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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.

  • Cebu Pacific targets 300 millionth passenger milestone

    Cebu Pacific targets 300 millionth passenger milestone

    Cebu Pacific, the Philippines’ largest airline, said Monday its goal was to fly a total of 300 million passengers by 2022, as it increases capacity and invests in digital tools to drive demand.

    The 300 million milestone can be reached 4 times faster than the 150 million passengers flown in 1996, 21 years after the Gokongwei-led carrier was founded, said its vice president for marketing and distribution, Candice Iyog.

    Cebu Pacific sees “accelerated growth” with the delivery of 12 new Airbus jets this year, president and CEO Lance Gokongwei earlier said.

    The two-fold challenge for Cebu Pacific is making bookings more convenient while handling online traffic, Iyog said.

    “As we continue to invest in brand new higher capacity aircraft, the challenge that we have for us now is flying our next 150 million passengers in just 5 years, 4 times faster than when we did it the first time around,” Iyog said.

    “So the first challenge really was, how might we make ourselves relevant by tapping into user shopping behavior. And then the second job to be done was addressing and improving the customer booking experience,” she added.

    To lure more passengers, Cebu Pacific said it would maximize online tools to make booking easier. It also introduced a “new crazy” seat sale strategy, offering seats in clustered destinations every 2 hours, Iyog said.

    Cebu Pacific currently operates 1 Airbus A321neo, 36 A320, 7 A321ceo, 8 A330, 8 ATR 72-500, 12 ATR 72-600 as of January 2019.

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  • Half of FamilyMart owners want shorter hours

    Half of FamilyMart owners want shorter hours

    FamilyMart Japan says almost half of its franchisees want to drop its signature 24-hour trading hours.

    The firm conducted a recent survey among its around 14,000 franchises in Japan, of which 48.3 percent said they want to operate shorter hours, citing the cost of late-night operations and labor shortages. Of those, 73.3 percent wanted reduced hours every day, while 26.3 percent said that reduced hours one day a week would be sufficient.

    The remaining stores indicated a wish to retain 24-hour operations to avoid a drop in sales.

    Given the unexpectedly high interest in reducing store hours, FamilyMart Japan president Takashi Sawada announced: “We’ll build a system to ensure profits at franchisees.”

    FamilyMart Japan currently has 24 stores experimenting with shorter daily operational hours and will increase that number to 700 from October. It will review its 24-hour policy next year.

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  • Protests take their toll on Watsons outlets

    Protests take their toll on Watsons outlets

    Sales by Watsons stores located in areas affected by ongoing street protests have fallen markedly in both June and July. The protests have been ongoing since early June, largely confined to the island suburbs of Admiralty, Wan Chai and Causeway Bay.

    “Month-to-date July our sales have fallen by a double-digit [percentage] from the same period last year,” the chain’s MD Diane Cheung said during the launch of a diagnostic service at a Hong Kong store yesterday.

    “That said, last year’s comparison base was relatively high and given we achieved favorable first-half sales and that we expect openings of new and renovated stores in the second half, we believe we will fare better than the entire retail market for the full year.”

    Cheung said other factors were also impacting on the group’s sales, a reference to the changing demographics of mainland visitors and general economic uncertainty fuelled by the ongoing trade war between the US and China. However, Watsons stores located in the districts where most of the protests have occurred were worst affected.

    The Hong Kong Retail Management Association warned of the impact the protests were having on some of its members earlier this month.

    “Large-scale parade activities have caused individual stores to suspend business. Not only are the retail companies under pressure, so is the income of store employees,” the organization said in a prepared statement.

    AS Watson expects to open a net 20 new Watsons stores in Hong Kong by the end of this year, taking its network to 260. Globally the group opens a new store on average every seven hours.

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  • Scale of Stanley hawker’s counterfeit goods business surprises Customs

    Scale of Stanley hawker’s counterfeit goods business surprises Customs

    Hong Kong Customs who raided a mobile hawker selling counterfeit goods in Stanley on Friday was surprised by the scale of the operation behind it.

    Some 6900 items of suspected counterfeit goods were seized, including clothing, caps, and shoes, with an estimated market value of $420,000.

