Retail News CRM

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.

  • Canada Goose sees Asia revenue go up despite Hong Kong protests

    Canada Goose sees Asia revenue go up despite Hong Kong protests

    The Hong Kong market has been a tough topic for a lot of retailers, especially those who have the mains consumer base in China. This was one of the reasons behind the fall in stock prices for Tiffany that got acquired by LVMH. Tiffany while not as prominent in the US anymore, relied heavily on its Asian consumer base but amidst the protests, its consumption fell flat. But this doesn’t seem to be the case with the Canada Goose.

    While the shares still sank, the revenues are more than 25% in its most recent quarter in Asia, despite the complicated situation in Hong Kong. Canada Goose shares lost 4.96% on the Toronto Stock Exchange but the consumers seem to be loving the infamous coats still.

    Canada has been going through a crisis of its own. With 71 thousand people losing their jobs, the worst month for job losses in decades. Some industries are struggling while others are still thriving. IGaming hasn’t really taken a hit by all of this and you can still enjoy the best Canadian online casino or real-life gambling venues. But the overall economy while resilient is still not in a great place. Canadian Goose, a luxury parka retailer that has always been popular in Asia also seems to be resilient. Before the value dropped the company warned about this possibility, saying that the wholesale revenues were expected to decrease in the third quarter because orders were advanced leaving fewer remaining winter orders to come.

    Despite this, the Canada Goose reported $60.6 million second-quarter revenues. While the Asian share of their revenue nearly doubled.

    Asian Market Loyal to the Canadian luxury parkas

    The Asian market still loves this product and the decrease of tourists doesn’t seem to be affecting the company all that much since its customer base in the continent is still there.

    The company was founded back in 1957 and since then has been a renowned manufacturer of winter clothes that were always loved in Asia and this new statistic proves just that.

    But still, the Canadian Goose had way higher expectations with the aiming at 43 % profit per share and $267.3 million in revenue. Canada Goose is one of the businesses that more or less survived the major drop caused by the protests and is still staying afloat, and surprisingly largely thanks to the Asian market. It managed to score $48.9 million this year, compared to the 2018 number that got the company $26.2 million in the second quarter of 2018.

    While the numbers are definitely impressive according to the company representative, this does not paint a full picture. According to them the company’s store in Shanghai and Hong Kong have been impacted significantly by the reduction of tourism but luckily real-life stores are not their only viable source of income.

    The company is watching the local events very closely and tries to evaluate the action to streamline its costs base on the grounds. This includes negotiating accommodations from landlords as well. Canadian Goose seems to be in the Asian market for a long haul since according to the representative they have plans to stick around for years, as they have done in the past and even if they don’t perform all that well during one quarter it doesn’t mean that they will give up on the market that has been so loyal to them.

    This attitude definitely makes them stand out in the Asian Market, which has seen far too many companies distressed over one unsuccessful quarter. This is part of the reason why the customer has stayed so loyal to these luxury parkas and have managed to turn their market into one of the key markets for the Canadian Brand.

    Tough times for Canadian brands

    When it comes to Canada and its economic struggle of the moment the situation is a little unstable. Whether or not it will affect the company is yet unclear but the officials are stating that they can bounce back from the biggest cuts in jobs in decades and get their “resilient” economy back on track. With the home market struggling along with its major consumer group also staying back, Canada Goose is in for an interesting quarter, to say the least.

    But since the locals have remained loyal to the Canada goose products company will now probably put even more effort and attention towards the Asian market. The prediction on whether or not the situation in Hong Kong will last much longer are not very reliable. So the Companies must be ready for the worst-case scenarios.

    It seems like even with that setup Canadian Goose is bound to have a better chance of surviving compared to other similar brands. Their main selling point has always been the quality that has stayed consistent throughout the years so it is expected that the customers will keep relying on the Canadian brand despite the economic hardship both in their hometowns of home countries and from the company’s part as well.

    Some even predict a 40% chance of a recession in Canada among two rate cuts but the government officials are staying more positive, at least in the public eye.

  • Macau’s biggest industry and its various marketing practices

    Macau’s biggest industry and its various marketing practices

    Macau is facing one of the toughest years ever in its presence in China. The enterprise is facing the first time a decline in annual gaming revenues during the last 3 years. Macau first came to  China 20 years ago. Macau has managed to revolutionize the gambling scene and has long been hailed as the world’s biggest gambling hub. But this seems to be changing with the economic slowdown in China, and the migrations of high-rollers towards Vietnam.

