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.

  • Jakarta’s airport train to be operational in 2017

    Jakarta’s airport train to be operational in 2017

    Development of rail track between Jakarta’s Manggarai railway station and Soekarno Hatta airport is expected to be completed in 2017.

    “We already coordinated with PT Railink. It is to be completed in February 2017,” President director of the state owned airport operator PT Angkasa Pura II Budi Karya Sumadi said here on Wednesday.

    PT Railink is a joint venture between PT Angkasa Pura II and state owned railway company, PT Kereta Api Indonesia.

    PT Railink to revamp old track and build new track totaling 38.3 kilometers between the Manggarai railway station in Jakarta and the airport and operate the train.

    Budi said the train would take 54 minutes between Manggarai and Soekarno Hatta airport and there would be departure of train every 15 minutes.

    Everyday there would be 61 trips with a carrying capacity of 35,000 passangers.

  • Direct flights between Indonesia, India likely this year

    Direct flights between Indonesia, India likely this year

    Direct flights between India and Indonesia are likely to begin this year to facilitate tourism, Indonesian ambassador Rizali W. Indrakesuma said on Wednesday.”The Indian government has already given permission; it is a matter of how Indonesia responds. We are hoping that direct flights between the two countries begin by this year or by next year at the latest,” said Indrakesuma said.The first flights both governments plan to launch initially are between Delhi and Jakarta and Mumbai and Bali. Garuda Indonesia and Air India will operate flights between the two countries.

    The ambassador said a deal on the matter could be finalised in March when the transport minister of Indonesia will participate in an event organised by the civil aviation ministry in India.”This is an opportunity for our minister to engage with the Indian civil aviation minister (Ashok Gajapathi Raju Pusapati) at an event organised in Hyderabad in March,” the ambassador said.”The consulate general of Indonesia in Mumbai will push the ministry of tourism to open direct flights for the first time between Delhi and Jakarta and Mumbai and Bali.

    Last year, 262,000 tourists from India visited Indonesia; we expect the figure to go up to 350,000 this year. First it’ll be a government-to-government engagement and later we can engage private airlines,” said Taufik Nurhidayat, deputy director, ministry of tourism, Republic of Indonesia.Indonesia attracts the highest number of tourists from Singapore, followed by Malaysia, Australia, China, Japan, Korea and India.

  • Garuda to launch non-stop Heathrow-Jakarta service

    Garuda to launch non-stop Heathrow-Jakarta service

    Garuda Indonesia has confirmed it’s leaving Gatwick to launch a direct service to Jakarta from Heathrow.

    From March 31, the airline will use its fleet of B777-300ERs to operate a five-times weekly service to the Indonesian capital, an increase from the three-times weekly service it operates from Gatwick.

    Flights to Jakarta will also no-longer stop at Amsterdam, creating the UK’s first non-stop flight to Indonesia.

    Heathrow CEO John Holland-Kaye said the deal shows how important Heathrow is to British business.

    “As the UK’s only hub, Heathrow is able to support regular direct flights to 75 long haul destinations not served by any other UK airport,” said Holland-Kaye.

    “With expansion, we can bring the world to Britain’s doorstep by adding up to 40 more long haul routes to high growth markets and more than doubling the number of UK cities served.”

    Jubi Prasetyo, general manager UK & Ireland said: “Making the move to Heathrow Airport has been an ambition of ours since joining Sky Team in March 2014.

    “Heathrow’s pivotal role in servicing the alliance’s 1,052 destinations makes it an ideal departure airport for our passengers. Flying non-stop direct to Jakarta means we will truly be the most efficient way to reach Indonesia from the UK.”

  • South Korea to Promote Indonesian SME

    South Korea to Promote Indonesian SME

    Agus Mahram, secretary of the Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises Minister, said that the his institution has set a cooperation with the Busan-Indonesia Center (BIC) in South Korea to promote Indonesian small and medium enterprises (SME).

    “100 Indonesian SMEs will partner with South Korean’s,” Agus said in Jakarta on Thursday, January 28, 2016.

    Agus said that Busan has prepared a place for Indonesian SMEs to display their products in South Korea while the BIC will prepare marketing personnel to promote Indonesian products.

    “SMEs to be selected are those operating in the manufacturing sector, such as metal, mechanical, information technology components, software and food,” Agus explained. Agus revealed that the South Korean government realized the importance of the Cooperative and Small and Medium Enterprises Ministry to develop local businesses. The Cooperation, Agus added, was aimed at boosting South Korean investments in Indonesia.

