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Tag: asia

  • AirAsia Returns to Europe, Slashes Fares

    AirAsia Returns to Europe, Slashes Fares

    AirAsia, the Malaysian low-cost airline, is returning to Europe this summer when it will add London and Frankfurt to its destinations.

    The airline’s chief executive, Tony Fernandes, told German news agency DPA at the World Economic Forum in Davos that he planned to launch two new routes, from Kuala Lumpur to London and Bangkok to Frankfurt.

    Tickets to Frankfurt will cost less than €200 ($214). “Honestly, I would like to offer them for even less. Because of the low oil prices, we could afford about €150,” Mr. Fernandes said. He’s keen to attract Europeans who want to go on holiday in Southeast Asia as well as Asians wanting to explore Europe: “We see this as a mutual market,” he said.

    AirAsia is based near Kuala Lumpur and offered connections to London and Paris in the past but abandoned these in 2012 because planes were too small and energy prices too high.

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  • Power tariff likely to keep unchanged this year

    Power tariff likely to keep unchanged this year

    The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) has not yet decided to adjust power tariffs this year and has been calculating basic prices, the ministry yesterday announced at an electricity production cost conference in Hà Nội.

    The ministry said that EVN is required to build a basic price for the year of 2017 based on calculation of 2015 and estimates of 2016.

    Concerning those numbers, Electricity of Việt Nam’s (EVN) 2015 power turnover reached more than VNĐ234.3 trillion (US$10.32 billion) or equivalent to electricity retail price of VNĐ1,630 per kWh.

    Turnover from activities relating to power production and trading in 2015 was VNĐ2.5 trillion.

    According to Deloitte Việt Nam’s independent audit report, the losses which have not been calculated into EVN’s electricity production and trading in 2015 were up to VNĐ8.5 trillion. The losses came from the foreign exchange rate differences throughout the group’s wholly invested companies. Its foreign exchange rate difference at companies which EVN holding shares was over VNĐ1.3 trillion.

    EVN in 2015 therefore posted a slight loss in power production and continued to sell electricity lower than the production cost.

    Nguyễn Anh Tuấn, director of the ministry’s Electricity Regulatory Authority, said that in 2015 the prices of main fuels including coal, oil and gas affected the electricity production. The Ministry of Science and Technology in the same year promulgated a decision to increase gas prices sold to electricity production by 2 per cent while keeping coal prices stable.

    “The important factor in 2015 was that hydropower plants did not reach the set productivity due to unfavourable hydrological conditions. The power output from hydropower plants was reduced and EVN had to mobilise electricity from coal-fired and gas-power plants. This affected to production costs,” Tuấn added.

    He added that according to current regulations, construction costs of villas and tennis courts have not been calculated into power production cost. The construction has come from the EVN’s welfare fund, of which, turnover from EVN’s financial activities was around VNĐ1.01 trillion and those from its corporations was VNĐ194.3 billion. Turnover from dividend and profit was VNĐ60.95 billion.

    He said the losses from the foreign exchange difference would be gradually accounted into power tariffs.

    Đinh Quang Tri, EVN’s deputy general director said in 2015 that the group has itself avoided roughly VNĐ3.5 trillion in foreign exchange difference losses thanks to maximising costs and increasing profit. The remaining losses will be gradually accounted for.

    “Normally, the foreign exchange difference losses must be accounted in a year according to the accounting mechanism. However, the EVN asked the ministry and finance ministry to gradually handle the losses over five years due to its special characteristics. If the loss was accounted all at once, power tariffs would surge. The losses would be taken into account of power tariff or reducing production costs,” Tri said.

    “The ministry would review the basic prices. If there is a change of input prices such as fuel, foreign exchange and rates of power resources higher than 7 per cent, the power tariff would be adjusted,” he added.

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  • Nepal Telecom to launch prepaid 4G on Feb 4

    Nepal Telecom to launch prepaid 4G on Feb 4

    Nepal Telecom signed up around 40,000 LTE customers in the first 15 days since launching Nepal’s first commercial 4G network.