    Some of the experts are saying that Macau has now reached its peak and the downfall is inevitable. The gambling hub will have to put in a lot more work than it previously had to promote itself and to secure its existing status in China. The analysts at Bloomberg are saying that Macau’s growth will swing from 14% growth in 2018 to 3% in 2019. According to them, things might turn around in the following year but it’s unlikely that the casino will see the same revenue it saw in the year 2010-2013.

    Macau will probably need to upgrade or better since their various marketing techniques that are quite unique across the industry. When it comes to gambling the marketing has its own perks and little details that you usually don’t have to think about when advertising other services and there are some upsides to this as well.

    Gambling venues often use very modern and less adopted ways of marketing their services and with the growing popularity of online casinos, there’s a whole new realm of advertising technologies that online casinos can use that get very impressive results. Here we’ll break down some of the basic marketing strategies that Macau has used in the past that can help the gambling hub get back to the equilibrium.

    Affiliate marketing

    In this day and age, affiliate marketing is one of the most modern and easy to manage ways to advertise your products. Casinos that usually have a harder time collaborating with traditional advertising agencies or getting their ads on all sorts of content across the web affiliate marketing can be one of the most efficient ways to market.

    You can rely on the best casino affiliate programs to deliver outstanding results. Macau has used this technique as well and it might consider going in more heavily of affiliate marketing since it proves to have a high response rate, it is less over the top and the users are less likely to ignore it and considering some of the past challenges that Macau has faced it is easy to see why this would be a perfect way to go about promoting their service in the time of decline. There is a lot to dissect when we talk about the situation in Macau and why it is now having the worst time it has had as a company in probably decades. As mentioned above some of it has to do with the fact that Macau has been around long enough for it to start feeling a little less exciting and innovative. Introducing affiliate marketing more heavily into the routine could greatly boost the image of the casino and possible even unfold a whole new, yet untapped demographics of users that could help bring the gambling hub back to its prime.

    Promoting the experience rather than a single service

    Macau got used to being the only gambling venue but now the landscape is changing with the regional gaming hub attracting more and more of Macau’s previous clientele. But the inherent advantage that Macau has is that it is more than just a gambling hut.

    It has a rich history of being the top destination for successful Asian people looking to entertain themselves with gambling and they could get the prime experience exclusively in Macau. Macau is no just gambling, it’s nice dinners expensive shops and overall luxurious experience. If Macau only focuses on gambling it’s selling point won’t really strike a chord with the users because they can get gambling in other places too.

    What they cant get is the exclusivity, the high quality of the hotel experience and the luxury of experience Macau fully. If this gambling hub wants to recover from a bad year it is obvious that it needs a different approach so it can still rival the emerging local casinos by offering users something these fresh venues can not, which is the rich history, the idea behind it and the luxurious experience of it all.

    It’s important to consider other factors as well as the Chinese economic slowdown and the reemergence of other, similar experience-based gambling venues for high-rollers. But Macau might be able to recover even easier from this than anticipated because the newness of these other venues will wear off sooner than it did for Macay because the gambling landscape and the customer standards and expectations were completely different then.

     

    Macau needs to ride out this wave of decline through improved marketing techniques and showing resilience to the newcomers with is unique history, glamorous resorts and the luxurious dinners that have seen the gambling hub through a variety of challenges before. The Gambling industry isn’t going anywhere so if Macau manages to get back on its feet it will then fully secure its spot as the leader and innovator in the field.

  • Vietnam Airlines asked to spell out details of plan to buy 50 jets

    Vietnam Airlines asked to spell out details of plan to buy 50 jets

    The Ministry of Transport has asked Vietnam Airlines for details about its plan to acquire 50 narrow-body aircraft by 2025.

    The national flag wants to buy 50 Airbus A3210/321 or Boeing 737 MAX 8/9/10 aircraft in 2021-2025 at a cost of VND88.13 trillion ($3.83 billion).

    It seeks to replace its 26 existing aircraft and expand the fleet by 24, with four or five airplanes delivered every year.

    But the ministry said the airline needs to furnish information about the routes it plans to use the new aircraft on and detailed plans about hiring more staff to operate them.

    It warned against the purchase of Boeing 737 MAX 8 saying it is still unclear whether the grounding of the model would be reversed.

