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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.

  • Monster Employment Index shows 3% decline in online hiring for April

    Monster Employment Index shows 3% decline in online hiring for April

    Online hiring in the Philippines fell 3% year-on-year in April according to the latest Monster Employment Index.

    Despite the 3% year-on-year drop, online hiring improved over last month’s 24% decline.

    “The Philippine economy had expanded faster than analysts’ predictions in Q1, largely driven by jobs across the services sectors. This expansion has given rise to employee demands for various related roles, with the retail sector taking lead in hiring activities,” Sanjay Modi, Monster.com managing director for India, Middle East, Southeast Asia and India, said.

    The retail sector showed a 49% jump in online hiring activities, its first positive growth since March 2015. Among the occupations, showed a 33% year-on-year growth in April. Meanwhile, the hospitality and travel sector showed a 63% decline in online hiring year-on-year.

    “The Philippines is also likely to continue to lure more businesses, thanks to its business-friendly environment, which will continue to drive the labor market. Demands for financial analysts, BPO and IT professionals, web-developers and healthcare workers will be on the rise in the months ahead,” Modi said.

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  • Inflation erodes Vietnam retail sales rise

    Inflation erodes Vietnam retail sales rise

    Purchasing power is declining despite Vietnam retail sales and services revenue rising 9.1 per cent to VND1430 trillion (US$63.4 billion) in the first five months of this year.

    If inflation is excluded, the amount marks an increase of 7.8 per cent, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO). However, GSO expert Vu Manh Ha says the growth, with inflation excluded, was lower than the 8.2 per cent growth in the same period last year, showing weaker purchasing power.

    Growth was impacted by incidents affecting accommodation, catering and tourism services, as well as the mass fish deaths along Vietnam’s central coast. With the cancellation of beach tours, the spending power of tourism companies in the coastal provinces fell strongly.

    Meanwhile, there was a strong 9.5 per cent growth in the purchasing power of goods retailers in the first five months, amounting to VND1920 trillion and accounting for two-thirds of total retail sales and services revenue.

    Retailers of rice and foodstuffs saw growth of 13.6 per cent; garment retailers, 10.9 per cent; and home appliance retailers, 9.6 per cent.

    Ha says the total retail sales and services revenue next month will increase further because of a high demand for house construction and repairs, and recovering demand for beach tours.

    GSO director Nguyen Bich Lam says purchasing power this year is expected to have a lower growth rate than last year because of stability in prices, high supply and stable demand for most essential goods.

    Because of consumer fears about environmental pollution and food safety, spending is expected to erode for such services as accommodation, catering, tourism and entertainment, says Lam.

  • DTI to showcase Filipino retail brands in Jakarta

    DTI to showcase Filipino retail brands in Jakarta

    The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is set to showcase Filipino retail brands at the “Lifestyle Philippines” event on June 10, 2016 at Shangri-La Hotel, Jakarta, Indonesia.

    In a statement, Philippine Embassy Trade Representative Alma Argayoso said Lifestyle Philippines is a branding initiative led by the Philippine Trade and Investment Center (PTIC) in Jakarta, which aims to promote Philippine-made products in the Indonesian market.

    “This initiative hopes to increase trade with Indonesia, which in 2015 stood at US$3.6 billion. The Philippines exported about US$628.27 million worth of goods and services to Indonesia, while the Indonesia had US$2.93 billion trade with its counterpart,” Argayoso said.

    The event includes a fashion show that will feature Karimadon and Rusty Lopez, two iconic brands in the Philippines that have begun to create a following in Indonesia’s fashion-forward clientele market. Other brands that will be featured are Plains and Prints and Cruzzini Barong Tagalog.

    Barong Batik, a known fashion innovation for many diplomats and dignitaries will also be exhibited at the said event. It is a fusion of Philippine barong and Indonesian batik designs into one.

    Apart from apparel, the event will also feature potential Filipino food products for exports under the Flavor Philippines such as Goldilocks polvoron, Mama Sita’s sauces and mixes, Leslie’s snack products, Destileria Limtuaco’s spirits and liquors, and other artisanal food products such as dried fruits and nuts, jams and marmalade, bottled sardines, and chocolate dipped dried mangoes.

