguyen Group, the takeaway coffee model only costs around one-eighth of a normal store’s investment.

    “As the mid and high-end segments become increasingly saturated, the affordable and low-income groups are increasingly seen as potential revenue generators. This consumer segment is large and easy to serve, so could generate big profits because of low investment costs, as long as businesses find the right model,” a marketing expert in Ho Chi Minh City told local newspaper VN Express.

    However, Coffee Bike director, Do Quoc Anh, described the current street-trolley coffee business model as unprofessional and unsustainable. He said if it was not developed properly and carefully, it would die out as a trend.

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  • Shake Shack openening second store in Philippines soon

    Shake Shack openening second store in Philippines soon

    Shake Shack is launching its second Philippines outlet at the Mega Fashion Hall at SM Megamall.

    The restaurant is expected to open before the end of the year, with construction on the new venue already underway following a board up made by artist Kris Abrigo, which features a “reimagined Ortigas skyline showcasing gradient colours as day shifts into night, and a multi-faceted community through textures and geometric shapes,” according to reporting in the Manila Standard.

    Brand enthusiasts are invited to interact with sliding panels in the board to reveal “surprises” during the lead-up period to the store’s opening.

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  • Taco Bell to open first New Zealand outlet next month

    Taco Bell to open first New Zealand outlet next month

    Mexican fast food chain Taco Bell reportedly will open its first New Zealand store at The Brickworks in New Lynn’s LynnMall.

    Clark Wilson, general manager of Taco Bell NZ for Restaurant Brands, confirmed the location of the first store to NZ Herald.

    “We’re thrilled to reveal Taco Bell will be opening its doors in Auckland, early this November,” Wilson said.

    Restaurant Brands operates the New Zealand franchises for KFC, Pizza Hut and Carl’s Jr, and operates a KFC franchise in NSW, Australia, as well as Taco Bell and Pizza Hut franchises in Hawaii, Guam and Saipan.

    The NZX-listed company earlier this year said it would open 60 Taco Bell stores across Australia and New Zealand over the next five years. In September, it revealed the locations of the first new stores to open in Australia, with stores set to open in Melbourne, Sydney and Newcastle.

    The Taco Bell in LynnMall in West Auckland will feature an open kitchen, customer-curated music playlists and free WiFi. The store also reportedly will serve alcohol.

    The Brickworks is a relatively new dining precinct at LynnMall, launched in 2015. It currently is home to Turkish and Greek restaurant Bodrum Kitchen, meat and wine bar Cleaver & Co, pizza and pasta restaurant Goode Brothers, Vietnamese restaurant Hansan,

  • H&M profit soars in latest quarter

    H&M profit soars in latest quarter

    H&M’s pre-tax profit rose 25 percent in the latest quarter to US$506 million as the Swedish-headquartered global fast-fashion retailer trimmed its inventory and customers embraced its summer range.

    “The new season has got off to a promising start,” said CEO Karl-Johan Persson.

    Globally, net sales rose by 12 percent in the third quarter to $6.35 billion, helped by a 30-per-cent jump in online sales. In the US market, where it has been struggling, it cut prices on core lines to reduce inventory, and sales rose 19 percent.

    Kate Ormrod, lead retail analyst at GlobalData, said the results showed H&M’s strategic overhaul – in which it has embraced the shift away from physical retail to digital – is beginning to reap rewards.

    The increase in full-price sales and a reduction in markdowns resulted in the group’s first double-digit growth in operating profit and its first quarterly increase since the second quarter of 2016/17.

    The Swedish retailer now expects to only open around a net 120 stores this year, a further reduction on the 175 stores originally planned – although expansion in growth markets remains a priority. Ormrod said that while Persson says a ‘high level of activity’ remains in its transformation work, the scale and coverage of its investment, extending to almost all parts of its business, is notable, and signifies the evolution of the retailer as it strives to satisfy changing consumer demands.

    “This year has not been without its challenges, however, especially in the UK, and while it remains under pressure from value rivals as well as more frequent discounting from mid-market players, H&M’s proposition continues to resonate,” she said.

    Ormrod also praised H&M’s commitment to embracing sustainability.

    “Its longstanding commitment to sustainability sets it apart from other value players and with new initiatives such as green home delivery (for example via cars that run on biogas) in the Netherlands and trialing clothing rental in Stockholm in the autumn, H&M has found its niche which it can continue to exploit as consumer focus on sustainability grows.”

    However, she offered a cautious response to news leaked last month that H&M-branded stores are to trial selling third-party products.

    “While the idea holds merit to extend its reach and bolster appeal, with sister brands & Other Stories and Arket already selling external brands, taking on Asos and Zalando is a big ask, so third-party brands are unlikely to become a cornerstone of its proposition.”

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  • Thai Cafe Ama​zon opens first China outlet

    Thai Cafe Ama​zon opens first China outlet

    Thai coffee chain Cafe Amazon has launched its first outlet in China.

    The new cafe has opened at a Sinopec-branded petrol station in the Guangxi provincial capital of Nanning.

    Cafe Amazon is owned by Thai petrol firm PTT Oil and Retail Business (OR), which is aiming to expand the chain globally. The Chinese operator is OR subsidiary PTT OR China (Shanghai), which will roll out the chain at other Sinopec petrol stations nationally.

    China is the 10th market in which the brand has launched.

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  • Honestbee wins creditor reprieve

    Honestbee wins creditor reprieve

    Struggling grocery retailer and delivery startup Honestbee has been granted a four-month debt moratorium by the Singapore High Court.

    While two months shorter than the protection period the company sought from the court, it allows the business to restructure free from creditor pressure.

    Reports by Singapore business media show Honestbee owed around US$236 million in current liabilities as at the end of June. On top of that it has debt of around $210 million owed to some 1800 convertible noteholders which it is trying to exchange for equity.

    While Honestbee’s debt is a major impediment to the ongoing business, as much as 80 percent of the liability is to investor Brian Koo and entities controlled by himself or family interests.

    Koo stepped down as chairman of Honestbee in mid-September but is believed to support the debt restructuring scheme.

    Following the court decision, Honestbee CEO Lay Ann Ong issued a statement about the company’s immediate future: “A successful recapitalization and restructuring of the business will set a strong path of recovery for the company. This is necessary to ensure that we have the right structure in place moving forward so that we can better serve our customers across Asia.”

    The company will release further details shortly on its recapitalization progress and plans to sell of some parts of the business.

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  • Nespresso’s Brazil boss heads up APAC operations

    Nespresso’s Brazil boss heads up APAC operations

    Nespresso has announced Jean-Marc Dragoli, who led the company’s Brazilian operations, as general manager for Oceania.

    Dragoli is now based in Sydney and aims to build on the double-digit growth achieved in his previous role.

    “I know Australians and New Zealanders are true coffee connoisseurs and I am looking forward to working with colleagues across Oceania to offer the highest quality sustainable coffee and service to people at home, in the workplace, at hotels and fine dining establishments,” Dragoli said.

    He is taking over from former general manager Loïc Réthoré and will focus on building good customer experience and driving business innovation and sustainability efforts in Australia.

    Nespresso Oceania is known for its Vertuo coffee system; subscription services and reimagined boutiques, including the new flagship boutique on George Street in Sydney.

    “We are delighted to have Dragoli join us at a hugely exciting time for the business, as we continue to lead the way in sustainable, high-quality coffee in the region. With an excellent management team in place, we know Dragoli will build on this success in the coming months and years,” Nespresso head of APAC, Middle-East & Africa, Roland Tschanz said.

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