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Category: General

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

  • Asian Licensing Conference lifting off in Hong Kong

    Asian Licensing Conference lifting off in Hong Kong

    The Asian Licensing Conference at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre is being held this week.

    The event, organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), focuses on the latest market trends and opportunities in the region through the lens of some of the industry’s top licensees and project owners.

    The 18th edition of the HKTDC Hong Kong International Licensing Show and the ninth Asian Licensing Conference opened on Monday, discussing the latest market trends and sharing licensing success stories.

    “As an increasing number of businesses explore licensing as a way to move up the value chain, Hong Kong will have a key role to play in facilitating the growth of the industry,” said Margaret Fong, executive director at HKTDC.

    The first session, Asian Licensing Market Outlook, featured Lisa Reiner, Beanstalk MD in Europe & Asia Pacific, who offered three key points of advice for brand owners: be open to products that are relevant to local consumers; be active in protecting trademarks; and be willing to explore other routes to consumers, such as e-commerce and multiple distributor networks.

    During the event, VP of Asia Pacific and Middle East at National Geographic, Mark Coleman and Claire Gilchrist, VP in Asia Pacific of Hasbro Consumer Products discussed how brand stories can provoke consumer interest.

    At the second plenary session of the Asian Licensing Conference, several enterprises shared their licensing success stories, including Royal Selangor Marketing, a Malaysian company with a 135-year history that specialises in quality pewter.

    Robert Goodchild, head of licensing at Aardman Animations, said: “We work with many brands all over the world and it is all about bringing colour and character to campaigns. By bringing character to a campaign we can reach new audiences and build commercially successful partnerships.”

    Aardman collaborated with premium British lifestyle brand Joules last Christmas, which celebrated the 30th anniversary of both Joules and Aardman’s hugely popular Wallace & Gromit animation. Aardman also created a bespoke photoshoot with British retailer Harvey Nichols, and used its characters and humour to bring a lifestyle brand to life in a collaboration with British sofa brand DFS, emphasising the fact that both brands produce everything in the UK.

  • New features for Google Assistant announced at CES

    New features for Google Assistant announced at CES

    Google Assistant has consistently beat out its rival virtual assistants like Siri, Alexa, and Cortana in tests measuring how well each one understands tasks and questions asked of it. The digital helper is the hub of the Google ecosystem which is one of the reasons why fans of the latter prefer Android over iOS. Today at CES, Google announced new features aimed at the more than 500 million monthly Assistant users which will make it more helpful on the phone, in the car, or at home.

    Google is making it easier to connect smart devices to Google Assistant through the use of a notification link that will appear on your phone or a suggestion button that shows up on the Google Home app. This saves you the time of having to type in all of the information related to your Google account. Later this year, Google will add a new feature called Scheduled Actions that will allow you to set a schedule for other compatible smart devices in the home. For example, you can tell the Assistant to start the coffee maker at 6 am so you can awaken to a steaming hot cup of java and get your caffeine fix when you need it the most. Google points out that 20 new devices have been added to the Google Home app to help you control “AC units, air purifiers, bathtubs, coffee makers, vacuums and more.”
    Did you ever sit back and wish that you were the genius who invented sticky notes? But they are quite a mess when you leave them up all around the house. Google is going to add a new feature that will create digital sticky notes for smart displays that support Google Assistant. All you need to do to leave a sticky note is say, “Hey Google, leave a note that says don’t forget your dental appointment after school today.” And if you have a smart speaker or smart display, another new feature will allow you to create a “speed dial” list that will make calls simply by saying “Hey Google, call Olaf.”
    Google also previewed today a new technology that allows Assistant to read long-form content on your phone. This would allow you to listen to news stories posted on websites just by saying “Hey Google, read it” or “Hey Google, read this page.” Imagine being able to have PhoneArena read to you hands-free while you’re driving in your car. The company says, “Unlike traditional screen readers, this experience is built on new voice datasets to create more expressive and more natural sounding voices, so it’s easier to listen for a longer period of time.” The content can be translated into 42 different languages, and Google is working on a way for the website to highlight the portion of the text being read aloud by Google while automatically scrolling the page. This “Read It” feature will be available on Android phones running version 5.0 or higher by later this year.
    Another feature for phones, smart displays, and smart speakers will allow people to engage in conversations even if they don’t speak the same language. Called interpreter mode, this is available starting today to guests of Google partners Volara and SONIFI. Both are in the hospitality business and Google is looking to bring interpreter mode to hotels, stadiums, arenas, human-rights based organizations and more.
    Lastly, Google wanted to discuss privacy. The company says that while in standby, before being awoken by the “Hey Google” or “Ok Google” wake words, Assistant doesn’t eavesdrop on you and send to Google the conversations that you are having. You can always ask the Assistant, “How do you keep my information private?” and, “Hey Google, are you saving my audio data?” You can also ask Google to delete everything you said this week that it recorded. And if you said something after accidentally activating Google Assistant, by saying “Hey Google, that wasn’t for you,” the Assistant will instantly contact short-term amnesia and forget what you just said. By default, once your request has been processed by Google’s server (although the Pixel 4 series does this on-device), the information is discarded by Google. You can choose to participate in Google’s human-based review of Assistant, but that will allow Google to keep information heard through the virtual digital helper.
  • Hong Kong toy shop fined for deceptive conduct