    The state-owned operator launched LTE services in the Kathmandu and Pokhara areas on January 1, and has seen a growing trickle of 4G subscribers, MyRepublica reported, citing comments from managing director Kamini Rajbhandari to Nepal’s parliament.

    According to the report, 4G services will be enabled for iPhones shortly, and for prepaid customers from February 4. The operator is also targeting nationwide 4G services within a year.

    But the parliamentary committee pressured the operator to address commonly-cited problems including weak network quality and credit recharge problems within a month.

    The committee also instructed Nepal Telecom to provide internet services in rural areas through the Rural Telecommunication Development Fund.

    Nepal Telecom, the Ministry of Information and Communications and regulator the Nepal Telecommunication Authority (NTA) have also been instructed to amend the nation’s 20 year old Telecommunications Act, as well as the 2003 Telecommunications Policy.

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  • Seafood exports to grow by 5%

    Seafood exports to grow by 5%

    Seafood exports are expected to increase by 5 per cent this year to around US$7.5 billion despite many possible hurdles, according to the Việt Nam Association of Seafood Producers and Exporters (Vasep).

    Speaking at a review meeting held in HCM City on Thursday, Ngô Văn Ích, Vasep chairman, said early last year many difficulties plagued exports before increased global demand enabled a recovery.

    Exports for the full year grew by 7.4 per cent to $7.05 billion, or 24 per cent of the country’s total agricultural, forestry and fisheries exports, he said.

    Shrimp and tra fish exports both rose by 7 per cent to $3.13 billion and $1.67 billion.

    The exports went to 161 countries and territories last year, with the US, EU, Japan, South Korea and China being the largest buyers.

    Trương Đình Hòe, Vasep’s general secretary, said this year the seafood sector would continue to face difficulties, including a fall in fisheries output due to the impacts of climate change.

    Import markets like the US, EU, Australia, and Japan are tightening hygiene and food safety norms for shrimp and applying regulations related to product origin, corporate social responsibility and others, he said.

    Vietnamese exporters are also expected to face fiercer competition from seafood exporters in India, Indonesia, and Thailand, and the increase in minimum wage and a labour shortage are causing difficulties to seafood processors and exporters, he said.

    “Despite difficulties, we believe seafood exports would increase by 5 per cent this year to $7.4 billion.”

    Exports to the US is expected to top $1.5 billion, an increase of 5 per cent, much less than last year’s 11 per cent growth.

    Due to political changes, the devaluation of the euro and slow market recovery in the EU, exports to the market would remain at last year’s level of $1.2 billion, he said.

    Exports to Japan would increase by around 4 per cent to more than $1 billion since the yen is appreciating, he said.

    With an increase in income, demand for seafood products, especially sugpo prawn, has increased in China, but its domestic shrimp production has not increased, he said.

    “China’s demand for imported seafood, especially shrimp, increased strongly last year and the trend would continue,” he said.

    Việt Nam’s exports to the market are expected to cross $1 billion this year compared to $829 million last year, he said.

    Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Vũ Văn Tám said some countries tend to erect technical barriers to limit imports to protect their domestic production.

    Vietnamese businesses need to carefully study their target export markets to avoid risks, he added.

    Nguyễn Ngô Vi Tâm, general director of Vĩnh Hoàn Co., Ltd, said to enhance competitiveness, seafood firms need comprehensive policy support with markets, funding, and developing reliable raw material sources.

    Businesses at the meeting agreed that enhancing linkages from breeding to processing and export for both shrimps and tra fish is imperative to cut costs.

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  • AirAsia to open Cambodia office

    AirAsia to open Cambodia office

    AirAsia, the Malaysia-based low-cost airline, will soon have an office in Cambodia to boost the number of tourist arrivals to the kingdom.

    The airline’s office will open soon, said AirAsia CEO Anthony Fernandes, after holding a meeting with Prime Minister Hun Sen in Switzerland on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum.

    Mr. Hun Sen said AirAsia’s presence would bring more tourists to Cambodia, adding that the airline has helped transport tourists to Cambodia from all over the world.

    Keo Sivorn, director general of the State Secretariat of Civil Aviation, said AirAsia’s decision to open an office in Cambodia was in response to the current demand of passengers and cargo to the kingdom.