    But what made this raid stand out was that it was the first-ever case detected of a single mobile hawker selling counterfeit items using multiple mobile-storage facilities.

    After raiding the single stall they discovered 13 storage facilities in nearby alleys linked to the stall.

    A 44-year-old female stall owner was arrested.

    The enforcement activity followed a tipoff alleging the sale of suspected counterfeit items at Stanley. After an in-depth investigation with the assistance of trademark owners, the raid was carried out.

    A Customs spokesperson said inspection and enforcement activity to combat the sale of counterfeit goods will be stepped up during the summer holiday.

    “Customs reminds traders to be cautious and prudent in merchandising since the sale of counterfeit goods is a serious crime and offenders are liable to criminal sanctions. Customs also reminds consumers to procure goods at reputable shops and to check with the trademark owners or their authorized agents if the authenticity of a product is in doubt.”

    Under the Trade Descriptions Ordinance, any person who sells, or possesses for sale, any goods with a forged trademark commits an offense. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a $500,000 fine and five years imprisonment.

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  • AirAsia keeps improving flight services

    AirAsia keeps improving flight services

    AirAsia won for the 11th time at the prestigious Skytrax World Airline Awards as the world’s best low-cost airline during the Paris Air Show in Le Bourget, Paris, France, in the middle of June 2019. But despite the awards, it has never let itself get complacent.

    The airline keeps its commitment to continue increasing and improving its flight services for domestic routes and foreign routes, by being continually committed to providing low cost but quality flight services on all of the routes it serves.

    In July 2019, the airline launched three new routes from Jakarta to Sorong in West Papua, Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara and Semarang in Central Java. The new routes will start operating on Sept. 1 and will be served by Airbus A320 aircraft with a capacity of 180 seats. In June, AirAsia launched five new domestic routes. The five round-trip domestic routes are Jakarta-Lombok (11 flights per week), Bali-Lombok (seven flights per week), Yogyakarta Kulonprogo-Lombok (three flights per week), Bali-Labuan Bajo (seven flights per week) and Surabaya-Kertajati (three flights per week). AirAsia will start operating its flight services on the five new domestic routes from Aug. 1 onwards.

    In an effort to attract more passengers to the new routes, AirAsia is offering special prices, namely for Jakarta–Lombok starting from Rp 635,000, Bali–Lombok from Rp 243,000, Surabaya–Kertajati from Rp 626,000. All the prices are one-way but include tax and free baggage up to 15 kg.

    The flight tickets, which are offered at a price of Rp 2.49 million for Jakarta-Sorong, Rp 590,000 for Jakarta-Lombok and Rp 341,000 for Jakarta-Semarang, can be ordered at airasia.com and through the AirAsia application. The prices are only for one-way but include passenger service charge and free baggage up to a maximum of 15 kg. The prices are only available on flights booked until July 28, for flights from Sept. 1 until Oct. 26.

    Sorong is the largest city in West Papua and stands as a gateway to Raja Ampat, one of the most exotic and beautiful tourist destinations in Indonesia.

    In Lombok, where AirAsia has recently opened its new hub, travelers can enjoy a number of enchanting destinations, such as Bukit Merese, the Gili Islands, Tanjung A’an, Pink Beach and Mandalika.

    In Semarang, which is also known as the little Netherlands, travelers can trace its history through the old buildings mostly from the Dutch colonial era, while hunting for local delicacies along the exotic journey.

    Besides the route expansion, last month AsiaAsia also offered five million cheap tickets through its Big Sale 2019 program for various domestic and international destinations. The promotional tickets include those on favorite routes, such as Jakarta-Singapore at a price of only Rp 150,000, Medan-Penang from Rp 230,000 and Surabaya-Bali from Rp 359,000.

    The airline has also introduced a new standard of flight comfort with its Airbus A330neo, which will certainly change the public perception of long-distance flights. It will offer the best value of ticket prices for 30 long-distance destinations in 10 major markets of AirAsia Group.

