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Category: Living

Retail News Asia is committed to providing both local and global retailers with the latest Living news throughout the Asian market. This on a daily base.

  • eOne’s ‘Peppa Pig’ Gains Momentum in China

    eOne’s ‘Peppa Pig’ Gains Momentum in China

    Entertainment One (eOne) has announced details of Peppa Pig’s rapidly growing popularity in China. Since launching on-air in Mainland China in 2015, eOne’s Peppa Pig has surpassed 5.4 billion views on its three on demand platforms, IQIY, Youku and Tudou. It is one of the most popular programs for pre-schoolers on state television broadcaster CCTV, where its repeat was the No. 1 animated show in its 7am timeslot.

    Peppa Pig also launched on VOD portals Tencent and LeEco in May 2016. To date Peppa episodes have already clocked up 1.7 billion views on Tencent and 850 million views on LeEco, making it the No. 1 animation on both platforms since its launch. In addition, Mango TV has recently acquired the rights to Peppa Pig and the VOD platform debuted the series earlier this month in Mandarin.

    Alongside its growing on-air presence, eOne is also nurturing the property’s digital profile through a range of social, online and interactive content. The brand’s official Peppa WeChat account, available on mobile devices, provides followers with regular news updates, tips, and activities for all the family. Peppa’s WeChat account launched in April 2016 and has already generated thousands of sign-ups.

    The Peppa Pig apps eOne has released to date have had tremendous download rates, making China the biggest territory for Peppa app downloads worldwide. Following their entrance on the App Store in late 2015, Peppa’s Paintbox and Peppa’s Actvitiy Maker have been hugely popular in China, with over 400,000 and 195,000 downloads respectively.

    Peppa’s online presence also extends onto e-commerce platforms as major Chinese online retailers Jing Dong and Tmall have launched a wide range of Peppa merchandise on their popular online shopping sites. Products now available to buy include Peppa’s house playset, vehicles, role-play sets, and plush.

    Toys are spearheading the brand’s licensing program in China and a newly launched Peppa Pig Ferris Wheel playset was sold exclusively at Toys “R” Us stores nationwide during the country’s Children’s Day celebrations in June 2016. The publishing category also continues to accelerate. A new series of Peppa Pig storybooks launched at retail in April 2016 and over 75k copies have been distributed nationally both online and in-store. Peppa Pig products will also have a presence in China’s first Hamleys toy store that is set to open its doors on October 10th. eOne’s Hong Kong team is developing bespoke Peppa artwork for a branded bay in the store.

    “We are thrilled to welcome our new broadcast partners for Peppa in China and we’re confident that these additional consumer touchpoints will significantly increase exposure for the brand as it continues to grow in popularity,” commented Olivier Dumont, Managing Director of eOne Family. “Building Peppa Pig’s digital footprint in the territory, through app downloads and social media channels, enables us to engage with audiences beyond the TV show and create the loyal fan base that is key to its longevity.”

     

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  • Japan Home Centre revenue increases

    Japan Home Centre revenue increases

    Japan Home Centre (Macau) posted an increase of 7.6 per cent revenue year-on-year to HK$39.3 million (MOP40.5 million/US$5.7 million) for its fiscal year ended June 30, according to the annual report released yesterday on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange by the International Houseware Retail Company Limited (IH Retail).

    The comparable store sales growth rate of the stores in Macau is 1.3 per cent, down compared to the 5.9 per cent of the previous fiscal year.

    The total revenue of IH Retail went up to HK$2.04 billion (MOP2.10 billion/US$263 million), indicating a growth of 4.5 per cent year-on-year despite the short-term fluctuation and challenges of the retail market.
    ‘The increase in revenue for the year was mainly due to the opening of new stores and growth in comparable store sales,’ the report noted.

    Eight self-managed stores in Macau are under IH Retail, with 277 stores in Hong Kong.

    IH Retail and its subsidiaries is the largest house ware retail chain in Hong Kong, Singapore and Macau. Stores can also be found in Cambodia, Indonesia, East Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and New Zealand.

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  • Philippines Mactan casino project to start in 2017: Calata

    Philippines Mactan casino project to start in 2017: Calata

    Philippine fertiliser product distributor Calata Corp says construction works for its Mactan casino resort are scheduled to start in January 2017.