    The carrier also needs to consider that technical issues have been reported in some Pratt Whitney engines used in Airbus A320/321 NEO by some airlines, the ministry said.

    Vietnam’s surging travel demand has caused airlines to expand their fleets. Bamboo Airways has inked a deal with Airbus to buy 50 aircraft, while Vietjet last month signed a $140 million loan with foreign banks to finance its Airbus order for 20 aircraft.

    Last year the country’s 21 state-run airports handled 103.5 million passengers, according to the Airports Corporation of Vietnam, and the number is set to rise to 112 million this year.

  • 7-Eleven Malaysia plans to take control of Caring Pharmacy

    7-Eleven Malaysia plans to take control of Caring Pharmacy

    Convenience store operator 7-Eleven Malaysia Holdings is to boost its stake in Caring Pharmacy Group and take control of the chain.

    7-Eleven Malaysia says it plans to buy a further 25.35 percent of the Caring Pharmacy business, taking the total shareholding under control of its related parties and itself to 38.57 percent. That would require a mandatory general takeover offer under Malaysian stock exchange regulations as it takes the combined stake over the 33-per-cent threshold.

    The founder of Berjaya Group, Tan Sri Vincent Tan, is a major shareholder of 7-Eleven Malaysia Holdings and has shares in Caring Pharmacy Group.

    Caring Pharmacy was established in 1994 by five pharmacists, who were course-mates in the School of Pharmacy, Universiti Sains Malaysia. The first outlet opened in Taman Muda, Cheras and the chain has now grown to 121 stores.

    In a stock-exchange filing, 7-Eleven Malaysia said it wants to take its shareholding above 50 per cent, but will maintain Caring Pharmacy’s independent listing.

    Caring is a profitable player in the retail-pharmacy category and has a successful online business. Acquiring a majority stake in the pharmacy retailer would allow 7-Eleven Malaysia to expand its e-commerce operations using Caring’s expertise, as well as generally add to its product offer, networks and customer base.

    The process will be completed in the first half of next year.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Retailers in Singapore Driving Efficiencies to Free Up More Time for Customers

    Retailers in Singapore Driving Efficiencies to Free Up More Time for Customers

    In today’s fast-paced and constantly changing retail sector, where consumer activity is always evolving, there is much conjecture about the state of the Singapore market.

    While there has been talk of slumping retails sales, a Department of Statistics Singapore Retail Sales Index report in September 2019 showed that total sales value was up 1.9 percent month-on-month, and some retail categories had grown year-on-year, including apparel & footwear by 4.2 percent, computer & telecommunications equipment by 8.7 percent and medical goods & toiletries by 3.2 percent.

    In the current market, a number of retailers in Singapore are reporting success in a challenging operating environment. And a key focus for these retailers is optimising a number of areas of their operations to reduce costs and deliver an enhanced consumer experience.

    Freeing up more time for customers

    Behind the scenes, retailers spend a large amount of time and budget on administration tasks and optimising their staff – hiring and onboarding staff, training staff, rostering, covering shifts due to sickness or holiday leave, diverting staff to tasks such as stocktake, as well as payroll.

    Time spent on administration tasks takes away from the time that managers have available to concentrate on enhancing the customer experience. And in an ever-shifting retail environment, managers need to be investing as much time as possible on understanding and meeting the desires of consumer if they are to achieve success into the future.

    Additionally, with the rising popularity of online shopping, retailers need to focus a lot of time and effort on enhancing the in-store experience of customers, to ensure they still get foot traffic through the doors.

    In order to free up more time to prioritise the customer experience, many retailers are moving from manual or outsourced methods of managing their staff, to automating and handling it all in house on one single automated digital platform.

    Optimising operations

    Given the complexity of the modern retail environment, managers need to have full visibility of staff across multiple stores so they can optimise their operations. Solutions, such as automated workforce management, helps to reduce costs, cuts time spent on admin and provides a better service to employees, all of which allows retail managers to spend more time and budget on meeting the needs of their end customer.

    By accessing a central solution, retailers can also respond quickly and effectively to staffing needs for a few, a few hundred, or thousands of staff, across every store and department, during every retail season. This ensures retailers have the right level of staff rostered so they can have peace of mind that their customers are always being looked after.

    With automated rostering, staff can access their roster anytime online, which reduces errors and confusion that might lead to understaffing. And, with a POS integration, a manager can make staffing changes on the go, such as moving workers from stocktake to the shop floor, or increasing worker numbers during a lunch-time rush and then reducing them during quieter periods.