    “Besides developing international connectivity to support the visit of foreign tourists to Indonesia, this year, as we promised, we are focusing on expanding our domestic routes, especially those to eastern Indonesia.,” said AirAsia’s president director Dendy Kurniawan recently during the ceremony to launch the new routes.

    Currently, AirAsia Indonesia operates a total of 292 flights per week from Jakarta to various domestic and international destinations, such as Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Bangkok, Phuket, Surabaya, Yogyakarta and Bali.

    Overall, AirAsia serves more than 700 flights per week on 38 direct routes from 15 cities of Indonesia for domestic and international routes. It has a fleet of more than 200 airplanes of the type Airbus A320-200 and Airbus A330-300 in six countries, namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, India and Japan, with more than 140 international destinations in Asia, Australia, the Middle East and the US.

    “We’ll continue to be committed to providing low cost but quality flight services in Indonesia. We realize it through the principle of efficiency, innovation and operation digitalization. It is not just a marketing gimmick. It is part of our vision and mission to realize ‘Now Everyone Can Fly,” Dendy Kurniawan concluded.

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  • AirAsia’s Tony Fernandes: ‘Too Many Leaders Stay Too Long’

    AirAsia’s Tony Fernandes: ‘Too Many Leaders Stay Too Long’

    The public nature of aviation means it tends to attract large-scale palace intrigue about executive leadership changes from employees, customers and other stakeholders and observers. With the industry typically having small margins and many uncontrollable events, it is easy to hope the executive change will improve the experience, hence calls for Bob Crandall to return to American Airlines.

    Change can be a sensitive topic, but not to AirAsia co-founder Tony Fernandes. “Retirement is important,” he said at the Rise technology conference in Hong Kong this month. “Too many leaders stay too long. I think leadership needs to be refreshed.”

    His comments were not directed at anyone or prompted by any events, but leadership change discussion can come up often for executives.

    Emirates President Sir Tim Clark has spent most of his professional life at the Dubai giant, including almost 17 years as president. He is routinely asked of his future plans, not only because of his long tenure as president but also because that at 69 years old, he is above the government’s retirement limit of 65. The official retirement age is 60 for non-Emiratis but this can be extended up to 65, the government says.

    Clark is asked so often about retirement that he has talking points with the eloquence he is known for. “Time will knock on the door and this is a younger man’s business,” he said in 2018. That is similar to his 2015 comment that “It’s a younger man’s game.”

    He deflects to the owner – the Dubai government – and told Airline Ratings: “My succession will be determined by the shareholder.” He said, “I believe that the owner will have plenty of scope there.”

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  • Google makes a subtle but important change to the Search app

    Google makes a subtle but important change to the Search app

    A look at the updated version of the Google Search app reveals that Google is phasing out its Voice Search feature in favor of the Google Assistant. Voice Search could be found in the Google Search app and on the app’s widget. The iconic microphone icon, when tapped, would allow the user to verbally request a search. But now, Google wants its virtual digital assistant to take over all voice searches.

    A subtle change can be found in the Google Search app (aka the Google app) in version 10.24 or 10.28 beta. The microphone icon once found on the right-hand side of the search bar has been replaced with the Google Assistant icon. In addition, the old search bar included the words “Say Hey Google” while the updated version now reads “Ask any question.”

    Google Assistant is at the heart of the Google ecosystem. It is considered to be the best digital assistant among the top four, a group that also includes Amazon’s Alexa, Apple’s Siri and Microsoft’s Cortana. According to Google, there are now over 1 million actions that Google Assistant can handle. And with Assistant available on all of the Google Home smart speakers and the Nest Hub smart displays, replacing Voice Search with Google Assistant is a way for the company to bring all of its apps and devices in sync with each other.

    Google hasn’t finished rolling this update out to everyone yet, but it is easy to check to see if it has hit your phone. Simply open the Google Search app and check out which icon is in the search bar.

    The first virtual assistant found on a smartphone was Siri, which debuted with the Apple iPhone 4s on October 4, 2011. Apple had acquired the technology when it purchased Siri Inc. in 2010. At the time, Siri was a concierge app in the Apple App Store and its developers planned to offer it for Android and BlackBerry devices. Even though Apple had a head start in this space, some of the company’s former employees said last year that Apple lost its vision for Siri the day after it was first introduced on the iPhone 4s; that was the day that Steve Jobs died.