    In addition to boost investments, Agus said that the ministry would also promote technology transfer between South Korea and Indonesia. Similar cooperation had been established between the Indonesian government and the Korean Trade Investment Promotion Agency.

    “The cooperation was aimed to develop regional signature products by crafting a program called the ‘One Village One Product’ through cooperatives,” Agus added.

    Agus also encouraged local products to be displayed at Smesco building in Jakarta. He had prepared spots for local products to increase their competitiveness at the national and international levels.

    “South Korea can buy products at Smesco to be promoted in the country,” he said.

  • China retail consumption to jump 50%

    China retail consumption to jump 50%

    China’s total retail consumption will jump 50 per cent to $6.5 trillion by 2020, with online transactions accounting for half of that growth, according to new research.

    Seventy per cent of those e-tail purchases will be conducted via mobile devices. Over that same five-year period, cross-border eCommerce will have grown so high – to $152.1 billion – that it will represent one-third of the country’s total foreign trade.

    So say think tanks and research firms watching the world’s second-largest economy as it transitions from its former manufacturing base to one driven by consumption. The predictions were issued by Alibaba Research Institute, the research arm of Chinese eCommerce giant Alibaba Group, as part of its inaugural “Think Tank Summit on the New Economy” held last weekend in Beijing.

    The new annual event brought together over 600 thought leaders to look at ahead at the next five years in Chinese commerce. A panel of judges surveyed research from the 40 participating organisations and picked “10 Forecasts for the New Economy,” which focused not only on the importance of eCommerce but also the impact the internet will have China’s manufacturing, logistics, rural economy and society.

    The use of data, culled from billions of transactions as Chinese consumers buy and sell goods and services online, will also play a key role.

    “China today is in the midst of transforming from an industrial-driven economy to a data-driven economy,” Gao Hongbing, dean of AliResearch and vice president of Alibaba Group, said in a statement.

    “These 10 forecasts are a small part of our observation and thinking, and we hope they can play a part in stimulating further deliberation on the society’s future development.”

    Bain & Company predicted that China’s online retail market would reach $1.52 trillion, accounting for 22 per cent of the country’s retail industry, with maternity and baby products being the strongest category and third-and fourth-tier cities driving a significant part of the growth. The Boston-based management consultancy also said that mobile Internet would make up 70 per cent of all online sales.

    Bain put the total figure for cross-border eCommerce in China at $152 billion, with AliResearch in a separate prediction saying it expects cross-border eCommerce to make up one-third of China’s foreign trade in five years. The China Center for International Economic Exchanges said “e-international trade” will change how trade overall is done and that it will account for account for 30 per cent to 40 per cent of total world trade by 2025.

    Boston Consulting Group estimated that China’s consumer market will climb $2.3 trillion, or 50 per cent, to $6.5 trillion by the close of the decade. Online will account for 42 per cent of that growth, the management consultancy said.

    The internet would also penetrate all rural areas of China, according to Zhejiang University’s China Academy for Rural Development. As a result, the Information Research Department of the State Information Center of China said the sharing economy will rise to full prominence given this full penetration of broadband coverage in China. The Institute of Information Society Studies said China would have a “soft law” system providing a framework for Internet governance by 2020 as well.

    The other predictions included one from the Information Society 50 Forum & Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Peking University, which said that data will digitise how consumers are assessed, say, in providing individual recommendations. The Information Society also noted that the vast reams of data collected as consumers buy and sell goods online will as a result erode some of their privacy.

    ZenCoo, meanwhile, predicted that social measurement and cognitive experiments will replace statistical sampling, revolutionising the fundamental theories of many disciplines including psychology, sociology, economics, and communications.

    And finally, according to the Data Center of China Internet, the 3D printing market will reach $15.2 billion, with households using them the most.

  • Indonesian Steel Breaks through Malaysian Market

    Indonesian Steel Breaks through Malaysian Market

    Indonesian hot rolled coils (HRC), which is a type of steel product, can now enter the Malaysian market. The coils managed to tap Malaysia’s market following their government’s decision to stop the investigation on safeguards after assessing that Indonesian steel will not jeopardize the sales of Malaysia’s local products.

    Karyanto Suprih, acting director general of foreign trade at the Trade Ministry, said that the Malaysian Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI)—the authority that handles the safeguard investigation—has completed its studies.