    “There will be a 36-month construction schedule with six months for warranty works giving it a total of 42 months to complete. The projected date of completion would be in the middle of 2020,” the firm stated in a Friday filing to the Philippine Stock Exchange. The filing was in response to a query from the exchange on the Mactan project and the parties involved.

    The project – named Mactan Leisure City – is being developed in partnership with U.S.-based Sino-America Gaming Investment Group LLC and the latter’s subsidiary Macau Resources Group Ltd. Mactan is an islet linked by bridge to the Philippine holiday island of Cebu.

    Macau Resources Group’s registration on the OTC Markets Group exchange, based in New York, United States, was revoked last month, after the firm’s failure to make required periodic filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Calata said in its Friday filing that Macau Resources Group shareholders had “agreed to deregister” the firm from the exchange “to provide management the ability to effectively rebrand and position the company”.

    Calata added: “Once rebranded, the company will then be re-registered as Jade Leisure and Entertainment Group, on the [OTC Markets Group exchange], with a goal to list on the Nasdaq at the earliest opportunity.”

    The partnership between Calata, Sino-America Gaming and Macau Resources Group was first announced on Tuesday. The Philippine firm explained at the time that it would involve “the creation of a corporate vehicle intended for the future establishment of a real estate and investment trust (REIT)” which would be used for the Mactan project. The corporate vehicle – in which Calata will have a 51 percent stake – is to be established by next month, the firm said in Friday’s filing.

    Under the Philippines’ constitution and public land laws, only Filipinos, or entities owned at least 60 percent by Filipino citizens, are allowed to own land.

    In a story published by GGRAsia in April 2015, Sino-America Gaming managing director Michael Foxman had provided several details about the group’s plans for Mactan. At the time, Calata’s name was not mentioned.

    Mactan Leisure City has been presented by Calata as “a PHP65-billion [US$1.4-billion] integrated resort incorporating three hotels, casino and entertainment complex, commercial, retail, and conference facilities, and yacht club, situated at a 14-hectare property located on Mactan Island, Cebu”.

    The firm stated on Friday it expected to secure a casino licence for the project from the country’s gaming regulator – the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (Pagcor) – by the end of 2017.

    “The target submission of the complete application with Pagcor will be by late October 2017,” Calata stated. The firm added that the project had already received support from local authorities, civic groups and the Catholic Church.

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  • Mega Market emerges from Thai investment

    Mega Market emerges from Thai investment

    Eight months after being acquired by TCC Thailand, Metro Cash & Carry Vietnam has undergone a range of changes, including a new name – Mega Market.

    Since taking over Metro, the Thai group has accelerated agricultural projects to support Vietnamese producers. In July, TCC started exported hundreds of tonnes of Vietnamese fruits and vegetables to Thailand through Big C Thailand. It has also been seeking other suppliers for such products as avocados, sweet potatoes and oranges.

    Mega Market now has 19 wholesale centres across Vietnam, with three each in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

    As the main shareholder of Big C Thailand (97.94 per cent), TCC Group has plans to merge Mega Market with the Thai supermarket.

    TCC Thailand chairman Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi says Vietnam offers good resources for agricultural development.

    TCC Thailand paid US$704 million to acquire Metro Vietnam in January, buying Big C Thailand the following month for US$3.5 billion.

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  • Pertamina Reports Net Profit rp23,8 Trillion Six Months

    Pertamina Reports Net Profit rp23,8 Trillion Six Months

    PT Pertamina reported US$1.83 billion (Rp23.8 trillion) in net profit in the first half of the year, or an increase of 221 percent from the same period last year.

    Chief Executive of the state-owned energy company Dwi Soetjipto attributed the increase in profit to improved performance of its business units and efficiency in operation.

    “We are grateful that efficiency and increase in performance in the upstream and downstream operations have resulted in an increase in net profit to US$1.83 billion,” Dwi said.

    He said in the first half of the year, the company was still confronted with declining prices of oil in the world market.

    The condition served a big blow to oil companies in the world though the impact was less damaging on Pertamina, he said.

    The prices, however, began to pick up in the following three months, he added.

    Pertaminas Finance Director Arief Budiman said in the first half of 2016 the company recorded US$17.19 billion in income, down 21 percent from US$21.79 billion in the same period last year.

    Its operating income rose 110 percent from US$1.56 billion in the first six months of 2015 to US$3.28 billion in the same period in 2016.

    “We are strong in cash flow with balance reaching US$5 billion. Therefore, we are strong enough to carry out corporate action when necessary,” he said.