    “It will help the company provide additional satisfied service to its passengers,” said Mr. Sivorn.

    “AirAsia has existing flight service operations to Cambodia. It will open an office here soon because it sees the demand of the aviation sector in Cambodia increasing thanks to the country’s high economic growth.”

    The new office is also in response to the number of local airlines operating in the kingdom, Mr. Sivorn said.

    Ho Vandy, secretary-general of Cambodia’s National Tourism Alliance, said AirAsia would bring more people from all corners of the world to Cambodia because of its popularity offering low fares.

    “It’s a reflection of the airline market. It will serve the high demand of passengers and tourists traveling by plane and it will meet the government’s ‘Open Sky’ policy,” he said.

    Two local airlines, which are expected to get off the ground this year, will push the total number of local airlines to six, according to Mr. Sivorn. The four now operating are Cambodia Angkor Air, Bassaka Air, Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Sky Angkor Airlines.

    “By this year, the two airline companies will hopefully start providing service. Due to economic growth and stable politics, the number of airlines is increasing,” he said.

    AirAsia is currently operating 67 flights per week out of Phnom Penh and Siem Reap international airports, according to Mr. Fernandes.

    AirAsia swung to a profit in the third quarter of 2016 from a net loss a year earlier. Net profit for the three months ended September 30 was 353.9 million ringgit ($79.62 million), versus a net loss of 405.7 million ringgit a year earlier. Revenue rose 11.2 percent to 1.69 million ringgit, the company said.

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  • HBO tops SVOD customer satisfaction

    HBO tops SVOD customer satisfaction

    HBO Now ranks highest for customer satisfaction in 11 of 14 categories among subscription video on-demand (SVOD) services examined, a new report released by Strategy Analytics shows.

    The report measured customer satisfaction in 14 categories across three key areas — the number and availability of TV shows/films, how easy it is to find them, and the overall value of the service.

    HBO Now had the highest score for all but three of the categories examined – availability of children’s programming (Hulu scored top), content recommendations and the cost of the subscription (Netflix topped both).

    Hulu outscored Netflix in six of the 14 categories, while Amazon Prime was at the bottom in every one.

    When compared to the other three services, HBO Now scored particularly highly in the availability of current and past season’s TV shows as well as the number of hit movies and original programs.

    Wu Zhaowen, digital media strategies analyst at Strategy Analytics,  said that though HBO Now has a much smaller library than other SVOD services, it has more blockbuster movie and hit series such as “Game of Thrones” and “Westworld.”

    When subscribers were asked to give a single “overall” score for the services, however, Netflix came out on top, with Hulu very narrowly ahead of HBO.

    Michael Goodman, director of digital media strategies said people have been talking about it being a Netflix vs. Amazon battle in terms of which service viewers choose, with the others left to pick up the scraps.

    “However, if HBO continues on this vein, we’re more likely to see a situation where people will have one ‘blockbuster’ service like HBO or HBO Now and either a Netflix or Amazon in support,” said Goodman.

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  • Microsoft and FPT develop strategic partnership

    Microsoft and FPT develop strategic partnership

    Microsoft and FPT last week signed an Enterprise Agreement focusing on digital transformations and cloud deployments. The agreement tightens the long-term strategic partnership that has been in place for almost 20 years between the two leading IT corporations.

    Specifically, FPT will be the first and largest business in Việt Nam to put in place Microsoft’s cloud computing for all operations of the corporation, in a bid to optimise operational efficiencies and improve competitiveness. FPT will also promote Microsoft’s advanced cloud services to the corporation’s clients.

    “As two global and local IT corporations, Microsoft and FPT want to continuously strengthen this long-term, sustainable relationship via cooperation in technology. The move to the cloud by Microsoft technology will surely help FPT further develop, complete its mission to adapt technology, and develop the knowledge to enable Việt Nam to reach its potential and partly address socio-economic issues,” stressed Vũ Minh Trí, CEO of Microsoft Việt Nam.

    In the first phase, FPT will adopt Microsoft Office 365 and move its entire system and all data to the cloud, at the same time deploying One Drive for Business and Skype for Business to optimise operating performances. In the next phase, FPT and Microsoft will develop the cloud to digitally transform their clients in Việt Nam.

