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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.

  • Go-Viet revolving door sees new general manager quit after five months

    Go-Viet revolving door sees new general manager quit after five months

    Le Diep Kieu Trang has become the second top honcho to leave ride-hailing firm Go-Viet in less than a year.

    Making the announcement Wednesday, Go-Viet said that Trang, also known as Christy Le, had decided to choose her own career path and the company “regretted it.”

    However, the company did not reveal the exact time that Trang is leaving.

    “After five months at the company, Christy has decided to take a different path. We always work hard to find a mutually agreeable way forward, but were unable to do so in this instance,” Go-Viet said in a release.

    The company made no mention of her replacement.

    Trang was appointed general manager of Go-Viet last April. She said her new job “was unique and interesting.”

    In an interview with KrASIA, a technology business media site based in Singapore earlier this month, Trang expressed her ambition to bring the platform to all Vietnamese consumers.

    This is the second leadership change for Go-Viet in less than a year. Her predecessor, Nguyen Vu Duc left last March along with deputy general director Nguyen Bao Linh.

    Their resignation came amidst increasing competition in Vietnam’s ride-hailing market, with current leader Grab on an expansion spree and new players like Be Group fighting hard for a bigger share of the pie.

    According to a report by market research firm ABI Research, Go-Viet has 10.3 percent of the ride-hailing market in the country, compared to Grab’s 72.9 percent.

    Go-Viet, an affiliate of Indonesian Go-Jek Group, has said it has completed millions of trips since it was launched in September last year. The company offers transport and food delivery services.

    Trang had became the director of Facebook’s operations in Vietnam in March last year and resigned from the position in December, citing “family reasons.”

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  • Vietjet Air among global leaders in revenue from ancillary services

    Vietjet Air among global leaders in revenue from ancillary services

    Vietjet Air ranks 12th in the world among airlines in terms of ancillary services as a percentage of total revenues.

    The budget airline’s income from ancillary services such as on-flight food and souvenirs was $338.2 million in 2018, or 23.5 percent of total revenues, according to the CarTrawler Ancillary Revenue Yearbook recently released by U.S. consultancy IdeaWorks Company.

    Low-cost carrier VivaAerobus of Mexico topped the list with its ancillary earnings making up of 47.6 percent of its revenues, followed by the U.S.’s- Spirit Airlines (44.9 percent and Frontier Airlines (42.8 percent).

    IdeaWorks listed statistics for 76 airlines that disclosed revenues from selling frequent flyer points to partners, fees from passengers choosing seats, commissions from hotel bookings and other such sources. The study found that the carriers earned almost $52.7 billion in ancillary revenues last year.

    For budget carriers, ancillary revenue is a decisive factor in success when its profit margin reaches over 90 percent.

    Vietjet aims to become one of the top five airlines in the world in terms of ancillary revenues. The carrier, owned by billionaire Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao, has the largest domestic market share of 44 percent.

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  • Cebu Pacific launches new inflight menu

    Cebu Pacific launches new inflight menu

    Cebu Pacific is launching a new selection of inflight meals for purchase starting October this year.

    The new meals include a Singaporean dish (Hainanese Chicken Rice shown above), Filipino cuisine, and a vegetarian option.

    “As every Cebu Pacific flight is a journey to or from home, we have designed this refreshed inflight menu to bring a feeling of comfort in the form of simple meals and familiar tastes,” said JB Bueno, director for inflight catering and sales at Cebu Pacific.

    Below are some of the meals passengers traveling with the airline can buy starting next month:

    Roasted Chicken Sandwich (toasted panini bread with roasted chicken, sautéed spinach, and grated cheddar cheese with a garlic aioli spread).

    Lechon Paksiw (slices of roasted suckling pig stewed in a blend of vinegar, sugar, and spices, served with white rice).

    Other meals include the following:

    • Pinoy Spaghetti
    • Beef Salpicao
    • Chicken Yakisoba
    • Crab Salad Sandwich

    In addition to being available for purchase on flight, passengers can also pre-order the meals before the flight, according to Cebu Pacific. The carrier also added that the meals come with information on nutrition to cater to health-conscious travelers flying with Cebu Pacific.

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  • Cebu Pacific holding ‘9.9’ promo fare sale

    Cebu Pacific holding ‘9.9’ promo fare sale

    Cebu Pacific is holding another seat sale from Sept. 9 to 10. The airline did not specify fares but said new destinations will become available every 8 hours starting midnight Sept. 9.