    Moreover, hand-woven crafts will be featured under the special section, Woven Chic.  Indigenous textiles from the Philippines, traditional dresses, linens, and modern and traditional pieces of jewelry will be displayed for the Indonesian fashion-oriented consumers.

    “The regional integration in ASEAN presents opportunities for Philippine companies to expand to Indonesia and other ASEAN markets, and we certainly would like to actively take part in supporting Philippine companies in their regional expansion. We look forward to make Filipino products more available in the Indonesian market, particularly since there are many Indonesians, having visited or studied in the Philippines, who look for our products,” Argayoso added.

    The event will also highlight other Philippine products and services such as travel and tourism, educational services and pharmaceuticals.

  • Citilink Adds Nine Flights for Ramadan

    Citilink Adds Nine Flights for Ramadan

    Citilink is set to add more flights in Holy Month Ramadan. “There will be at least 9 extra flights,” said Commerce Director of PT Citilink Indonesia, Hans Nugroho, on Thursday.

    Hans said that the flights will operate 7 days before and after Eid. The extra flights will cover routes to Padang, Yogyakarta, Medan, and Denpasar. “We will see if other routes are necessary,” he said.

    Finance Director of Citilink Indonesia, Mega Satria, said that the airline adds flights only on the existing routes. “It the routes are potential, we will add more routes,” she said.

    Morever, Hans added that a surge of passengers is a certain thing on Eid holiday, Therefore, extra flights is a bid to anticipate it. He underlined that tcket reservation has started to increase in number.

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  • Indonesia is favorite tourist destination for Australians

    Indonesia is favorite tourist destination for Australians

    Data obtained from the Australia Bureau of Statistics revealed that 105,500 Australians visit Indonesia every month, Tourism Minister Arief Yahya noted in a press statement received by us here on Monday.

    The minister said the figure showed that Indonesia was a favorite tourist destination for Australians.

    “The data, which was released a month ago, for the first time revealed that Indonesia was the most preferred tourist destination among Australians,” Arief noted.

    According to the bureau, earlier, most Australians visited New Zealand, with an average of 99,400 tourists per month.

    “This is certainly due to the visa-free policy extended to Australians visiting Indonesia,” the minister remarked, adding that the ministry along with the Foreign Ministry and the Indonesian Consulate General across Australia had promoted the policy in the country.

    The Indonesian tourism branding called Wonderful Indonesia has been promoted in several regions in Australia through various mass media, including social media.

    “Our international openness is assessed by the World Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index as one of the measurable values,” Arief stated.

    The minister believes that the statistical figures were accurate and can be used in tourism development programs.

    The minister said the 10 priority tourist destinations, especially the maritime tourist sites, have been drawing Australian visitors.

    Of the 10 tourist destinations, seven are maritime tourist sites: Tanjung Kelayang in Bangka Belitung, Tanjung Lesung in Banten, Mandalika in West Nusa Tenggara, Wakatobi in Southeast Sulawesi, Seribu Islands in Jakarta, and Morotai in North Maluku.

    The maritime tourist sites are divided into three main zones: coastal, underwater, and sea. The third one is an inter-island tourist zone that can be explored by yacht.

    “Most of the Australian tourists prefer tourist sites in the coastal zone, with waves ideal for surfing. We have several new surfing spots in Banyuwangi, Mentawai, and Nias,” Arief added.

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  • Indonesia’s retail attractiveness rank jumps significantly

    Indonesia’s retail attractiveness rank jumps significantly

    Indonesia has significantly improved its position in the Global Retail Development Index by leaping from 12th position in 2015 to a new high fifth position. China and India are still the countries with the most attractive retail business taking first and second, followed by Malaysia and Kazakhstan.

    The consulting firm AT Kearney created the index in 2001 to measure the attractiveness of the retail sector in developing countries. It includes three main criteria namely population, country risk, and time pressure.

    AT Kearney partner Hana Ben-Shabat said Indonesia’s recent policies of loosening barriers in the retail sector including e-commerce and foreign investment were regarded as positive to investors amid the negative growth average of 2.3 percent in the last three years.

    “Local and international retailers are speeding up expansion plans,” she said on Monday in Jakarta, citing Indomaret, which planned to open 1,600 stores after the 1,560 new stores last year and United Arab Emirates’ Lulu that would invest US$500 million over the next five years.