    “They did not find indications for possible losses or threats of loss resulting from importing products,”Karyanto said in Jakarta on Tuesday, January 26.

    According to Karyanto, the decision was announced in the Notice of Negative Preliminary Determination on January 6.

    The safeguard investigation over Indonesian HRC began on September 7, 2015 at the request of one of Malaysia’s largest steel producers, Megasteel Sdn. Bhd.

    The investigation was based on allegations of domestic industry losses due to an imports surge of HRC products.

    Karyanto hopes that the termination of the safeguard investigation can help expand Indonesia’s export share for HRC product to Malaysia. In 2014, Indonesian HRC had a 6.1-percent share of Malaysia’s total imports.

  • Indonesia makes strides in fight against corruption

    Indonesia makes strides in fight against corruption

    A researcher for Transparency International Indonesia (TII) elaborates on findings in the Corruption Perception Index 2015 on Monday. Indonesia ranked 88th out of 168 countries, a better position than a year earlier when it ranked 107.(JP/Wendra Ajistyatama)

    Indonesia has shown improvement in the 2015 global Corruption Perception Index (CPI) survey, released by Berlin-based Transparency International (TI) on Wednesday, appearing in 88th position out of 168 countries surveyed and scoring 36 points compared to 34 in 2014.

    The survey, which measures private sector perceptions of public services, recognizes a score of 0 as highly corrupt and 100 as very clean. The agency released results from the survey in 174 countries on Wednesday.

    Although Indonesia only scored two points higher than last year, the feat helped the country to move up 19 notches in the 2015 CPI from 107th position in 2014.

    TI Indonesia’s program director Ilham Saenong said President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s extensive efforts to conduct reforms in state institutions had contributed greatly to Indonesia’s good performance in the 2015 CPI.

    “There has been a sense of confidence measured by the survey in the field of public services, for example in driving licenses and passport-making processes,” Saenong told a press briefing on Wednesday.

    The survey revealed that in 2015 Indonesia performed better than neighboring Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines, which saw their CPI scores and ranks drop compared to last year.

    In the study, Indonesia was the only Asia-Pacific country that saw its score and rank increase.

    In 2012, the country ranked 118th with 32 points, while in 2013 it achieved the same score but appeared in a higher position at 114. In addition, 2014 saw Indonesia score two points higher at 32 and appear in 107th position.

    With a current score of 34, Indonesia only needs six and nine points to achieve the ASEAN regional average score of 40 and the Asia-Pacific average score of 43.

    “We need to work harder in the future because our current score is still far from G20 countries’ CPI average of 54,” TI Indonesia secretary-general Dadang Tri Sasongko said.

    Dadang said that in previous surveys Indonesia’s CPI score had fluctuated as the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) was engaged in a standoff with the National Police, but its dustup with the police did not prevent the country from achieving a higher CPI score.

    “Jokowi’s image as a businessman and his good track record very much give hope for business sector actors, in addition to the already good management of the current state of affairs in public services,” he said.

    Dadang added that Indonesia could achieve a higher score if it managed to crack down on corrupt practices involving law enforcement agencies and political corruption.

    “Despite the business community’s confidence in public services now, they also want to see good progress in law enforcement and politics because what they want is legal certainty should they be involved in legal matters in the future,” Dadang said.

    KPK gratuity director Giri Suprapdiono said Indonesia could have earned a better CPI score in 2015 if former KPK commissioners Abraham Samad and Bambang Widjojanto as well as KPK investigator Novel Baswedan had not faced police prosecution.

    He added that politics had also hindered the fight against graft.

    “I can say that we are already on the right track but we still need to work harder and harder. Because it is difficult to see this country free from graft because our politics costs a lot of money,” Giri said.

    In the survey, Denmark came in first position with 92 points, followed by New Zealand with 91, Finland with 90, Sweden with 89, Switzerland with 86 and the Netherlands with 87.

    At the bottom of the list were war-torn Somalia and isolated North Korea with eight points each as well as Afghanistan with 11 points.

  • Al Futtaim in joint venture to launch Robinsons

    Al Futtaim in joint venture to launch Robinsons

    Ties up with Chalhoub Group to bring in the Singapore-based fashion department store

    Dubai: Two UAE based retail groups have come together to launch the first Robinsons fashion department store in the region. The first of the Singapore-based brand will open in the Spring of 2017 at the Dubai Festival City Mall, currently in a major expansion mode. The store will spread over 18,000 square metres across three levels.