    He said the company produced 640,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day consisting of 305,000 barrels of crude oil and 1,938 mmscfd of gas.

    Investment in a number of upstream projects have been implemented such as in the 1×55 MW geothermal power project of PLTP Ulubelu 3, and 2×55 MW PLTP Lumut Balai now 45 percent completed .

    The company also continued to develop infrastructure both for gas transport and processing and marketing.

    Among gas pipe projects such as Arun-Belawan-KlM-KEK, Muara Karang-Muara Tawar, Gresik-Semarang, and Porong-Grati gas pipes have been more than 80 percent completed.

    Development of processing infrastructure is being accelerated such as Refinery Development Masterplan Program (RDMP) of Kilang Balikpapan, which is now in the final phase of “Basic Engineering Design”, and RDMP of the Cilacap refinery now in the phase of “Front End Engineering Design”.

    Meanwhile, a number of marketing infrastructure projects have been in the final phase of development such as Pulau Sambu and Tanjung Uban oil fuel terminals, procurement of oil fuel and crude oil tankers of the General Purposes (GP) and Medium Range (MR) types with delivery expected this year.

  • Indonesia outlines strategy for sports development

    Indonesia outlines strategy for sports development

    Indonesia President Joko Widodo on Wednesday stressed on the development of sports which have the potential to garner medals at international championships, including badminton, archery and weightlifting.

    “Prioritise development of games which have already shown achievements,” President Widodo said at the State Palace after congratulating the country’s medallists at the Rio Olympics, including the gold medallists in the badminton mixed doubles.

    In addition to that one gold medal, Indonesia also collected one silver medal and one bronze medal in weightlifting competitions at the Olympics, improving from the achievement at the Olympics in 2012, during which only one silver medal and one bronze medal were secured, reports Xinhua.

    Widodo added that the development “includes the improvements of facilities, infrastructure and training camps”.

    “If it is better undertaken with a long strategy, more gold medals will be able to be garnered,” he said.

    Widodo said that he had coordinated with the sports minister on how to materialise the new strategy.

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  • Napster taps Terada for next-gen music streaming products

    Napster taps Terada for next-gen music streaming products

    Napster is upgrading its analytic ecosystem to implement the Teradata Unified Data Architecture (UDA).

    The deployment includes multiple nodes of the Data Warehouse Appliance with Teradata QueryGrid for seamless data and systems integration and, in addition, a Teradata Appliance for Hadoop with Cloudera.

    Digital streaming is one of the most widely accepted methods of distributing musical content. With a catalog of over 40 million songs, Napster delivers a premium music streaming experience to more than three million paying subscribers in 34 countries across the globe.

    “This upgrade establishes Teradata’s UDA technology as the go-forward foundation for analytics to drive Napster’s next-generation music streaming products,” said Brian Ringer, CTO of Napster. “Our newest product offerings such as the Listener Network — which measures music taste overlap among like-minded music fans around the world to help them discover more music they love — demands more advanced big data tools and techniques for understanding and leveraging customer behavior.”

    Ringer said Teradata helps Napster optimize detailed customer level data — including content and application usage, and gives them the ability to more effectively analyze and predict lifetime customer value through customer behavior and usage data.

    “As we leverage big data through our UDA and new Hadoop Appliance with Cloudera, we expect to understand and serve our customers with deeper personal relevance and even greater listening enjoyment,” he said.

    Also, Napster is deploying Teradata QueryGrid, which works to connect a Teradata and Hadoop system to massive scale, with no effort, and at speeds of 10 Gbps.

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  • North Korea’s KCTV said to launch streaming service

    North Korea’s KCTV said to launch streaming service

    An unlikely new player has reportedly entered into the video streaming business, according to reports – North Korean state broadcaster KCTV.

    BBC News notes that the broadcaster’s new set-top-box, Manbang, has been called North Korea’s version of Netflix in some reports.

    Manbang is said to connect to the North Korean intranet and allow viewers to watch documentaries on demand and five TV channels.

    While KCTV claims that consumer demand for the price is high, connectivity in North Korea remains at very low levels.

    This is not the first time that North Korea, notorious for keeping a tight grip on the control of information entering into and coming out of the country, has been found been developing its own limited versions of popular internet services.

    In May, researchers found a rudimentary social network, resembling a crude version of Facebook, designed for users of North Korea’s intranet. But this was quickly pulled down after pranksters started creating spoof profiles, including one for Kim Jong-Un.