    From 12 a.m. to 8 a.m. all local destinations except Batanes and Marinduque will be on offer.

    From 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Cebu Pacific will offer promo fares to Japan, Korea, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau.

    Promo fares to ASEAN destinations, Dubai and Australia will be offered from 4 p.m. to 12 a.m.

    The fares will be valid for travel from April 1 to Aug. 31 next year.

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  • CU convenience store chain to open in Vietnam

    CU convenience store chain to open in Vietnam

    South Korea’s CU convenience store chain will expand its footprint to Vietnam, its second international market after Mongolia.

    BGF Retail, the operator of CU, signed a master franchise agreement with CUVN, a Vietnam-based convenience store operator, on Tuesday. CUVN will be in charge of investment and operations in Vietnam market as BGF Retail contributes its brand and business background.

    BGF Retail and CUVN plan to open their first store in Vietnam by June next year.

    Park Jae-koo, CEO of BGF Retail, said the company will continue to expand internationally making forays into growing emerging markets.

    With the new expansion, the South Korean convenience store operator expects to gain a strong position in the Southeast Asian market as Vietnam’s economy has witnessed significant growth during recent years.

    Rival network GS25 has already launched in Vietnam, opening stores in Ho Chi Minh City.

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  • AirAsia celebrates 600 million guests flown with BIG Sale

    AirAsia celebrates 600 million guests flown with BIG Sale

    Airasia the world’s best low-cost airline for 11 years running, is celebrating 600 million guests flown with a BIG Sale and six million promotional seats.

    Enjoy promotional all-in AirAsia BIG Member fares from as low as RM12 for flights from Kuala Lumpur to Penang, Kuantan, Johor Baru, Kota Kinabalu, and Kuching, from RM50 for flights to Surat Thani, Krabi, Visakhapatnam, Maldives (Male), Bangkok, Can Tho and many more.

    Fly AirAsia X from as low as RM196 from Kuala Lumpur to Tianjin, Seoul, Taipei, Gold Coast, Osaka and other exciting long-haul destinations. For extra comfort and perks, try our award-winning Premium Flatbed from Kuala Lumpur to Wuhan, Busan, Fukuoka, Melbourne from only RM796.

    Enjoy 16% off Pick A Seat when making seat selection with flights during the initial booking stage, up to 40% off bookings for selected hotels and up to 60% off flight-plus-hotel holiday packages. BIG members will earn an additional 600 BIG points when booking activities during the BIG Sale period (minimum spending of RM200).

    Book at airasia.com or the AirAsia mobile app from September 23 (0001h GMT +8) to Sept 26 (2400 GMT +8) for travel between Feb 10 and Dec 15, 2020 .

    AirAsia group chief commercial officer Karen Chan said, “As a show of appreciation to our 600 million guests flown, we are pleased to announce a BIG Sale across our network. As we further transform into a travel tech platform company, the AirAsia BIG Sale will become more than just flight promotions. Be sure to look out for exclusive discounts on selected hotels, activities and flight-plus-hotel packages when you book your next journey on airasia.com.”

    AirAsia BIG Members, BigPay users and AirAsia Credit Card holders will be able to take advantage of a 24-hour priority access period starting Sept 22. Simply log in as a BIG Member on airasia.com to access seats at the lowest fares. (0001h GMT +8). BIG Members will also be able to redeem promotional seats from as little as 500 BIG Points one way on airasiabig.com and the AirAsia BIG mobile app.

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  • Retailers commit to reduce climate footprint

    Retailers commit to reduce climate footprint

    Gen Less, a government sponsored initiative to help New Zealanders and local businesses reduce their climate footprint, launched on Saturday – with several retailers already committing to take part.

    Some of the methods Gen Less puts forward for a business to reduce its carbon footprint are to replace vehicles with EVs, video conference rather than travelling to meet, support low carbon suppliers, encourage staff to commute without a car, switch to LED lights, setting up a ‘green team’ to oversee sustainable initiatives in the business, and better understanding where your business could save energy.

    Countdown, NZ Post, Ecostore and Ethique all voiced their support for the program, with Countdown noting it will reduce its carbon emissions by 60 per cent by 2030.

    “There is no denying the impact that changes to our climate is having, and will continue to have, on the planet,” Countdown general manager of safety and sustainability Kiri Hannifin said.