    “Al-Futtaim has already been operating four Robinsons department stores in Singapore and Malaysia,” said Paul Delaoutre, President — Retail, Al-Futtaim. “Through our partnership with the Chalhoub Group we will bring this unique format department store to the Middle East expanding the brand’s footprint and strengthening its international appeal.”

    It was in 2008 that Al-Futtaim acquired the Robinsons Group, regarded as Singapore’s legacy retailer having been in existence now for 150 years. The Group currently operates three Robinsons stores in Singapore and one in Malaysia.

    According to Patrick Chalhoub, Chief Executive of Chalhoub Group, “We are excited about this partnership as we will be combining Al Futtaim’s vast experience of operating over 200 companies with our intimate knowledge of the Middle East luxury market, to deliver the most relevant offer of the department store adapted to the Middle East customer.”

  • Brookstone Opens First Overseas Stores in China

    Brookstone Opens First Overseas Stores in China

    First Step Includes One Walk-In Retail and Three Store-in-Store Location. The company’s strategy is “to bring premium American lifestyle products to shoppers in China while providing China-based makers access to American and international retail markets.” (Image: sargarch.com)

    • Brookstone’s new retail store is located in one of China’s largest retail shopping centers in Nanjing.
    • Brookstone, founded in Massachusetts in 1965, was acquired in 2014 by the China-based Sanpower Group.
    • Brookstone’s goal in China is to offer shoppers “Easy Surprises…premium, unique and innovative products.”

    Innovative product developer and specialty retailer Brookstone has taken its first step into the global arena with the opening of one walk-in retail and three store-in-store locations in China.

    The retail store is located in one of China’s largest retail shopping centers in Nanjing with the three store-in-stores in Funtalk Telecommunication’s stores in Beijing and Shanghai.

    Brookstone company strategy will generate more shipments of export cargo and import cargo in international trade.

    “We’re thrilled with how enthusiastically customers are embracing their first Brookstone China store experience,” said Brookstone CEO Tom Via. “They love being able to try out our massagers, wear the Cat Ear Headphones and see the drones in action.”

    Brookstone, founded in Massachusetts in 1965, was acquired in 2014 by the China-based Sanpower Group, a multi-national conglomerate, and “is fulfilling its corporate mission to bring premium American lifestyle products to shoppers in China while providing China-based makers access to American and international retail markets,” the company said in a statement.

    Known in the U.S. for its memory foam pillows, sleep sound machines, massagers and checkpoint-friendly luggage, the company’s goal in China is to offer shoppers “Easy Surprises…premium, unique and innovative products” and position it “as a destination for people to find surprising innovations that make life easier,” said Brookstone China CEO Xin Kexia.

    In time, Brookstone China “will adopt a sales model that features a hands-on interactive shopping experience with stores transitioning from being simply sales channels to platforms for hands-on and interactive experiences,” the company said.

    “Store associates will be not so much salespersons as friendly guides that let customers experience products on their own. Associates will show the customers how to operate the wildly successful Brookstone cat ear headphones, massagers, and sleep machines,” it said.

    According to the Sanpower Group, plans call for Brookstone to open independent shops in airports and high-speed railway stations, and continue to launch store-in-stores in its offline retail brands, including Hisap and Smart Funtalk Telecommunications, “so as to synergize with the business resources of the Group.”

  • Hong Kong airport launches Chinese New Year promotions

    Hong Kong airport launches Chinese New Year promotions

    Hong Kong International airport (HKIA) is to offer various promotions including cash redemptions of up to HK$5,000 ($640)  in celebration of the upcoming Chinese New Year.

    From February 4 to February 15, travellers spending over HK$2,000, HK$5,000, HK$10,000 and HK$50,000 by electronic payment can redeem HKIA cash-coupons of HK$100, HK$300, HK$700 and HK$5,000 respectively. During the campaign period, designated retailers at HKIA will also offer free red packet redemption on a first-come-first-served basis.

    HKIA’s mascot will dress in the Year of the Monkey costume at T1 and distribute specially designed Fai Chuns for free.

    In departures east hall level six, travellers will find a grand display box with a selection of Chinese New Year products and an interactive-game booth. Passengers with boarding passes and any purchase receipt from HKIA can participate in the game. Among the 12,000 prizes are suitcases, massagers and necklaces, along with HKIA cash-coupons and HKIA red packets.

    Travellers spending over HK$1,000 in a single transaction at HKIA can enjoy free local delivery service. Free delivery service to Mainland China, Macao and Taiwan is also offered to travellers spending over HK$2,500 on clothing bags and accessories in a single transaction.

