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  • MBK plans lifestyle mall in Thailand’s Mae Sot to cash in on AEC

    MBK plans lifestyle mall in Thailand’s Mae Sot to cash in on AEC

    MBK Plc, the SET-listed operator of MBK shopping centre in Bangkok, is negotiating with local partners to co-develop a lifestyle shopping complex in Tak province to attract Myanmar shoppers.

    The 20,000-square-metre project will be used as a prototype to develop other malls in border towns to cash in on opportunities arising from the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), which is set to kick off late this year.

    Sakchai Kengkijkosol, managing director for retail operations, said MBK would start constructing the project in the border town of Mae Sot once the government had a clear policy on infrastructure development in response to the AEC.

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  • Singaporean shoppers enthusiastic about Valentine’s Day

    Singaporean shoppers enthusiastic about Valentine’s Day

    Valentine’s Day is a big deal for Indonesians (57 percent), Taiwanese (53 percent) and Singaporeans (45 percent). These three countries top a multi-market poll for being the most expectant to celebrate Valentine’s Day this year.

    In contrast, love is not in the air for Germans (18 percent) and the British (36 percent), who were least likely to celebrate the occasion.

    The Rakuten Shopping Secrets survey was conducted among consumers over seven markets with over 7,000 respondents from United States, United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, Indonesia, Singapore and Taiwan.

    The survey also revealed that the majority of Singaporeans (59 percent) do not expect to receive gifts on Valentine’s Day, but for thosecelebrating the occasion, receiving a hug/kiss (41 percent), a trip or vacation (41 percent), fashion accessories (27 percent), chocolates wine and other food or drink (26 percent) and jewellery (22 percent) ranked highest among what respondents wished to receive.

    And when it comes to choosing shopping as a break-up therapy, Singaporeans came in tops (39 percent), followed closely by their regional counterparts in Indonesia (38 percent) and Taiwan (30 percent).

    For those who hit the stores upon singlehood, fashion and accessories were the items most frequently bought post-breakup.

    More than half of Singaporeans who have gone through a bad breakup or relationship prefer to drown their sorrows by shopping online rather than offline in the one month after a breakup.

    Not feeling like going out and interacting with people (58 percent), wanting more privacy (55 percent and not wanting to let people see that they look depressed (26 percent) were the top three reasons cited.

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  • Rakuten begins year-round hiring of engineers

    Rakuten begins year-round hiring of engineers

    Rakuten Inc. recently announced that it would discontinue its new-graduate hiring quota, and will begin to hire new-graduates and mid-career engineers throughout the year.

    Since 2010, the company has been accelerating its global expansion, and by making English the official corporate language, has begun attracting talented engineers from all over the world.

    It has also expanded its autumn hiring of new graduates, building an environment that makes it easier for exchange students and students from overseas to apply.

    To hire engineers that have a diverse set of values, the company believes that limits on the language, age, or experience of applicants, as well as on the time of entry when recruiting are unnecessary.

    Thus, Rakuten decided to change to a year-round hiring system that considers applicants regardless of whether they are new graduates or mid-career.

    The company plans to expand its internship program, so that people who aspire to join the company may get a better feeling for its technological strengths and corporate culture. This year, it said the program will offer over 30 positions in the Development Unit of Rakuten for students from within Japan and overseas.

  • Alibaba wins a battle against China but a war would have a different ending

    Alibaba wins a battle against China but a war would have a different ending

    Jack Ma, 1. China, 0. That seems to be the score in the unusually public tussle between the Alibaba billionaire and Beijing. Rarely does a mainland magnate push back when the Communist Party questions its business practices and ethics, and certainly not in the glare of the global news media.

    But Ma is standing his ground, and the government has toned down its criticism of Alibaba selling fake goods on its e-commerce site.

    This is not a sign that life is generally improving for private business in China, however. Alibaba is unique. Beijing loves a homegrown success story, and there’s none better than Ma’s fabled rise from schoolteacher to Asia’s richest man.