    “At Countdown, we’ve got an unwavering focus on reducing our emissions and, since 2016, we’ve reduced them by 21 per cent.

    “Our new carbon emissions target makes our intention clear – we want to significantly reduce our emissions even further to help protect Aotearoa for future generations.

    “We absolutely agree that by using less, we can have more. That’s why we are really proud to be a part of Gen Less and encourage anyone wanting to do their bit to join this exciting movement.”

    Skincare brand Ecostore recently announced it would be targeting carbon neutrality by the end of 2019 across its New Zealand and Australian operations.

    “Businesses need to step up and recognise that they can and must be a force for good,” Ecostore managing director Pablo Kraus said.

    “Corporates have an incredible opportunity to pave the way for future generations. We must lead by example, empower others, act, make changes.”

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  • Yahoo launches new Mail app for Android and iOS

    Yahoo launches new Mail app for Android and iOS

    Yahoo is desperately trying to become relevant once again. We’re not sure how many people still own a Yahoo email account, but it looks like the company has just unveiled a brand new logo and a new Yahoo Mail app.

    The new app is available for Android and iOS users starting today and brings some important changes over the previous one. First off, it will allow users to customize their push notification to highlight the type of mail they want to be alerted of, as well as personalize the Yahoo Mail inbox with custom color themes and sounds.

    The new Yahoo Mail app comes with a new view that lets users access all their attachments, including travel documents, tickets, photos, and essential files. There’s another view for subscriptions that allows users to browse shopping emails and unsubscribe from any newsletter with a single tap directly within the app.

    Also, you’ll now have three separate types of deal that you can view in different tabs: Deals View, Location View (iOS only) and Grocery View. Finally, the app will highlight timely updates like package tracking, travel info, or a deal that’s close to expiring (iOS only).

    If you still trust Yahoo to keep your emails, you can now download the new Mail app for iPhone and Android via App Store and Google Play.

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  • Waze is getting Google Assistant support in the US

    Waze is getting Google Assistant support in the US

    Google Assistant support is coming to Waze, which means you’ll be able to use voice commands while navigating to your destination. The new feature is rolling out starting today and should become available to all English-speaking Android users in the United States in the next few days.

    Waze users can now say “Hey Google” within the app to access the Assistant. It will let them make a calendar appointment, play music, make calls, or find a coffee shop nearby, without having to leave the Waze navigation screen.

    If you don’t see Google Assistant when you open Waze, simply tap the mic or head to the Google Assistant settings in Voice & Sound. In the next window, tap “Enable now” to start using Google Assistant in Waze.

    Here are some of the voice commands that you can use in Waze once Google Assistant becomes available:

    • Hey Google, navigate home
    • Hey Google, navigate to a coffee shop
    • Hey Google, find gas stations
    • Hey Google, report traffic
    • Hey Google, what’s my ETA?
    • Hey Google, show alternative routes
    • Hey Google, show directions
    • Hey Google, allow/avoid tolls

    Waze hasn’t mentioned anything about the availability of Google Assistant outside of the United States, nor whether or not non-English speaking users will get it.

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  • Sa Sa in rent discussions with landlords

    Sa Sa in rent discussions with landlords

    Hong Kong beauty retailer Sa Sa is in discussion with landlords over rent reductions and will reduce staff as it tries to address falling sales.

    In a profit warning, Sa Sa chairman and CEO Simon Kwok said August was its weakest month, with sales down by 32 per cent in Hong Kong and Macau. That was the month when more than 1000 flights were cancelled after protestors crowded Hong Kong International Airport. Subsequent international publicity led to many inbound travellers cancelling their flights, resulting in 851,000 fewer passengers passing through the airport during August.

    Kwok said the group’s sales performance remained “very weak” in September with turnover from September 1 to 15 down by about 14 per cent month on month, and by 29 per cent on a year-on-year basis.

    Sales in Hong Kong for the five months to August 31 declined by about 15 per cent and in Macau by 17 per cent.

    Kwok said that while the group has sufficient cash on hand to meet current business needs at this point, it was adopting a prudent finance management approach with proactive implementation of a number of cost-control initiatives, including negotiating for rental reduction with landlords.

    Other measures include reducing operational expenses such as staffing and general administration overheads.