    Those interested in Chinese New Year traditions will also be treated to various music performances during the festive period including the lion dance.

  • Philippine growth short of target at 5.8 percent in 2015

    Philippine growth short of target at 5.8 percent in 2015

    The government initially forecast growth of 7-8 percent for 2015 but later lowered its projection to 6-6.5 percent.

    “Though this is lower than what we targeted for the year, this growth is respectable given the difficult external environment,” Economic Planning Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said Thursday.

    The Philippines has been one of the fastest growing economies in Asia for several years. Despite increased government efforts to raise living standards, the country of more than 100 million still faces considerable challenges including its vulnerability to typhoons and other natural disasters, poverty, corruption and poor infrastructure.

    The economy expanded 6.3 percent in the last quarter of the year, the fastest for 2015. It was up from 6.1 percent the previous quarter but down from 6.6 percent in the same period of 2014.

    Balisacan said growth has averaged 6.2 percent in the past six years, which is the best performance since the late 1970s. The growth has not been due to unsustainable borrowings like in the 1970s and short-lived portfolio capital but fueled by investments that create jobs and increase incomes, he said.

    He said last year’s growth was driven by much stronger domestic demand and government spending that grew 9.4 percent compared to the previous year’s 1.7 percent. Growth in public and private investments more than doubled, primarily led by public construction.

    Service industries were also robust, growing 6.7 percent in 2015 from 5.9 percent in 2014. Industry expanded 6.0 percent while agriculture grew a tepid 0.2 percent.

    Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima said the Philippines was well-positioned to withstand turbulence in financial markets caused by uncertainty about the strength of the global economy.

    He said foreign exchange reserves are more than healthy at $80.6 billion as of the end of last year, enough to cover 10.3 months of imports and equivalent to more than six times the country’s external short-term funding requirements.

  • UC browser grabs over 50 percent market share in Indonesia

    UC browser grabs over 50 percent market share in Indonesia

    Coinciding with its consistent rise in overseas markets, UCWebInc, the global leading provider of mobile Internet software and services and maker behind UC Browser, has hit a new milestone in Indonesia.

    The browser has clocked in 55.27 percent monthly page-view market share as of 2015 year-end, as per StatCounter. The announcement comes on the heels of another feat, where UC Browser became the world’s second most popular mobile browser with 18.6 percent monthly page-view market share in December 2015. UC Browser is already the undisputed leader in the Indian market with over 55 percent market share, according to StatCounter.

    Looking ahead, Kenny Ye, Director of UCWeb International Business, said: “We’re going to sustain our development by enlarging our network of local partners besides keeping innovating our product. All those learnings from partnerships with e-tailers, content providers, etc. last year have made us remain steadfast in increasing our commitment to the local community.”

    As of today, one of every two mobile pages viewed in Indonesia is processed by UC Browser, and it has become the crucial artery in the country’s mobile traffic. The achievement comes about half year after UC Browser secured first place in the local industry.

    Looking back at Indonesia’s mobile browser market in 2015, StatCounter shows that only UC Browser continued a growth trajectory to climb 3 percentage points per month on an average throughout the year. The browser closed out the year 2015 by doubling its market share compared with its share in early 2015 when it took the championship.

    UCWeb Inc. (UCWeb) is a business within Alibaba Group’s mobile business division and a leading provider of mobile internet software and services. Since its inception in 2004, UCWeb’s mission has been to provide better mobile internet experience to people around the world.

  • Gunnebo looks to expand above inflation

    Gunnebo looks to expand above inflation

    Sweden-based security service provider Gunnebo Security Group is looking to see its Indonesian business grow by better than inflation, especially with support from infrastructure projects and its newly installed cash-management facility, the company’s regional executive says.

    Senior vice president for Gunnebo’s Asia-Pacific region, Sacha de La Noe, said on Tuesday that his company would keep its investment focus on cash-management products, one of the group’s backbone businesses, while at the same time he expected growth from other lines, such as from its fire-system services.

    De La Noe said the presence of a local production facility in the country was also expected to have a significant impact on regional sales, with about 70 percent of the local production being shipped to other countries, he added.

    “With more cash to handle in society, we need to find more effective ways to manage that cash. In Indonesia, I see a high number of notes in circulation, and retailers are looking for better ways to handle the cash and that will increase,” he said.