    Retailers finding success

    Many retailers are working hard to find success in the current Singapore market, and a big focus for them is becoming more efficient and cost effective in many areas of their businesses. Improving the way in which the workforce is managed is one way in which many retailers are reducing costs and finding more time to concentrate on enhancing the retail experience to ensure customers continue visiting their stores.

    Humanforce is a global provider of workforce management solutions for companies who need a flexible solution to manage complex workforces. For more information: www.humanforce.com

     

     

     

    Lees ook:

  • Hong Kong International Airport launches online concierge shopping service

    Hong Kong International Airport launches online concierge shopping service

    Hong Kong International Airport has launched an online concierge service called Luxury Reserve.

    The concierge concept allows customers to choose duty-free purchases at home via HKIA’s e-Shop Luxury Reserve and collect it the items at the airport.

    Luxury Reserve features exclusive items and limited editions from more than 40 luxury brands including Alexander McQueen, Breitling, Chloe, Roger Vivier, Saint Laurent, and Stuart Weitzman.

    According to a statement, reservations can be made from two weeks to 48 hours before the customer’s flight departs.

    Lees ook:

  • Vietnam needs more qualified workers

    Vietnam needs more qualified workers

    Vietnam should improve its workforce quality and create better jobs if it’s to escape the middle-income trap, experts say.

    As of 2018, only 12 percent of jobs in Vietnam were high-skilled, while 54 percent were medium-skilled jobs and the remaining 34 percent were low skilled ones, Valentina Barcucci, an economist with the International Labour Organization (ILO), said at the Vietnam Labour Forum 2019 on Wednesday.

    The percentage of high-skilled jobs was low compared to the global average for upper-middle-income countries, who have 20 percent of their jobs in this category, she said.

    “Vietnam does not need more jobs but needs better jobs. Although its unemployment rate is very low, job quality is still a challenge,” Barcucci said.

    The unemployment rate stood at 1.99 percent in the first nine months of the year, according to the General Statistics Office.

    With the rise of Industry 4.0, a large amount of low-quality, low-cost labor in Vietnam would stop being an advantage. As such, developing high-quality labor is an inevitable requirement to ensure Vietnam can develop strongly, said Vo Tan Thanh, Vice President of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI).

    “To become a high-middle-income country by 2030, Vietnam needs social improvements in parallel with economic development. Fortunately, Vietnam is taking the right steps such as improving the skills for the workforce, expanding social security coverage, and modernizing labor institutions,” said Chang-Hee Lee, ILO Vietnam Director.

    The Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs estimates Vietnam’s current workforce at 56 million people.

  • Ministry proposes major upgrade to airport in central Vietnam

    Ministry proposes major upgrade to airport in central Vietnam

    The Dong Hoi Airport’s capacity should be increased four-fold to 2 million passengers a year, the Transport Ministry says. Le Dinh Tho, Deputy Minister of Transport, said at a meeting Thursday, adding that the airport’s current capacity of 500,000 was too low, given Quang Binh Province’s strong tourism potentials.

    The domestic Dong Hoi Airport, rebuilt in 2008, is located on a 173-hectare plot. Last year, it exceeded its capacity by 200,000 passengers, according to official figures.

    The Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) had proposed to Quang Binh authorities in July that the airport be upgraded at a cost of VND2 trillion ($86.3 million), making it capable of receiving international flights and up to 3 million passengers a year.

    Quang Binh is home to Son Doong Cave, the world’s largest, and other spectacular cave systems. The province welcomed over 4 million visitors in the first nine months, up 28 percent year-on-year.

    ACV last year proposed a VND56.7 trillion ($2.4 billion) upgrade to 16 of the 21 state-owned airports in the country to meet rising air travel demand.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Cebu Pacific profit surges by 143%

    Cebu Pacific profit surges by 143%

    The operator of budget airline Cebu Pacific saw its net income surge by 143 percent in the first nine months of the year as earnings were lifted by strong passenger bookings and stable costs.

    Cebu Air Inc., a subsidiary of the Gokongwei family’s JG Summit Holdings, said on Tuesday that net income from January to September hit P6.75 billion versus P2.78 billion during the same period last year.

    Cebu Air has been ramping up capacity to meet the rising demand for air travel. Passenger revenue during the nine-month period went up 17.9 percent to P46.6 billion. Some 16.7 million flyers used Cebu Air during the period, representing a growth of 10.4 percent.