    Hong Kong toy shop fined for deceptive conduct

    An unidentified Hong Kong toy-shop owner has been convicted of misleading omission commercial practice.

    The owner was convicted of engaging in commercial practices involving misleading omission according to the Trade Description Ordinance (TDO) and sentenced to 200 hours of community service by Kowloon City Magistrates’ Courts. The court also ordered him to compensate HK$11,210 (US$1440) to three victims.

    An investigation carried out after Hong Kong Customs received a complaint from the victims alleging that a toy shop owner had engaged in unfair trade practices, showed that the owner had failed to explain the risks of late delivery to its customers on a social-media platform page. The owner has sold eighteen types of toy models without regard to the risk of delay.

    Under the TDO, any trader who engages in a commercial practice that omits or hides material information or provides material information in a manner that is unclear, unintelligible, ambiguous or untimely, or fails to identify its commercial intent and as a result causes, or is likely to cause, an average consumer to make a transactional decision commits an offense. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $500,000 and imprisonment for five years.

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  • Bangladesh garment factories urged to embrace sustainable behavor

    Bangladesh garment factories urged to embrace sustainable behavor

    Bangladesh garment factories must continue to invest in making their operations more sustainable if they hope to win business over other major competing sourcing countries such as Vietnam, Cambodia and Indonesia, says data and analytics company GlobalData.

    In line with this, the country is looking to increase its garment exports from US$34 billion in the financial year ending last June to US$50 billion next year.

    In 2018, 67 factories had adopted the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, which evaluates sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy, indoor environment and innovation. Eight were LEED-platinum certified. But with eco-credentials playing a greater role in how consumers today shop, more factories need to get on board.

    Hannah Abdulla, apparel correspondent at GlobalData, says the owners of Bangladesh garment factories are growing increasingly concerned they are losing business to rival sourcing countries.

    “Where buyers were previously concerned with mass-produced, cheap goods, the focus is now on better quality and sustainably sourced (value-added) items. Green factories have an edge; this is what helps sets them apart from the competition.”

    With Bangladesh looking to increase the investments, big changes need to be made to secure additional business from the higher-paying customer, says Abdulla.

    “While change has happened at several factories, this needs to be scaled up. More factories need to get on board if Bangladesh is going to convince global players it remains a worthy contender in the readymade garment space.

    “For the national industry to be viewed as one that is an environmentally-sustainable apparel sector with an international reputation for good practice, it needs to move beyond a minority of factories implementing sustainable measures.”

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  • Emart to shut Pierrot discount-store chain

    Emart to shut Pierrot discount-store chain

    Emart is to shut down its Pierrot discount-store chain to focus on luring customers to its mainstay hypermarkets.

    After significantly falling sales last year, the South Korean giant closed down several Pierrot stores, including the store in Myeongdong shopping district. The company will shut the remaining six stores this year.

    Meanwhile, Emart plans to remodel about 50 out of 160 general merchandise stores this year to offer a larger selection of lower-priced items and high-margin, private-brand products.

    Besides its hypermarkets, Emart operates a range of chains spanning convenience stores, drugstores and home electronics. Emart’s profit fell from 194.6 billion won (US$166 million) in the third quarter of 2018 to 116.2 billion won (US$97.2 million) in the same period last year.