    Meanwhile, several tests have shown that Google Assistant recognizes questions and gives appropriate responses better than Siri. An extensive test was conducted last year of the four major digital assistants by venture capital firm Loup Ventures and its analyst Gene Munster. The test showed that Google Assistant answered correctly or performed the correct actions better than its rivals in all five categories that were being tested (Local, Commerce, Navigation, Information and Command). Siri finished last in three of the categories and only got 12% of navigation queries correctly. Alexa finished second in four of the categories while Cortana finished third in three of the classifications.

    The aforementioned test was conducted on smart speakers. So a few months later, Loup put the assistants through the paces again, but this time it used different smartphones. Google Assistant on a Pixel XL understood all 800 of the questions asked. Siri misunderstood 11 queries while Alexa and Cortana missed 13 and 19, respectively. Google Assistant won four out of the five categories (Local, Commerce, Navigation and Information) while finishing second in one of them. Siri placed second in four categories, topping Google Assistant in Command. Alexa was all over the place with a second-place finish (Information), three third-place finishes (Local-tie, Commerce, Information, Command) and wound up last in one category (Navigation). Cortana was ranked last in three categories (Commerce, Information, Command), and finished third twice (Local-tie, Navigation).

  • NomadX adds more provision shops

    NomadX adds more provision shops

    Multi-label concept store NomadX has updated and expanded its space, adding new stores.  Technology has also been rolled out: along with a touchscreen directory, interactive screens and “game stations” that help customers to find their style, there are mirrors that offer automated store assistance. Customers can also scan the product QR code to add any products to their digital cart for purchases.

    Among the new brands at NomadX is The Lucky Shop (by Zha Huo Dian), a boutique offering ‘old-school’ and vintage fashion for men and women.

    Another is a faux ‘supermarket’ M*Art which displays apparel and accessories in neon-pink repurposed refrigerators.

    Other newcomers include homegrown fashion and accessories brands Qlothe, The Sophia Label, Ans.ein and Studio Emoi. Mrphy’s home decor range and French beauty company Melvita are making their Singapore debut there.

    More brands will be popping up at the store, including sustainable-swimwear label August Society, Pleatation and Love SG.

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  • Original DOOM game now available on Android and iOS

    Original DOOM game now available on Android and iOS

    Back in 1993, a little game called DOOM developed by a small studio called id Software set the gaming world on fire. About 25 years later, Bethesda decided to release classic DOOM titles to new platforms, including Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Android, and iOS.

    While DOOM, DOOM II and DOOM 3 are now available for download for Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and PlayStation 4, only the first two are hitting Android and iOS devices. If you want to try them out, you can download them from the Google Play Store and App Store, respectively, for $5.

    The original game, DOOM comes with all the content released back in 1993, and the fourth expansion Thy Flesh Consumed. The re-release of DOOM II includes the Master Levels, 20 additional levels made by the community and curated by the developers.

    Although the classic DOOM game has been available on iOS since 2009, this is the first time both games are ported to Android and, of course, the first time DOOM II hits iOS devices. There’s one small issue though, you’ll need to log into a Bethesda account to play the games. If you don’t have an account yet, you’ll have to create one. The BehesdaNet login requirement was included for the Slayers Club with the purpose of rewarding members for playing the classic DOOM games.

    However, Bethesda said that the login should be optional and that it’s working on changing the requirement to optional right now.

  • Musee flagship in Beijing Designed by Studio8

    Musee flagship in Beijing Designed by Studio8

    Shanghai design and development studio Studio8 has recently completed the design of Musee’s flagship store in Beijing.

    A store for consignment luxury goods, Musee delivers an open platform for luxury accessories – a point that inspired the designers to create a flexible space with “soft boundaries” and a diverse colour palette.

    The firm’s “soft boundary” design leaves no clear boundaries in the functional division of the entire retail space for Musee, which is translated into two main features: the mobile multi-functional counters and the central consignment room.