    Moreover, average fares went up 6.7 percent to P2,794, the budget airline said. Other revenue sources such as cargo and ancillary also went up 5.3 percent and 22.2 percent, respectively.

    Overall, Cebu Air’s revenue increased by 17.7 percent to P63.62 billion.

    Cebu Air said expenses were mostly kept in check during the period. Operating expenses increased 7.8 percent to P53.81 billion, in line with expanded operations.

    Flying operations alone went up 2.5 percent to P22.56 billion. Cebu Air said this was mainly due to pilot training costs as it took delivery of new planes. Fuel expenses also dropped 1.4 percent or P260.67 million during the period.

    For the third quarter alone, Cebu Air posted a net loss of P384.3 million, narrower than the previous year’s loss of P518.43 million. Revenue of P18.92 billion, up 16.7 percent, alongside stable operating costs helped lower losses during the third quarter of 2019.

    Cebu Air ended September with 72 planes. Its fleet was comprised of 31 Airbus A320, seven Airbus A321 CEO, three Airbus A320 NEO, two Airbus A321 NEO, eight Airbus A330, eight ATR 72-500 and 13 ATR 72-600.

    Its network spanned 80 domestic routes and 41 international routes with a total of 2,727 scheduled weekly flights.

  • KitchenAid India launches its first brand-new Experience Store in India

    KitchenAid India launches its first brand-new Experience Store in India

    KitchenAid India, An International Premium Home Appliances Brand has launched its first & exclusive Experience Store in Ghitorni, New Delhi. They organized an event, “Where Makers Unite” to celebrate the inauguration of the store.

    Passionate makers from different locations of Delhi NCR came to Ghitorni to explore the design & performance of KitchenAid’s premium appliances, LIVE. The demonstration of each product was discovered through a special recipe cooked by MasterChef Ashish Singh. He immersed the audience with his innovative flavors that included mulled wine green tea, mushroom walnut Galouti, and various other delicacies. They also hosted an expert mixologist, Gaurav Chauhan on the floor, who was seen crafting fresh & enticing drinks with the powerful performance of the KitchenAid Blender. His recipes included plum pudding, salted caramel shake, and many more mouth-watering drinks.

    With their Experience Store, people had the opportunity to explore the design of every product and delve into the specific features from the iconic collection of Stand Mixers, Blenders, Food Processors, Toasters, Hand Blender and various other premium appliance. All the appliances showcased at the store are designed with ease and ergonomics in mind, KitchenAid’s chic and sturdy metal structures come in a wide range of signature colors, known for their placid and versatile performance – the Stand Mixer has its unique ‘planetary’ motion and the powerful 10-speed motor. With this inauguration, KitchenAid gave them an opportunity to learn new cooking tips & recipes with their wonderful range.

    Vivek Chaudhary, Country Head, KitchenAid, shared a few words about the store & the launch – “It was a delight to see such passionate people at the event. The Experience Store is a space to unearth the beauty of each appliance & learn about their performance. KitchenAid Appliances are known for their elegant features of exceptional craftsmanship, durability, quality of material and robustness.”

    “We aspire to bring an incredible experience to the makers with a complete range of premium countertop kitchen appliances. With this attempt we aim to expand our reach and become the number one choice for not just chefs but also passionate makers”, he added.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Vietjet Announces New Routes to Seoul to Celebrate 30th Anniversary of ASIAN – South Korea Relations

    Vietjet Announces New Routes to Seoul to Celebrate 30th Anniversary of ASIAN – South Korea Relations

    To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the relations between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and South Korea, as well as the recent Mekong – South Korea summit, new-age carrier Vietjet has announced plans for new routes that will connect some of Vietnam’s largest and fast-growing tourist destinations, such as Da Lat, Can Tho, Nha Trang and Phu Quoc with Seoul.

    The announcement ceremony took place during the Vietnam – South Korea Business Forum on 28 November 2019 in Seoul, South Korea, and was attended by Prime Minister of Vietnam Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Deputy Prime Minister of South Korea Hong Nam-Ki and senior leaders from both the South Korean and Vietnamese governments.