    As market saturation would increase, Hana continued, existing retailers were experimenting to capture the niche market.

    Matahari Putraprima has launched a premium supermarket Foodmart Primo in June 2015, while Transmart Carrefour has expanded to restaurants, retail chains and entertainment.

    With the increasing usage and number of smartphones, retailers are boosting up their e-commerce. Happy Fresh has recently acquired $12 million to fund its e-commerce expansion, while Alfamart has rebranded its alfaonline.com into alfacart.com by including third-party products.

    More recently, Korea and Japan-based retailer Lotte Group and Indonesia’s Salim Group have announced that they will create a joint-venture to develop an e-commerce and logistics system. Salim and Lotte would hold a 50-50 share of the platform.

    “Now, Indonesians youngsters are paying less physical visit to retail shops. We need to catch on with this new trend,” Salim Group chairman Anthoni Salim told us on Friday.

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  • Jakarta Fair 2016 begins June 10, will coincide with Ramadan

    Jakarta Fair 2016 begins June 10, will coincide with Ramadan

    The Jakarta Fair, an festival and exhibition, will be held at JIExpo Kemayoran from June 10 to July 17, coinciding with Ramadan, the fasting month and Eid.

    “Jakarta Fair coincides with fasting month and the Eid break, something that happens once every 3 years. It opens many opportunities for all the businessmen involved,” said PT JIExpo Marketing Director, Ralph Scheunemann, during a press conference in Jakarta on Monday.

    The exhibition that will be opened by President Joko Widodo has a target to attract 5 million visitors and at least Rp5 trillion in transaction value within 38 days of execution.

    Being organized under the slogan, “Lets celebrate Eid together at Jakarta Fair,” the organizers hope that the event offers an alternative to those wishing to spend their Eid holiday away from the usual tourism destinations in Jakarta.

    Even though most residents from the capital city will be going back to their hometowns during Eid, PT JIExpo organizers were confident that visitors number would not fall.

    “Only about 30 percent of the residents are expected to return home, which means approximately 5-6 million people will remain in the city from among its 9 million residents,” explained Ralph.

    Also, many people residing elsewhere are most likely to return to Jakarta.

    This year, the organizers are also preparing new rides, such as an ice skating rink, a snow playground and a vicious prison.

    The Jakarta Fair will open its doors everyday during Ramadan from 3.30 PM to 10 PM, Monday through Friday, and 10 AM to 11 PM on Saturdays and Sundays.

    Visitors will be able to enjoy the festivities at the Jakarta Fair 2016 by paying an admission fee of 20,000 rupiah on Mondays, 25,000 rupiah Tuesday through Thursday, and 30,000 rupiah Friday through Sunday and on national holidays.

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  • Malaysia’s KFit buys Groupon Indonesia

    Malaysia’s KFit buys Groupon Indonesia

    Groupon Indonesia will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of KFit and Groupon Inc will be a strategic shareholder of KFit. The terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

    A report in the Chicago Tribune said Groupon announced the sale on Monday, the latest step in its ongoing shedding of international markets.

    Chicago-based Groupon, which operates in 26 countries, has exited several international markets since 2015 in favour of building up its North American business.

    KFit founder and Chief Executive Officer Joel Neoh is the founder of Groupon Malaysia. He later headed Groupon’s Asia-Pacific business.

    KFit gained popularity by offering unlimited access to gyms and fitness studios for a fixed monthly fee in Asia. It offers users the chance to book fitness classes at different locations through one app.

    The deal should close in the third quarter of 2016, KFit said in a press release, adding that Groupon Indonesia has more than one million subscribers and more than 15,000 local merchants. Groupon Indonesia will continue to function as usual, the release said.

    A report in Techinasia said, in February, KFit added more categories such as massages and beauty salons to its offering, an indication that the startup needed to add more revenue streams to its core product.

    A month later, KFit also tweaked its model, limiting membership to 10 activities per month, for the same rate.

    Neoh said: “While KFit will continue to focus on health and fitness services, this presents a strategic direction for us to enhance and broaden our offerings. In the long run, this acquisition will provide us with a strong platform for growth in Southeast Asia.”