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  • Vietnam gold price hits 6-year high

    Vietnam gold price hits 6-year high

    Gold prices in Vietnam soared to a six-year high on Monday amid rising military tension between the U.S. and Iran. The country’s largest jewelry company DOJI sold its SJC gold at VND44.44 million ($1,924) per tael (1.2 ounces) on Monday morning, up 3.78 percent from Friday.

    Another giant Phu Nhuan Jewelry also raised its selling price to VND44.3 million ($1,918), up 4.7 percent.

    It is the first time Vietnam’s gold price passed the VND44.4 million ($1,922) mark in the last six years.

    The surge came as global gold prices increased by up to 1.8 percent to $1,579 per ounce at a point on Monday morning, the highest in seven years.

    The sudden rush for safe-haven assets came after U.S. President Donald Trump ordered a strike that killed Iran’s General Qasem Soleimani, head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard’s elite Quds Force, on Friday. Iran has vowed to retaliate.

    Gold prices had been surging throughout last year as trade tensions between the U.S. and China persisted.

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  • Otterbox announces new iPhone screen protector that also protects users

    Otterbox announces new iPhone screen protector that also protects users

    For those worried about the dirt and crap that their phone’s screen protector collects over the course of a year, case maker Otterbox has come up with a solution. The company teamed up with Corning to create the Amplify Glass Anti-Microbial screen protector. Does it actually kill bacteria? Well, we can tell you that the antimicrobial technology used on the accessory is registered with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The important thing is that this technology is embedded in the glass protector and doesn’t interfere with the touchscreen properties or the clarity of the screen.
    Otterbox CEO Jim Parke says, “Amplify Glass now features proprietary anti-microbial technology that suppresses the growth of several common stains and odor-causing bacteria to protect the surface of the screen protector.” So you will be able to put your face against your phone’s display when making a call without fear that you are going to be ravaged by some disease.
    And the Amplify Glass Anti-Microbial screen protector does more than kill bugs. It also protects the display on a phone up to five times better than rival screen protectors and keeps the screen on your phone from succumbing to drops, bumps and falls. Keep in mind that while Otterbox and Corning are protecting your phone, they are also protecting your health. The accessory will be soon available for the latest iPhone models and will be compatible with the company’s iconic cases.
  • Microsoft to update Outlook for iPhone with a host of new features

    Microsoft to update Outlook for iPhone with a host of new features

    Outlook for iOS is becoming better by the month, and the next wave of improvements is coming no later than this month. Microsoft revealed what new features Outlook users will get on their iPhones with the next update.

    Meeting Insights is one of the features that will be coming in the next Outlook update. Thanks to the new feature, all emails, and documents that are important to meetings or appointments will be included in the Calendar event description.

    Next, the Suggested Replies feature allows iPhone users to quickly reply to an email by tapping the suggestions offered by the app, much like the similar feature offered by Google’s Gmail. You’ll be able to edit your replies before the email is sent. The new feature appears at the bottom of an email, just above the reply box, and it’s only available in English, Spanish, and Brazilian Portuguese.

    Finally, Microsoft will allow iPhone users to create an Outlook.com account directly from the smartphone, something that’s not yet possible. Of course, you’ll be able to add iCloud, Yahoo!, and Gmail accounts as well if you have any of these.

    All the new features are already available to all Outlook Insiders on iOS devices, but they’re expected to arrive with the next update at some point this month.

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  • Sluggish sales dampen India retail leasing activity

    Sluggish sales dampen India retail leasing activity

    Indian retail leasing activity in major cities slumped 35 percent last year as the country’s economy continued on a sluggish course.

    “It’s very obviously not business as usual in the Indian retail sector, and retailers have had to reduce costs – not least of all by realignment of retail spending,” said Anuj Kejriwal, MD and CEO at Anarock Retail.

    According to data from real-estate services provider Anarock, Indian retail leasing activity in the nation’s seven largest cities dropped from 5.5 million sqft in 2018 to 3.6 million sqft last year.

    The worst-affected sector was fashion where falling consumer spending has impacted the top line of several major retail groups, including V-Bazaar and 1-India Family Mart, both of which say they are scaling back expansion plans this year.

    “The apparel industry has been hit with a triple whammy – GST, credit squeeze on small and medium enterprises, and increased competition due to slowdown in global demand,” said Kejriwal.