    “Every accessory that people possess is an abstract object that serves a certain function or purpose,” said principal designer Shirley Dong. “This changes when people place more importance and value on the object, whether through the brand, colour, material, or handcrafting process. Luxury goods then become time travellers, with an ever-increasing value and preciousness while still maintaining their initial presence.”

    The idea of enriching the significance of an accessory stands behind the concept of Musee’s new flagship store, where shopping is envisaged as an unconventional experience that allows customers to know more about the item they are buying and re-evaluate it with the support of professional consultants.

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  • Lagardere travel business post strong growth driven by China

    Lagardere travel business post strong growth driven by China

    French-headquartered Lagardere says its travel retail business achieved a 15.8-per-cent increase in consolidated sales in the first half-year.

    Like-for-like sales were up 6.5 percent, the difference attributable to a €134 million positive impact resulting from the acquisition of HBF and of Smullers in the Netherlands, and to a €26 million positive foreign exchange impact.

    Earnings before interest and tax for the travel retail division rose 12 percent to €46 million.

    In the Asia-Pacific region, sales grew 6.5 percent, largely driven by organic growth in China.

    Consolidated group revenue, incorporating the company’ publishing, sports and entertainment business activities, grew by 6.7 per cent on a like-for-like basis, to €3.612 billion.

    Group recurring earnings before tax and interest came in at €153 million for first-half, up from €139 million a year earlier, owing mainly to business growth at Lagardere Travel Retail and a busy sporting calendar for Lagardere Sports and Entertainment.

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  • Thai AirAsia ready for travel growth

    Thai AirAsia ready for travel growth

    Thai AirAsia and Thai AirAsia X’s businesses are expected to grow as projected this year, with passengers surpassing 23 million.

    Santisuk Klongchaiya, chief executive of Thai AirAsia, said passengers in the first half this year tallied 11.4 million, with a load factor at 87%. Passenger volume for the full year is expected to reach 23.2 million as planned, 5% growth, with a load factor of 85-86%.

    He said the most urgent issue for the airline is to regain trust from Chinese tourists after the fatal boat accident last year. The baht appreciation has also affected the Chinese market.

    Mr Santisuk said the airline plans to talk with the Tourism Authority of Thailand about creating a special campaign for the Chinese market. Thai AirAsia is also considering opening new routes in South Asia, such as Hyderabad, India and Kathmandu, Nepal, later this year. The airline plans to welcome two more Airbus A321 jets by the end of this year to replace retired aircraft, bringing Thai AirAsia’s fleet to 63.

    Nadda Buranasiri, chief executive of AirAsia X group and Thai AirAsia X, said the fleet for Thai AirAsia X will expand from nine to 14 as part of the plan to create a network in North Asia before moving to other regions.

    Thai AirAsia X, which operates long-haul routes, carried 1.5 million passengers in the first six months.

    Passenger numbers for the full year are projected at 3 million, with a load factor of 85%.

    There are some new routes planned in North Asia or Australia, and more frequencies expected to be added, said Mr Nadda.

    The airline has put off plans to add other long-haul routes to assess market demand after adding four flights a week on the new Airbus A330neo to Brisbane, Australia.

    Thai AirAsia and Thai AirAsia X are budget airlines partially owned by Malaysia’s AirAsia Group Berhad.

    Yesterday, Teleport (formerly known as Redcargo Logistics), a fully owned subsidiary air cargo company under AirAsia Group Berhad, signed a memorandum of understanding with Triple i Logistics to set up a joint venture company, Teleport Thailand.

    The new venture will start services at the beginning of next year.

    Pete Chareonwongsak, chief executive of Teleport, said it offers seamless same-day delivery in e-commerce for both domestic and 140 other destinations in the airline’s network, covering Asia and Australia, with cargo capacity from the 270 aircraft held by AirAsia and affiliated carriers.

    “Utilisation of the airline’s belly cargo is only 15%. We plan to use the remaining capacity to benefit small business operators, aiming to utilise cargo capacity of up to 50% within five years,” he said.