  • 1 in 3 POS terminals to be mobile by 2021

    1 in 3 POS terminals to be mobile by 2021

    Smartphone and tablet-based mobile point-of sale (POS) terminals will handle 40% of all retail transaction value by 2021, up from an expected 12% in 2016, a new study from Juniper Research showed.

    The research firm forecasts that the use of mPOS systems will account for more than 1 in 3 POS terminals by 2021, driven by larger retailers adopting mPOS as part of an array of point-of-sale options.

    The new research, “Worldwide mPOS Markets: Devices, Technologies & Growth Opportunities 2016-2021,” found that mPOS will enable retailers to ‘queue bust’ in stores, reducing lines and developing more targeted and situational campaigns as well as offering automatic ordering systems in restaurants.

    “We are seeing several vendors tailor their software to the needs of specific industries, integrating mPOS capabilities as part of broader cloud-based business software,” commented research author James Moar.

    “These additional services can then make use of the sales data directly to manage inventory, monitor staff performance and other functions, which can all add more value to a business and justify a higher margin.”

    The research has also found that mPOS is enabling smaller merchants in emerging markets, particularly across India, Southeast Asia and Latin America, to accept card payments and grow their businesses. Much of the growth in these regions being supplied mostly by local vendors, such as Banamex, Digio, PagSeguroand

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  • Digital edge for Retail Asia Expo

    Digital edge for Retail Asia Expo

    Trending technology and the fast-changing tastes and behaviours of consumers and the market will all be in the spotlight at the eighth Retail Asia Expo (RAE), the award-winning flagship industry event in Asia for retailers.

    Organised by Diversified Communications Hong Kong and at Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre (HKCEC) from June 14 to 16, the event will explore such topics as B2C sales to China, mobile wallets, cloud-based retail technologies, cross-border eCommerce and ePayments, the digitisation of retail, re-platforming, proximity marketing, online retail strategy with global standards, and innovative technologies from Israel.

    Products, ideas, software and strategies will also feature in exhibits and seminars.

    For internet retailing, exhibitors will showcase advanced internet retailing technologies, back-end support software, supply-chain management technology, electronic payments, and online sales and marketing software. Providers that have confirmed their participation include Apsis, CCDI, Cegid, Intel, iSappos and Million Tech.

    Augment Paris HQ will showcase its innovative augmented reality technology, which is being developed into apps to provide a new shopping experience, while China’s online commerce giant Alibaba Group will host three seminars in the show’s new Internet Retailing Theatre.

    Rex Cheuk, head of Tmall Global – Hong Kong/Macau, Alibaba Group, will host a keynote session covering such topics as online merchant recruitment and store promotion; Thomas Chan, associate director of AliCloud International Hong Kong/Macau, Alibaba Group, will talk about integration of eCommerce and mobile shopping via the cloud platform; and Alipay senior business development manager Simon Leung will present case studies and insights into mobile wallet use.

  • Hong Kong retail sales still sliding

    Hong Kong retail sales still sliding

    Hong Kong retail sales continued to shrink last month with a 5.7 per cent year-on-year decline in sales, according to the MasterCard SpendingPulse Hong Kong Report.

    The MasterCard data precedes the official government retail sales statistics which are due out tomorrow (May 31).

    While the Labour Day Golden Week did boost spending, it was not enough to reverse the fortunes of Hong Kong, which has been hit by the lack of Chinese tourists and subdued local sentiment.

    Clothing and jewellery sales continued to drop, while health and beauty as well as furniture sales had a soft recovery. The grocery sector continued to be positive, as it has been for three months, yet its growth rates cooled off significantly.

    “Continuous slowdown in spending from mainland China, along with stubborn deflation, has led to the unrelenting depressed state of Hong Kong retail since the middle of 2014,” says MasterCard Advisors senior VP for market insights, Sarah Quinlan.

    “Deflation has continued as retailers offer discounts in order to stimulate sales. We expect this contraction to continue as the macroeconomic factors that would increase consumer confidence and spur domestic spending have not yet turned positive.”

    Analyzing local retail performance and spending, the macroeconomic report uses aggregated and anonymous transaction data, along with all other payment forms including cash, to offer insight into consumer spending trends.

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  • Leica camera store opens in Shanghai

    Leica camera store opens in Shanghai

    A new Leica camera store in Shanghai has had a soft launch, with its grand opening scheduled for June 3.