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  • US Mart opens second HCMC store

    US Mart opens second HCMC store

    Quality imported grocery retail pioneer US Mart has opened its second store in HCMC – and is ready, preparing for its third.

    After three successful years in the city, US Mart has opened a second store in District 7.

    The new store is located at 169 Nguyen Huu Canh St, in what is a residential enclave popular with Asian expats and and high-income locals. The company hopes this positioning strategy will bring growth to the chain, reflecting its success in downtown Saigon, District 1.

    Kim Ngan, US Mart director of communications, said the store is selling around 10,000 items, 70-80 per cent of which are imported directly from the US, including food and beverage products. The other 20-30 per cent are Vietnamese high-quality products, including specialties from Southern provinces.

    All US products are imported as a part of the Taste of America program, a joint effort with the US Department of Agriculture. According to Gerald H Smith, senior attache for Agricultural Affairs at the US consulate, Vietnam is the 11th largest market for US food and agricultural products. Statistics showed the trade in food and agricultural products reached US$5.9 billion last year.

    US Mart was founded in 2013 by businessman Nguyen Manh Tien, who recognised local customers’ need of imported goods after returning from studying in the US. Despite the high competition in Vietnam retail market, US Mart has successfully built its customer base thanks to high quality goods, food sanity, frequent promotions, and a five-day goods return policy.

    After D7 store, US Mart will open its third store in Tan Binh district this Sunday.

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  • Ikea Group China launching eCommerce trial

    Swedish home furnishings retailer Ikea Group China will launch into eCommerce in Shanghai and start selling its products online within the next couple of weeks.

    As it is a pilot program, delivery services will be limited to Shanghai initially. All its ready-to-assemble furniture, appliances and home accessories, except for food and green plants, will be available.

    If the trial is successful, Ikea plans to roll out its eCommerce services across China as part of its multi-channel retailing strategy. It does not have any stores in China’s third- and fourth-tier cities, but in May Ikea established a pickup and order point in Wenzhou, Zhejiang province. The stores in nearby Ningbo will provide goods for that service.

    In its latest financial year, Ikea China had sales revenues of 11.7 billion yuan (US$1.76 billion), jumping 19.4 per cent year-on-year. About 83 million customers visited its stores, up 20 per cent from the previous year. Ikea’s websites also had more than 67 million individual visits, a 25 per cent increase.

    Ikea opened three new stores in China this year, in Chengdu and Suzhou in Jiangsu province, and Foshan in Guangdong province. It says it will keep to its plan of opening three new stores in China every year.

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  • Sennheiser Singapore store an Asian first

    Sennheiser Singapore store an Asian first

    Headphone brand Sennheiser Singapore has opened its first store, at Marina Square.

    After its home country Germany, the store is only its second fully owned outlet, but it is the only one to offer a one-week free trial service.

    sennMS-10 (1)

    Customers can take home the HD650, HD800S and Momentum Wireless models to trial for a week. The company says this will allow customers to experience product features to help them decide which model to buy.

    Sennheiser also offers a pick-up and drop-off  point for customers who want to have their products checked and/or repaired. This saves them having to go to the company’s service center at Alexandra Technopark.

    Compared to the previous outlet run by a distributor, the new Sennheiser brand store offers a wider range of products. As well as headphones there are microphones – models mainly used by musicians and video journalists – as well as enterprise audio products.

    “Singapore is a key market for us, and this is an integral part of our regional go-to-market strategy,” says Sennheiser Asia sales and marketing VP Martin Low.

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  • Wonderful Indonesia promoted in Qatar

    Wonderful Indonesia promoted in Qatar

    The Indonesian Embassy in Doha, Qatar, has promoted the countrys tourism brand “Wonderful Indonesia” by introducing its culinary richness to mark the 40th anniversary of the two countries diplomatic ties.

    The event to promote Indonesias traditional snacks featuring the culinary richness of different ethnic groups was attended by representatives of the diplomatic corps in Doha, the embassys spokesperson Boy Dharmawan informed ANTARA News here Friday.

    Several snacks served to the guests were Ketan Srikaya, sweet custard with sticky rice; gethuk cake, traditional snack made from cassava; onde-onde, glutinous rice flour balls; wajik sticky rice; jalangkote, fried pie filled with chicken; Lemper, steamed sticky rice cake with beef or chicken; and apem, rice flour cakes, he remarked.