    The group announced in a press statement dated Jan. 15 that it would optimize its cash management manufacturing footprint by transferring production from its Trier plant in Germany to manufacturing units in Binefar, Spain and in Indonesia, to improve customer service levels and manufacturing efficiency. The Trier plant has turnover of around 9 million.

    Indonesia is the second-largest market for Gunnebo in Asia Pacific, with the largest being India. Indonesia contributes around 20 percent to regional sales.

    Gunnebo Indonesia country manager Hindra C. Kurniawan said his company’s revenue normally grew by around 10 percent annually. He added that his company expected that local cash-handling facilities would be its backbone in five years.

    Among its attempts to boost its cash-handling business in Indonesia, Gunnebo has cooperated with taxi operator Express Transindo Utama (Express Group) since 2014 to provide cash-handling equipment in taxi pools in the greater Jakarta area.

    Besides focusing on the cash-handling business, Gunnebo is also looking to see growth in other businesses, such as fire systems, which will be supported by a number of infrastructure projects in the country.

    Among the company’s key projects is providing a fire system for a major power plant in Cirebon, West Java, and with the government’s massive 35-gigawatt power-generation expansion, De La Noe said the group expected an increase in future demand.

    He also said that his company would work with state-run airport operator Angkasa Pura to provide security services in 32 airports that were being built and expanded across the nation. He said that a discussion with the airport operator was scheduled in March.

    The company is also involved in Jakarta’s Mass Rapid Transport (MRT) project, providing, among other facilities, entrance security and ticketing, with De La Noe stating that the MRT’s security system was among the group’s key businesses.

    According to a previous report, Gunnebo produces 30,000 safety deposit boxes annually; 60,000 fire extinguishers and 5,000 to 10,000 cash-handling machines at its factory in Cibitung, West Java.

    Gunnebo had annual turnover of around 610 million in 2014. It has 32 sales companies worldwide, 11 factories across the globe and around 100 additional networks. Its businesses include cash management, safes and vaults, entrance security, electronic security and specifically in Indonesia, fire security.

  • Chin Teck Q1 earnings halved on losses in Indonesia

    Chin Teck Q1 earnings halved on losses in Indonesia

    Chin Teck Plantations Bhd earnings fell 43.5% to RM5.98mil in the first quarter ended Nov 30, 2015 from RM10.61mil a year ago, partly because its associates sustained losses in their Indonesian oil palm plantations.

    It said on Thursday its revenue was slightly higher at RM27.81mil from RM27.72mil a year ago due to slightly higher prices for the fresh fruit bunches (FFB).

    However, the average selling price of crude palm oil (CPO) was lower despite higher prices for the FFB. It also said that a year ago, there was a gain from the sale of investment.

    Also overall operating expenses were higher due to the increase in replanting expenses.

    Its oil palm plantations in Lampung Province, Indonesia had to suspend harvesting due to unrest in the nearby villages.

    “The plantations have commence harvesting. At end-November, the total harvested area was about 13% of the total area planted,” it said.

    Earnings per share were 6.55 sen versus 11.61 sen. It declared an interim dividend of eight sen, which was similar to a year ago.

  • Singapore supermarket lost $120000 on trolleys

    Singapore supermarket lost $120000 on trolleys

    The third largest chain of supermarkets in Singapore Sheng Siong loses 90 metal trolleys and 180 plastic ones over its outlets each month.  That interprets into a stunning $120,000 loss on just trolleys. Furthermore, this supermarket chain is not the only one. In the previous two years, NTUC FairPrice lost around 1,000 trolleys every year over more than 90 stores they operate in.

    The grocery store chain said it spends around $150,000 every year on repairing, supplanting and recovering abandoned trolleys. Sheng Siong said a few clients do return the trolleys, however not promptly, after use.  Be that as it may, in 2012, NTUC FairPrice lost just around 800 trolleys crosswise over more than 80 stores, proposing an ascent in the quantity of unreturned trolleys when contrasted to 2014 and 2015.

    For the supermarkets, store workers recover the trolleys from adjacent housing estates, asphalts and taxi stands now and then. Clients are required to store a one-dollar coin into the metal trolley when they acquire one from Sheng Siong general store, yet plastic ones don’t require any store. Similarly, NTUC FairPrice grocery stores’ trolleys require a deposite of either a one-dollar coin from the old coin series or a 50-penny coin from the new coin series. In spite of the series of un returned trolleys, Sheng Siong has not yet made any police reports in this regard.