    In West Nanjing Road, Leica Shanghai XinTianDi is surrounded by luxury brand boutiques.

    Leica-Store-Shanghai-XinTianDi-1-560x420

     

    It displays a full range of Leica products, including cameras as well as binoculars, and includes a gallery for exhibitions of the latest images and photographic works from Leica photographers.

    Leica-Store-Shanghai-XinTianDi-3-560x420

    The store will be open every day, from 10am until 9.30pm.

    Leica opened its first store in China at the Beijing China World Mall in 2010.

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  • Sales still falling for Japan department stores

    Sales still falling for Japan department stores

    Japan department stores saw their sales fall 3.8 per cent year-on-year last month, continuing the trend from March when sales fell back into negative territory after a short return to growth in February.

    According to the Japan Department Store Association, purchases fell in nearly all categories last month, with sundries and cosmetics reporting the best sales growth at a modest 0.7 per cent.

    Household electronics sales had the most dramatic reversal, from gains of 10.7 per cent in March to plunging 20.2 per cent last month. Furniture purchases fell 12.5 per cent.

    Overall, retail sales were down 1 per cent in March, the weakest reading since December.

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  • Indonesian retailers making sales again

    Indonesian retailers making sales again

    Following a lacklustre trading year, Indonesian retailers are starting to find their sales figures turning around.

    Electronics, automotive parts and clothes have all seen an uptick in demand, reports The Jakarta Post.

    Ramayana Lestari Sentosa, which runs department stores for low- to middle-income consumers, has targeted its sale to grow by 7 per cent this year to Rp8.3 trillion (US$640 million) after shrinking 2.7 per cent last year, when the country’s economy had its weakest growth, at 4.79 per cent, since the 2009 global financial crisis.

    The latest Bank Indonesia retail sales index (IPR) shows 11.6 per cent growth year-on-year in March to 196.7, the highest level since July last year.

    Ramayana has 114 outlets in 54 cities.

    In Bandung’s electronics centre, ITC Kebon Kelapa, west Java, mobile phone retailers are finally seeing their sales pick up after plunging by up to 50 per cent at the start of the year.

    Retailer Ronny Suryadi says his sales plunged in January and February before picking up by 20 per cent in March when new models became available, dragging down the prices of the older phones. “Both consumers who prefer new types, although pricey, and old types with lower prices gain from the momentum, and as sellers we reap more revenues.”

    The index for information and telecommunications device sales was the highest at 409.9 in March, with the fastest growth (33.9 per cent year on year). The broader non-food index improved 12.4 per cent, while the food index grew 11.1 percent.

    “As non-food recorded higher growth than food, it shows that middle- and upper-income classes buy more,” says economist Enny Sri Hartati at the think tank Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF). It’s not bad, because the segment accounts for 40 per cent of the population.”

    Other than electronic devices, auto spare parts and accessories also had positive progress with 4 per cent growth, sitting at 110.2 on the bank index.

    Meanwhile, Nielsen’s first-quarter Consumer Confidence Index survey for Indonesia shows that 82 per cent of the 500 respondents say this year is the right time to spend more. The index has risen from 115 in December to 117 at the end of the quarter.

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  • CJ CGV Opens 20th Store in Indonesia

    CJ CGV Opens 20th Store in Indonesia

    CJ CGV announced on May 30 that it opened its 20th store “CGV Blitz Slipi” in West Jakarta of Indonesia on the 26th.

    With four screens and a total of 674 seats, CGV Blitz Slipi is located in “Slipi Jaya Plaza,” a large shopping mall situated at the center of office town and residential area. In a bid to offer the optimum viewing conditions, it has introduced premium 3S – Seat, Screen and Sound – services.

    The company now has 20 cinemas with 143 screens in two years and four months after CJ CGV started consignment management for Blitz Megaplex in January 2014.

    CJ CGV plans to open a total of eight more cinemas this year, including CGV Blitz Slipi. Based on this, it aims to generate about 60 billion won (US$50.4 million) in sales this year.

    Considering the fact that it turned over nearly 34 billion won (US$28.56 million) in 19 cinemas last year, CJ CGV is planning to aggressively double its market. It will also increase the number of audiences from 7 million last year to more than 10 million this year.

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