    “The group has also been launching more promotional campaigns with attractive discounts to boost sales and lower the inventory level to reduce holding costs and preserve cash,” he said in the profit warning.

    “At the same time, the group continues to review market conditions and close down low-efficiency stores to optimise the store network and adjust product mix and promotion strategies to stimulate sales.”

    The group is preparing to launch a WeChat mini-program to enable frontline salespersons to continuously interact with customers and sell products via the online platform without the need for the customers to visit physical stores.

    In the six months to September last year, Sa Sa reported a profit of HK$202.9 million. This year’s interim results will be released on November 30.

    “The group believes that its agility will retain its core competency, lead the group through this difficult time and lay a solid foundation for the development of new retail model in the future,” Kwok said.

    The protests, now into the 16th week, did not get all the blame for the declining sales.

    “The main reason for the group’s performance decline is the weak sales performance in its core markets in Hong Kong,” he said. “The sales performance was hit by the decline of visitor arrivals from Mainland China to Hong Kong, as well as weaker consumer sentiment, caused by continuous social incidents in Hong Kong, increasing tension of Sino-US trade war and the Renminbi depreciation.”

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  • OnTheList launched in Shanghai

    OnTheList launched in Shanghai

    Hong Kong flash-sale pioneer OnTheList will hold its first Shanghai event this week.

    Co-founder & CFO Diego Dultzin Lacoste says the flash sale will be conducted for fashion distributor ImagineX and feature the brands Club Monaco and Juicy Couture. Products will be discounted by up to 80 per cent and 90 per cent respectively.

    OnTheList turned three in January and during that time has expanded from running short-term sales in pop-up spaces to having its own permanent store in Hong Kong’s Central, adding online sales in Hong Kong and expanding into Singapore and Taiwan.

    Earlier this year, Lacoste confirmed the company was looking to start offline sales in other markets including Malaysia, Thailand and Australia.

    “For [these] markets, we plan to roll out next year. As we work very closely with the brands who are our most important partners, we will likely open first in the markets where the brands have the most immediate needs,” he said.

    The Shanghai event runs from Thursday through to Saturday at Garden Square on Beijing Road.

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  • Uninstall these two Android apps right now

    Uninstall these two Android apps right now

    Google has removed two Android apps that have been installed together over 1.5 million times. The apps were making money for those behind it by running pop-up advertisements that rang the cash register for the bad actors every time someone clicked on an ad. You might say to yourself, well, what’s the harm. Why begrudge some guy out there because he’s making some dough. But the truth is, these ad playing apps can take up some of your phone’s resources and help drain the battery.

    Sun Pro Beauty Camera had over 1 million installs while Funny Sweet Beauty Selfie Camera garnered 500,000 downloads. If you installed either of these two apps on your Android handset, you need to uninstall them now. As usual with these malicious apps, once you have installed one, the app icon disappears from the app drawer as a shortcut is created. And even if you delete the shortcut, the app keeps serving up ads in the background.

    Once installed, Sun Pro Beauty Camera runs hard to close full-screen ads even if the app is not open. Funny Sweet Beauty Selfie Camera also serves up full-screen ads, but only after a filtered photo is downloaded using the app. And as usual, the comments left on both apps’ listings in the Google Play Store provided Android users with an early warning. One review says, “Garbage, please don’t download this app. It’s only ads, that’s all, nothing else.” Another notes that “…ads keep popping up,” and a third stated “I could not find anything useful and the ads, don’t get me started on them. They were all over the place.” When you see an app with reviews like this, your first action should be to get as far away from it as possible.
    “Adware is usually viewed as a nuisance for the end-user. However, mobile adware can kill productivity leading to more serious repercussions for businesses. Intrusive out-of-app ads interrupt users in the middle their workflow, brick their devices, drain the device battery, and in some cases, infected devices need to be replaced altogether. Adware enables authors to make money from affected devices and while it is typically regarded as more of a nuisance than a severe threat, these particular apps have more advanced functionality than your average adware.”-Wandera
    Wandera reported the apps to Google on September 11th, and as we pointed out, they have since been removed from the Google Play Store.
  • AirAsia X Launch Flights Between Kuala Lumpur and Tokyo Narita

    AirAsia X Launch Flights Between Kuala Lumpur and Tokyo Narita

    AirAsia is set to capitalize on the growing demand for flights to Japan, with the country experiencing a tourism boom. In a response to increasing numbers of visitors to Tokyo, the Malaysian airline’s low-cost sister company, AirAsiaX is to start flying between Kuala Lumpur and Tokyo Narita airport from November 2019. This route is commencing for the second time around, after a four year absence. Read on to find out what led to this decision, as well as the details regarding the resumed flight route.