    Connecting Seoul, the dynamic capital of South Korea, with Dalat in Vietnam’s Central Highlands, Can Tho in Southwest Vietnam’s Mekong Delta, Nha Trang on the south-central coast of Vietnam and Phu Quoc, also known as Vietnam’s “Pearl Island”, means that Vietjet’s new routes will boost tourism and trade in the two regions. It will also boost cultural exchanges between the two countries while forging closer ties between South Korea and ASEAN, one of the world’s fastest-growing economic blocks.

    Starting from January 2020, the new Seoul (Incheon) – Can Tho route is planned to operate three return flights per week, while the new Seoul (Incheon) – Da Lat route will fly four return flights per week, each with a flight time of more than five hours per leg. The two current routes linking Seoul (Incheon) to Nha Trang and Phu Quoc will also increase frequencies to meet the increasing passenger demands.

    Speaking at the ceremony announcing the launch of the new routes, Vice Chairman of Vietjet Nguyen Thanh Hung thanked the governments of Vietnam and South Korea for creating opportunities for business investment and cooperation between the countries. He also pledged that the airline will continue its mission to offer more flights with new upcoming routes with Vietjet’s modern fleet. He added that all Vietjet passengers can look forward to being served by a team of dedicated and friendly cabin crew, pointing out Vietjet’s stellar standards for safety and technical reliability.

    Mr. Nguyen Thanh Hung also expects that the close relations between Vietnam, the rest of ASEAN and South Korea will contribute to the expansion of the regional aviation sector around the globe.

    With the two new routes, Vietjet operates the most number flights connecting Vietnam and South Korea with a total of 11 routes and up to 480 flights per month. The airline’s growing network has helped to boost bilateral ties and improve strategic cooperation between the two nations, creating a positive impact on the relations between ASEAN and South Korea.

  • UK stationery brand Paperchase launches in Malaysia and Singapore

    UK stationery brand Paperchase launches in Malaysia and Singapore

    British stationery brand Paperchase is now selling in Malaysia at selected MPH bookstores.

    According to a Malaysian Reserve report, the London-based firm – one of the largest gifts and stationery retailers in the UK – is joining brands such as Typo and Smiggle in planning their Asia expansion, with selling in Malaysia and Singapore the first step. It is currently seeking further retail partners in various countries.

    “Being the exclusive partner of Paperchase in Malaysia and Singapore, it is our aim to introduce new and interesting merchandise by reputable brands and make it available to our customers,” said MPH GM of business and strategic development Ivy Tan.

    “Having these unique offerings in our store also helps us differentiate our offerings and stand out from other players in the market.”

    Paperchase operates more than 200 stores internationally.

    Lees ook:

  • Japan retail sales tumble as tax rise takes effect

    Japan retail sales tumble as tax rise takes effect

    Japan retail sales fell by 7.1 percent in October – the greatest single monthly fall in almost five years.

    The reason: the implementation of a sales-tax increase from 8 percent to 10 percent on October 1, aimed at helping reduce the country’s public debt, which is running at twice the size of its GDP.

    The headline figure was driven by a significant reduction in sales of big-ticket items such as motor vehicles and appliances. But department stores and apparel retailers also bore the brunt.

    Japan retail sales fell by 14.4 percent month on month, higher than the 13.7-per-cent month-on-month decline which followed previous sales-tax increases 1997 and 2014.

    Some analysts, however, have suggested the October decline may have been worsened by weather during the month, which included severe typhoons in the central and eastern parts of the country. There was also likely to be an element of extra spending in September as consumers tried to mitigate the tax effect.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Australian Authorities Ask AirAsia To Re-evaluate Safety Briefing

    Australian Authorities Ask AirAsia To Re-evaluate Safety Briefing

    AirAsia has been asked to re-evaluate its safety briefing after an incident on a flight between Perth and Denpasar in October 2017. During the incident in which oxygen masks were deployed, not all masks did so and not all masks worked, causing a degree of confusion in the cabin and for passengers to ignore seatbelt lights as they searched for working oxygen masks.

    As reported in Australian Aviation, an AirAsia A320 was flying from Perth to Denpasar on October 15, 2017. Shortly after takeoff, there was a high cabin altitude master warning. The Australian Transport and Safety Bureau (ATSB) who investigated the incident determined there was an “intermittent rare fault” with the cabin pressure controller 1 circuit board. This caused an incorrect control of the outflow valve, leading to over-pressurization of the aircraft cabin and activation of the cabin safety valves and alerts of excess cabin altitude.