    With spending on fashion declining, there has been “a significant reduction in demand” for new fashion-specific mall spaces among local brands and global brands, he says, are “staying put but not expanding”.

    Kejriwal said downward revisions of India’s GDP growth rate are bound to be reflected in the consumption-driven retail industry, with most categories affected.

    “Discretionary spending remains low and the ticket sizes of purchases have shrunk – with predictable impact on retail leasing activity. Slow sales and sluggish activity across sectors such as automobiles, fashion and telecom are translating into reduced leasing across retail spaces as players shift their operational strategy,” he said.

    Jewelry, electronics, books and music, hypermarkets and men’s formal clothing are other retail categories where leasing activity declined last year.

    The standout exceptions in retail are food and beverage, family entertainment centers, cinemas and beauty/wellness boutiques.

    “These verticals have seen a decent rise in space leasing and are doing fairly good business depending on factors such as location, accessibility, brands, etc,” said Kejriwal.

    “Though rising rentals in prime locations hinder the growth plans of many brands, Indians’ affinity to eating out and entertainment remains undiminished.”

    Kejriwal said many Indian retailers must now consider consolidation and realignment of their operational structure. “Long-vision players are taking steps to boost productivity through technological innovations, automation of production and analytics-driven decision making. The retail sector is also renewing its focus on consumer-centric strategies in order to strengthen customer loyalty.”

    India’s retail market is predicted to grow to US$1.3 trillion this year, significantly up on the $672 billion of 2017, prompting many retail players to believe that the current slowdown is a short-term phenomenon.

    “Optimistic about the future growth prospects of retail, they maintain that the size of the Indian population, consumption and demand will drive organized retail growth in the future,” said Kejriwal.

    “However, it will take more than optimism to pull the retail sector out of its current tailspin. What the retail industry needs is strong demand dynamics, sizeable funding and consistent policy support from the government to get past the slowdown.”

  • Shinsegae department store sets sales record as foreigners splurge in Gangnam

    Shinsegae department store sets sales record as foreigners splurge in Gangnam

    Shinsegae Department Store, one of South Korea’s leading retailers, said Tuesday that its outlet in Gangnam, an affluent area in southern Seoul, reported 2 trillion won (US$1.7 billion) in accumulated sales last year.

    It marks the first time for a single-department store branch to achieve the 2 trillion won milestone, the company said.

    Lotte Department Store, another leading player, earlier said its branch in Myeongdong in downtown Seoul generated 1.8 trillion won in sales last year.

    Shinsegae attributed its stellar performance to increased visits by foreign shoppers as its Gangnam outlet is adjacent to a number of five-star hotels, including the JW Marriott Gangnam.

    Most of the top-buying foreign shoppers were from China, Taiwan and Russia, the company said.

    The store also underwent major remodeling in 2016, in a move to provide a better luxurious in-store shopping experience by organizing items based on themes rather than brands.

    The country’s three major players — Lotte, Hyundai and Shinsegae — account for about 80 percent of the sector’s sales in the country.

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  • AirAsia adds more local and international flights

    AirAsia adds more local and international flights

    AirAsia said on Friday that it was increasing the frequency of flights in high demand domestic and international destinations.

    “We are pleased to welcome the new year with additional flights, offering guests more options when flying with us as they accomplish their travel goals this 2020,” Ricardo “Ricky” P. Isla, AirAsia Philippines chief executive officer, said in a statement.

    He said the move is in line with the low-cost carrier’s vision of allowing its guests to tick-off more destinations from their travel bucket list.

    “Our adjustments are well guided by data, and I am very optimistic about the tourism boost this will bring to our country in the summer months,” he added.

    AirAsia Philippines operates more than 500 weekly domestic and international flights from its hubs in Manila, Clark, Cebu and Kalibo.

    It said guests can book now for routes, some of which will have more frequencies starting on March 29, 2020.

    Among the flights that will have increased frequencies are those from Clark to Iloilo and vice-versa, which will have daily flights. Flights from Cebu to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and vice-versa will increase to four times a week.

    Starting on March 29, the airline will have daily flights between Cebu and Puerto Princesa. Flights from Clark to Tacloban and vice-versa, which will be four times a week.