    The commencement of the route between Kuala Lumpur and Tokyo Narita comes four years after AirAsia X suspended its flights to this airport. Originally opened in 2014, the Malaysian low-cost airline operated flights between KUL airport and Narita airport for less than a year, before calling a halt in August of 2015.

    The airline endured a tough year in 2015, with significant losses reported as competition in the area increased. This competition came especially from Malaysian Airlines (MAS), and AirAsia X was forced to make some changes to its structures. Its ambitious capacity increases in 2014 could not be sustained and it necessitated the suspension of its flights to Narita airport, in a bid to counter increasing quarterly losses.

    The carrier has, for almost a decade, operated flights to Tokyo Haneda airport. In a statement supplied to Simple Flying, AirAsia X said,

    The trigger for AirAsia X’s resumption of its KUL-NRT route was the increase in demand for flights to Tokyo – stemming from a tourism boom in Japan. Between 2012 and 2017, the country saw a growth of over 200% in tourist arrivals, and the trend is set to continue.

    Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, has set the goal for tourist arrivals in 2020 at 40 million. This comes in conjunction with two major international sporting events for 2019 (the rugby world cup) and 2020 (the summer Olympics), as well as the depreciation of the yen.

    Overall, these factors have made Japan a major tourist destination. Demand amongst Malaysians for the route has increased as well, with more than 450,000 Malaysian travelers visiting Japan in 2018.

    From the 20th of November, 2019, AirAsia X will resume its route between Kuala Lumpur and Tokyo Narita airport. The airline’s fleet of Airbus 330s will be in use four times a week, flying direct on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays between the two cities. This will be in addition to its seven weekly flights between the Malaysian capital and Tokyo’s Haneda airport.

    Flight frequency for this route may well be increased in the future. Airbus has confirmed that AirAsia X has ordered 12 Airbus A330neos to boost its medium-range capabilities and to operate alongside its A330 fleet of 24 aircraft. This may free up some of its A330’s for increased flights to Japan, positioning the airline well for Japan’s goal of reaching 60 million tourist visitors by 2030.

    With direct return flights from under USD350, and under MYR1500, it is an attractive and affordable option for those flying from Malaysia.

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  • Shinsegae testing a cashierless grocery retail store concept

    Shinsegae testing a cashierless grocery retail store concept

    South Korean retail giant Shinsegae is developing a cashier-less grocery-store modeled on the Amazon Go concept.

    The brand’s first automated store – to be branded Emart24 – will open at the company’s data centre in Gimpo in Gyeonggi Province as a pilot while the model is refined before being launched in a more high-profile location.

    Just like at an Amazon Go, shoppers will be able to select products from shelves and walk out the door, the cost of the goods deducted from their pre-registered payment choice. Entry to the store will be granted by a QR code appearing on the customer’s smartphone and items will be automatically added to a virtual cart as they shop. About 30 cameras inside the store will monitor what items customers take from shelves – and those they put back.

    The project is being developed by Shinsegae’s IT department which will oversee the operations, while stock will be managed by Emart24.

    “The store will be a ground-breaking testbed where we apply and test various advanced technologies,” Kim Jang-wook, CEO of Shinsegae I&C said. “We plan to operate a store where customers can experience retail technology and enjoy real shopping.”

    Technology used in the store will include artificial intelligence (AI), computer vision and cloud point-of-sale systems.

    After a trial run with employees which is currently underway, the store will be opened to the public on September 30.

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  • Philippine retailer AllHome to list in October

    Philippine retailer AllHome to list in October

    AllHome Corp, the Philippines home-furnishings retailer, is looking to raise up to US$348 million in an IPO.

    AllHome operates 25 large one-stop homewares and home-improvement stores, most of them in the nation’s capital city, Manila. The partial float would value the company at between $827 million and $1 billion, according to Reuters.

    The shares will be listed on the stock exchange on October 10.

    Robert Ramos, senior VP and trust officer at Eastwest Bank said that AllHome has a market advantage of already being entrenched in the category.

    The company is likely to face competition when Ikea makes its debut in the Philippines in the Mall of Asia next year.

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