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  • Samsung loses pole position in India smartphone market to Micromax

    Samsung loses pole position in India smartphone market to Micromax

    Indian budget smartphone maker Micromax leapfrogged South Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co Ltd to become the leading supplier in India’s booming smartphone market for the first time in the fourth quarter, research firm Canalys said.

    In a report issued on Tuesday, Canalys said Micromax, based near New Delhi, accounted for 22 percent of smartphone sales in India in the October-December quarter, ahead of Samsung’s 20 percent. In total, 21.6 million smartphones were sold in India in the period, a 90 percent surge from a year earlier.

    India, which has the world’s second highest number of mobile phone accounts after China, is the third-biggest market by number of smartphones sold. Low-priced smartphones are the top sellers in a country where many buyers are upgrading from feature phones.

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  • Vietnamese consumer confidence rises in last quarter

    Vietnamese consumer confidence rises in last quarter

    Vietnamese consumer confidence continued to see rapid improvement in the fourth quarter of 2014, according to the latest Consumer Confidence Index released by Nielsen, a global information and measurement company.

    Nielsen said Vietnam had become the ninth most optimistic country globally, with an index score of 106, an increase of four points compared to the previous quarter.

    Vaughan Ryan, managing director of Nielsen Vietnam, said over the last two quarters there was a significant increase in the confidence of consumers in Vietnam.

  • Consumer confidence climbs in Indonesia

    Consumer confidence climbs in Indonesia

    Indonesian consumers grew more optimistic about their economic prospects in January, thanks to the recent fuel price cuts, according to surveys from the central bank and a state-controlled research institute.

    Bank Indonesia’s Consumer Confidence Index, which is based on a sample of 4,600 households in 18 major cities in Indonesia, increased by 3.7 points to 120.2 point in January.

    A level of more than 100 points generally means consumers are optimistic about the country’s economy.

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  • Alibaba Group sets up HK foundation for young entrepreneurs

    Alibaba Group sets up HK foundation for young entrepreneurs

    The Alibaba Group has established a HKD1-billion (USD128.9 million) not-for-profit Alibaba Hong Kong Young Entrepreneurs Foundation to support young entrepreneurs in Hong Kong.

    The goal is to help young people start and grow businesses on marketplaces and platforms in the Alibaba ecosystem. Entrepreneurs will have access to financial capital, technical assistance and training.

    The selection and funding process will be managed by a team of professional investment managers and operating advisors who will work closely with these young entrepreneurs in their companies’ early stages.

    Profits generated from these venture investments will be returned to the foundation for re-investment.

    “We hope to create life-changing opportunities so that Hong Kong’s young people have an opportunity to build thriving businesses that will serve as a bridge between Hong Kong and mainland China,” said Jack Ma, Executive Chairman of Alibaba Group.

    In addition, the foundation will also select 200 young people each year from Hong Kong universities to intern at Alibaba Group and other businesses within the Alibaba ecosystem. This will give an opportunity to university graduates to gain first-hand experience working in mainland China.

     

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  • Tommy Hilfiger to publish memoir

    Tommy Hilfiger to publish memoir

    Tommy Hilfiger announced recently that he will publish a memoir with Ballantine Books, an imprint of which will chronicle personal stories from his early childhood and formative years, his origins in the fashion industry, and the setbacks, triumphs, and sheer determination that drove him to build a multi-billion dollar global lifestyle brand.

    Publication is scheduled for Fall 2015, coinciding with the 30th anniversary of the Tommy Hilfiger brand.

    Hilfiger, 63, is known for classic, all-American style that melds pop culture and the preppy, East Coast lifestyle. Raised in New York, he opened a small chain of clothing stores in 1969 while still in high school. He launched his namesand fashion label in 1985, and the brand quickly expanded to include womenswear, Hilfiger Denim, kidswear, accessories, fragrance, and home, among other categories.