    “The cakes served are delicious,” Thai Ambassadors wife Benj Chaiyindeepum said when asked to comment on the taste of the served snacks.

    Benj was one of the 16 spouses of ambassadors of different countries in Qatars capital city who attended the event, he added.

  • President to open Lake Toba Charm Carnival

    President to open Lake Toba Charm Carnival

    President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) is scheduled to open Lake Toba Charm Independence Carnival in Balige, North Sumatra, on Sunday as part of the efforts to promote tourist destinations in the region.

    “The carnival will be conducted in such a way that it will reflect the cheer and joy of the people. It will also serve as a means to promote Lake Toba,” chief of the events organizing committee Premita Fifi said here Saturday.

    The carnival will be held on August 20 and 21. First Lady Iriana Joko Widodo and a number of ministers, ambassadors, actors and actresses will attend the event.

    Shortly after opening the carnival in Balige on Sunday, President Joko Widodo is scheduled to walk three and a half kilometers along the road on the side of the lake to Parapat.

    The carnival will feature not only Batak arts and culture from North Sumatra but also those from the rest of the country.

    “Hundreds of decorated cars will travel from Balige to Parapat. Likewise, scores of decorated boats will accompany them on Lake Toba,” she said.

    The carnival is part of efforts to promote Parapat and Lake Toba as national and international tourist destinations, Premita said.

    “Admittedly, Lake Toba Charm as a world tourist destination has begun to become overcast. This event is expected to attract more domestic and foreign tourists in the future,” she said.

    Lake Toba is among 10 domestic tourist destinations which are quite popular, particularly in Sumatra, she said.

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  • Tourism provides largest number of jobs

    Tourism provides largest number of jobs

    President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has said that the tourism industry is the number one provider of jobs.

    “Tourism has employed the largest number of manpower, but indeed it needs a change of the communitys culture,” President Jokowi said before prominent community figures living in Lake Toba area, here, Saturday evening.

    A change is needed because basically the community should be able to serve tourists coming to their region.

    “I hope prominent community, religious, and custom figures could give guidance to the community,” the Head of State said.

    Lake Toba which has been known internationally, has huge tourism potential.

    “However, over the past several years, its image and branding as a tourist area has dropped. Therefore, we work on Lake Toba first, among 10 destinations designated by a presidential decree,” he said.

    Lake Toba area is being promoted as an eco-tourism destination and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) tourism to be developed on 600 ha plot of land in the authority zone.

    The local culture and traditions will be strengthened and promoted as tourist attractions.

    To support the development of Lake Toba as a main tourist destination, the capacity of Silangit Airport will be expanded.

    “I have ordered the transportation minister and Angkasa Pura (state airport operator) to widen and lengthen the runway. I have asked for demolition of its terminal within a week, and the new one should be ready in the end of this year,” he said.

    The president also asked Garuda Indonesia to fly to Silangit Airport thrice a week, whether it is empty or full.

    “We will be grateful if it is full of passengers, so the flights could be served daily, not only by Garuda but also others such as Sriwijaya and Wing Air,” he noted.

    Initially, Silangit Airports capacity would be expanded to 150 thousand passengers, but now it would be increased further to 180 thousand passengers per year.

    The government will also create a world-class flower park to support the Lake Toba tourism.

    Jokowi also urged villagers living around Lake Toba area to plant trees for the preservation of the environment.

    “I just planted trees. The target is 300 thousand trees per district, or one million per year for all districts. We dont want the water of Lake Toba to decrease due to environmental degradation,” he said.

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  • Bali`s exports of furniture up 41%

    Bali`s exports of furniture up 41%

    Balis exports of furniture rose 41 percent in value to US$4.88 million in June from US$3.47 million in May.

    Year-on-year, the furniture export earning also rose sharply in June up 36.17 percent from US$3.59 million,” the Bali office of the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) said.

    Head of the BPS office Adi Nugroho said furniture contributed 10.18 percent to the total export earning of US$48 million recorded by Bali in June.

    “Bali export earning rose 15.34 percent from US$41.66 million in the previous month,” Adi said here.

    The furniture including chairs, beds, cupboards, tables, and room partitions are generally made up of bamboo with rattan decorations, he said.

    The sets of furniture were exported to the United States, France, Germany, the Netherlands , Japan and Australia.

    Statues made of bamboo roots from the regencies of Bangli and Gianyar are also gaining market abroad, Adi said.

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