    Following the alerts, the pilots asked ATC for an emergency descent from 34,000 feet to 10,000 feet, informed the passengers and deployed oxygen masks.

    According to the ATSB report, not all masks deployed and some of those that did deploy did not work properly. Some of the passengers ignored crew instructions, getting out of their seats and looking for oxygen masks that did work.

    At the time the seatbelt light was on and the crew was shouting instructions such as “brace”,“sit down”, “get down,” and  “grab the mask, fasten the seatbelt, breathe normally”. According to the ATSB, these could have had the effect of furthering fear and confusion amongst the passengers.

    The aircraft landed in Perth safely. The crew appears not to have handled the disembarkation process particularly well. The ATSB report says;

    It was also noted that some passengers had put on life jackets.

    The ATSB investigation revealed over half of the passengers were “unsure” if their masks were working correctly. Many passengers were also unclear about how to operate the oxygen masks. The ATSB investigation found when the release pin was removed, the oxygen canister did not work in six seats. In another six seats, the oxygen masks did not deploy. In a further three seats, no lanyards were pulled to commence the flow of oxygen.

    The ATSB investigation found that both the pre-flight safety briefing and the safety card did not clearly demonstrate how to activate the flow of oxygen. The ATSB report said;

    “The ATSB recommends that AirAsia Indonesia take further action to review its current passenger pre-flight safety briefing and safety information card to ensure passengers are provided with clear instructions on how to activate the flow of oxygen from the passenger oxygen masks and that the bag may not inflate when oxygen is flowing.” 

    The ATSB found the contributing factors to the incident was a minor intermittent fault with the active cabin pressure controller. Airbus has reviewed its A320 emergency procedures when an incident like this occurs. Airbus now recommends and has implemented a manual cabin pressure controller changeover in case of abnormal cabin altitude.

    The ATSB found the lack of clear instructions in both the pre-flight safety briefing and in the safety cards, combined with inappropriate commands from the cabin crew for a rapid descent and depressurization, along with a failure to deal with non-compliant passenger behavior were factors that increased risk.

    AirAsia flies to several Australian cities, including Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane, Adelaide and Sydney. The airline told the ATSB that it was adhering to Indonesian regulations and that it would “consider” including the requirements in its safety demonstration announcements.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Harvey Nichols suffers as Mainland Chinese tourists ‘disappear’

    Harvey Nichols suffers as Mainland Chinese tourists ‘disappear’

    Declining Mainland Chinese visitors to Hong Kong have put a dent in Dickson Concepts’ sales and profit in the first half of its fiscal year.

    Dickson Concepts, which owns the Harvey Nichols department store network, has reported a 6.6 percent decline in sales to HK$1.713 billion (US$218.8 million), and net profit attributable to shareholders down 10.9 percent to $119 million.

    But it was a tale of two quarters, according to chairman Sir Dickson Poon.

    “The group achieved significant growth in both sales and profit in Hong Kong during the initial few months. However, the retail climate in Hong Kong deteriorated significantly thereafter and Mainland Chinese tourists all but disappeared.”

    The impact of that was partially offset in Taiwan where like-for-like profits increased by 169 percent as a result of margin improvement and cost and inventory control.

    Sir Dickson did not mince words in his shareholder announcement, describing the outlook for Hong Kong retail as “bleak”.

    “The group is extremely pessimistic about the retail climate in Hong Kong. Trading has been adversely affected and sales have been achieved at the expense of margin. Meanwhile, fixed costs remain very high. Additionally, the group does not expect a return of Asian and Mainland Chinese tourists in the foreseeable future. The significantly worse result could be expected in the second half of this financial year. With Hong Kong in recession, the future looks bleak.”

    Dickson Concepts opened the new Harvey Nichols store at Pacific Place on September 19, the first of its new generation stores globally, mixing the company’s online and offline stock seamlessly using interactive displays and digital technology.

    “The new store has been well received since its opening,” said Sir Dickson. “We are confident that the store and the new model will become a long-term success.”

    By combining interactive digital displays alongside traditional physical display units, the store now showcases more than three times the number of products within half the floor space, thereby enabling an increase in sales density with significantly reduced fixed costs, while offering customers “a truly differentiated shopping experience”.

    Despite the gloomy era in Hong Kong, Sir Dickson said the company has net cash of $1.728 billion and a strong balance sheet.

    “The group is in a strong position to cope with Hong Kong’s recession and the very difficult retail climate.”