    In the 1990s, he was one of the first designers to blend fashion and celebrity, sponsoring tours for rock legends like The Rolling Stones and featuring musicians such as Lenny Kravitz, David Bowie and Beyoncé in his iconic advertising campaigns. In 2012, the Council of Fashion Designers of America honored him with the Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award.

    “Reflecting on my experiences in the fashion industry over the last 30-plus years has been a wild ride, filled with milestone moments that have defined both my career and personal life,” said Hilfiger. “I always believe the best is yet to come, but so far: it’s been the adventure of a lifetime.”

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  • JB Hi-Fi expects flat year as first-half profit dips

    JB Hi-Fi expects flat year as first-half profit dips

    Shares in JB Hi-Fi have risen more than 3 percent after the Australian consumer electronics retailer reported a 1.9 percent fall in first-half net profit to AUD88.5 million (USD68.8m) and confirmed flat earnings for the full year.

    Chief executive Richard Murray reaffirmed guidance for full-year sales of AUD3.6 billion after the retailer posted stronger sales growth in the December quarter and a surge in sales in January.

    Murray said net profit for the 12 months ending June was expected to come in between AUD127 million and AUD131 million, compared with AUD128 million in financial 2014.

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  • Smartphones boost Indonesian ecommerce

    Smartphones boost Indonesian ecommerce

    Smartphone shipments to Indonesia will grow 20 percent during 2015 and will give a boost to the country’s ecommerce industry, according to a new forecast from research firm IDC. Some 24.8 million smartphones were shipped in 2014.

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  • China Mobile eyes 5G technology

    China Mobile eyes 5G technology

    China Mobile, China’s largest 4G mobile network operator, has begun development on the next generation of mobile internet following the success of 4G, a senior executive of the company said on Saturday.

    Xi Guohua, chairman of the board for the telecom giant, made the announcement during the 13th China Enterprise Development Forum held by the Development Research Centre of the State Council.

    The move suggested the company is trying to maintain its leading position in an increasingly heated competition among the country’s three and only telecom service providers.

  • China’s commerce regulator meets Alibaba’s Ma Yun

    China’s commerce regulator meets Alibaba’s Ma Yun

    The head of China’s commerce regulator met with Alibaba’s chairman Ma Yun on Friday to exchange opinions on joint efforts to fight fake products.

    During the meeting, Zhang Mao, minister of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC), reaffirmed Alibaba’s positive efforts in safeguarding consumer rights, purifying the business environment and promoting self-discipline.

    Meanwhile, there are currently some problems haunting online shopping platforms, Zhang said, adding that the SAIC should find new ways of supervision and set up a mechanism for communication and interaction in an effort to promote the healthy growth of internet economy.

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  • Juara Beauty aims to win over Indonesia

    Juara Beauty aims to win over Indonesia

    Though France and the United States continue to lead trends in the beauty industry, the market is opening up for luxury brands from both local and international players.

    Entrepreneur Metta Murdaya aims to be a winner. That, at least, is the basis for her range of beauty products, which the Indonesian-born, US-based entrepreneur aims to transform into market favourite in Indonesia.

    Juara Beauty, the skincare line that took the United States by storm, is coveted by celebrities such as Brooke Shields, Keri Russell and Ashley Greene, and has since 2013 been making inroads in the archipelago.

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  • Hanoi retail market retains lustre

    Hanoi retail market retains lustre

    The retail market in Hanoi is still attractive for investors, even though it has experienced business impediments during the past, a Hanoi Industry and Trade Department official said.

    Last year was continuously marked by numerous fluctuations in the modern retail market nationwide, as well as in Hanoi, which encountered many challenges in business, said Tran Phuong Lan, Director of the Department.

    Some trading centres in the city had to sell or temporarily stop their operations, including the Thai Berli Jucler Group buying Metro Vietnam, and the operations at Parkson Landmark 72 and Trang Tien Plaza being stopped for restructuring of retailers in the plaza, Lan stated.