    The partnership will offer a new logistics business model differing from traditional airport-to-airport cargo movement, said Tipp Dalal, chief executive of Triple i Logistics.

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  • Thailand’s Dohome launches compact ToGo Store chain

    Thailand’s Dohome launches compact ToGo Store chain

    Thai construction materials and home renovation equipment retailer Dohome is set to expand within the territory by an additional 90 branches by the end of next year.

    The move, partially in response to strong demand from DIY consumers, will introduce the firm’s Dohome ToGo brand with a smaller store format of 300–1000sqm.

    “Do-it-yourself is a rising trend,” said COO Puthada Teravetchakarn. “People want to renovate or repair the home by themselves if they can. It is very easy to use Google or YouTube to find out how to repair something or what materials should be used.”

    The firm is currently seeking suitable locations at department stores, supermarkets and hypermarkets for the new small-concept format, with a budget of up to THB2 million (US$64,650) per branch. The stores will stock around 10,000 SKUs, compared to more than 135,000 SKUs at its nine regular branches.

    “We will survey people living within a radius of three kilometers of proposed locations to ensure demand,” said Puthada. “We will review each month which items are best sellers and revise the selection.”

    Ten new Dohome ToGo branches will open this year, including two locations that have already launched in Bangkok.

    Dohome is in the midst of an IPO, offering 465.04 million shares at THB7.80 each, with a trading opening on August 6.

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  • Alceon rolling out Lego stores across Australia

    Alceon rolling out Lego stores across Australia

    Alceon Group on Wednesday revealed plans to significantly expand the footprint of Lego stores in Australia.

    New stores are set to open in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland over the coming months, with South Australia and Western Australia to follow in 2020.

    A store is also set to open in Westfield Newmarket in New Zealand later this year.

    Alceon, which holds the rights to Lego-certified stores in Australia and New Zealand, opened the first standalone Lego store in Westfield Bondi Junction in March, which executive director Richard Facioni said has “captured the imagination of all generations”.

    The store is centered on providing interactive experiences, with a pick-a-brick wall, build-your-own-minifigure stations and play tables, where kids can assemble their own creations.

    The store has benefited from the growing popularity of the Lego brand in the region, thanks to the arrival of the top-rated Lego Masters reality show, Facioni said.

    Alceon plans to capitalise on this momentum, with the first new store to open in Broadway Sydney in late 2019.

    The company said it has secured prime positioning on Level 2 of one of Australia’s highest performing shopping centers. The store, like the Bondi Junction location, will feature exclusive, customized design elements and brick-built symbols.

    “The introduction of further LEGO Certified Stores in key locations will
    accelerate the reach of this leading global retail concept, as we build on the excitement and emotion intrinsic to the iconic LEGO brand,” Facioni said in a statement about the expansion.

    Alceon Group is an investment firm that is one of the biggest retail companies in Australia, following its acquisition of Specialty Fashion Group’s Katies, Millers, Autograph, Crossroads and Millers brands, James Packer’s Pretty Girl Fashion group and Pumpkin Patch.

    The company also has a controlling stake in Noni B and recently acquired a stake in ethical fashion brand Ginger & Smart.

  • Batman pop-up store at The One marks 80th anniversary

    Batman pop-up store at The One marks 80th anniversary

    Comics label DC and Warner Bros Consumer Products are marking the 80th anniversary of Batman with an interactive exhibit at The One shopping complex in Tsim Sha Tsui.

    The Batman pop-up store offers a sneak peek into the Batman universe going all the way back to his first appearance. Selected Batman comic book covers are being reprinted through modern screen-printing technologies in restoring the comic book aesthetics of different eras.

    Sculptor Keo W. has created a series of 1:1 scale Batman figures based on the most iconic Batman looks in animations, movies and video games, some of which are being shown in Asia for the first time.

    Nearly 100 Batman collectibles are included to present a curated experience to the public. A range of creative merchandise includes some items that are launching in Hong Kong for the first time, such as Batman luminous basketballs and chess games.

    The Batman pop-up store is part of a year-long global celebration showcasing the “World’s Greatest Detective” that includes live events, fan celebrations and exclusive branded products.

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