    AirAsia operates in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, India and Japan. Its services include hotels, holidays, activities and online shopping, as well as integrated logistics and digital financial services.

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  • Hong Kong Post to open 80 more iPostal stations for online shoppers

    Hong Kong Post to open 80 more iPostal stations for online shoppers

    Hong Kong Post will roll out more than one new iPostal station every week this year, to boost services to online shoppers.

    The company will build 20 iPostal stations in the first quarter of this year and more than 80 by the end of the year, which will take the iPostal station network to more than 120.

    Hong Kong Post created iPostal stations as delivery address for online shoppers to have purchase delivered to a secure location to avoid missing parcels through not being at home during delivery attempts.

    Two new iPostal stations open tomorrow (January 7) in Oi Tung Estate and Siu Sai Wan Plaza, taking the network to 23.

    Senders now can set new iPostal station as the delivery address for their SmartPost, Local Parcel and Local CourierPost items through the EC-Ship platform, while recipients can set any of these stations as the default pick-up point for their items with a Mail Collection Number.

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  • Miniso Philippines opens its 100th store

    Miniso Philippines opens its 100th store

    Miniso Philippines has opened a new store at Estancia Mall, marking its 100th store.

    To celebrate the launch, a Japanese Kagami Biraki ceremony was led by Miniso president Michael Hong.

    The Chinese discount merchandise chain’s new store features lifestyle products including electronics, health and beauty lines, fashion accessories, seasonal products, food and beverages. Miniso Philippines’ 100th store also offered gifts during the holiday season, including holiday mugs, pastel-coloured pouches, and tumblers.

    Miniso operates 4000 stores in more than 90 countries and regions including the US, Canada, Russia, Singapore, the UAE, Korea, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Vietnam and Macau.

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  • Number of new businesses, registered capital highest ever

    Number of new businesses, registered capital highest ever

    138,100 businesses were established in Vietnam this year, the highest ever, with the government’s initiative to increase the quantity and quality of enterprises bearing fruit.

    In terms of volume, the figure was up 5.2 percent year-on-year, while their registered capital also climbed a new high at over VND1,730 trillion ($75.1 billion), up 17.1 percent year-on-year, according to the General Statistics Office.

    This meant the average registered capital was VND12.5 billion ($542,000) per business.

    An additional 39,400 businesses resumed operations this year, up 15.9 percent from last year. But the year also saw 43,700 businesses filing for dissolution, up 41.7 percent year-on-year.

    The surge in the business numbers and registered capital is happening as the government seeks to improve its administrative policies to support enterprises as part of a plan to have the private sector spearhead economic growth.

    Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said at a meeting with business leaders on December 23 that the large number of businesses dissolving each year, including big ones, was a matter of concern.

    Government agencies have been making proposals in this regard. In July, the Ministry of Finance proposed to the National Assembly that it considers scrapping corporate income tax on micro and small enterprises.

    There are about 760,000 businesses operating in the country. Vietnam targets taking this up to 1 million next year.

    Vietnam’s GDP growth of 7.02 percent in 2019 exceeded the parliament’s target of 6.6-6.8 percent as well as forecasts by several international organizations like the WB and the ADB. It had slowed from a record 7.08 percent in 2018, but remained the second highest growth figure in the last decade.

  • Vietnam Airlines reports record profit in 2019

    Vietnam Airlines reports record profit in 2019

    National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines estimates its consolidated pre-tax profit for 2019 at an all-time high of VND3.37 trillion ($146 million).

    The figure also marks a 10 percent year-on-year increase, Vietnam Airlines said in a press release.

    Its consolidated revenue is estimated at VND101.18 trillion ($4.39 billion) this year, up 2.2 percent year-on-year.

    In 2019, Vietnam Airlines transported 23 million passengers and nearly 346,000 tons of cargo on 134,000 flights. The airline also began operating 22 new aircraft and 10 flight routes, bringing its fleet to above 100 aircraft.

    In 2020, it will focus on retaining its core customer segments and holding share in key markets, the airline said. It expects to invest in 50 additional narrow body aircraft between 2021 and 2015, as well as improving services and digitization of its systems.

    Vietnam Airlines is 86.16 percent state-owned, and Japanese air transportation company ANA Holdings has an 8.77 percent stake. The remaining shares are held by state-owned lender Vietcombank, private lender Techcombank, and other domestic individuals.

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