    Nowadays, most of the world’s large tech companies have adopted cloud computing. However, in Việt Nam the majority of businesses are still reluctant to move their system and data to the cloud, particularly large companies.

    Such a large tech corporation as FPT, as it becomes a pioneer in adopting Microsoft Office 365 advanced cloud services for a large number of users, will contribute to encouraging other businesses to adopt cloud technologies. With the strength of Việt Nam’s leading provider of IT services, FPT and Microsoft will jointly develop the cloud market segment in Việt Nam and other countries.

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  • Bright prospects seen for digital banking

    Bright prospects seen for digital banking

    Nguyễn Thanh Trúc in District 1 has just paid her monthly electricity bills via internet banking.

    “I have used the service for more than one year. This is a very convenient service and helps me save time from going to electricity bill collection points,” she said.

    In fact, more and more Vietnamese consumers are turning to computers, smartphones and tablets to do business with their banks. They have opted to make deposits online or online payments of electricity and water bills and even buy gold on their smartphones, according to experts.

    There is huge potential to develop digital banking in Việt Nam.

    According to a report discussed at a workshop held recently in HCM City, Việt Nam posts an internet growth rate of 9 per cent a year, ranking 15th in the world. The number of internet users accounts for 52 per cent of the country’s population.

    About 44 per cent of customers at commercial banks have used digital services.

    The fourth industrial revolution and Government policy to encourage credit card payment instead of cash have enlarged digital banking potential in the country.

    In the past, along with growth in internet and mobile device use, commercial banks in Việt Nam have been expanding and developing internet banking on mobile devices to offer better services to customers.

    To attract customers to use the Internet and mobile banking services, banks have launched promotions.

    LienVietPostBank, for instance, discounts 30 per cent of the transaction value to customers who pay bills for TV services or discounts VNĐ20,000 to customers who pay electricity or water bills using Ví Việt app until January 31.

    Similarity, at Viet Capital Bank, customers using the Payoo app to pay their TV bills of HanoiCab and MyTV Cần Thơ will be given back 30 per cent of the transaction value until January 31.

    Many banks, including VietinBank and VPBank, are offering bonus interest rates to customers who make online deposits.

    Banking finance expert Cấn Văn Lực said technology is the key to shorten the distance between banks and customers as well as help save big costs compared to traditional transaction methods.

    “Banks themselves also understand that if they do not invest in digital technology, they will be left behind. Customers today can actively perform transactions anytime, anywhere, via computer or smartphone with all types of products and services that they can conduct at a traditional banking branch,” Lực said.

    A general director of a joint stock bank, who did not want to be named, said: “A digital banking project can cost some millions of US dollars, but in the long-term, this investment is still cheaper than expanding branch networks.”

    Faster, more convenient and more secure electronic payment transactions were the targets that commercial banks were aiming for in the digital banking competition, he said.

    Lực said digital banking was certainly going to be a new way of banking for all banks.

    Transactions using digital technology would contribute 40 per cent of banking revenue in 2018, up 32 per cent compared to 2014, he said.

    “One of the factors in developing digital banking is to build trust and confidence among consumers about the security of online transactions,” he added.

    Online shopping boom

    Online shopping has been popular worldwide and Việt Nam is keeping up with the trend thanks to its active Internet use, according to a recent KPMG International’s survey.

    Chong Kwang Puay, managing partner and consumer markets lead of KPMG in Việt Nam and Cambodia, said with its high Internet penetration rate, Việt Nam would see online shopping surge soon.

    According to the survey, 18 per cent of consumers in Việt Nam and Cambodia purchased goods from an online-only retailer, such as Amazon, Lazada and Nhommua. Some 10 per cent purchased from the website of a retail shop, and only 3 per cent purchased directly from a manufacturer or brand’s website.

    The number one reason consumers gave for shopping online is the convenience of shopping. This is followed by having the ability to compare prices, or to find online sales or better deals.

    To gain consumer trust, companies and brands are recommended to improve online security and privacy protection. Most respondents (26.5 per cent) consider customer data and information protection to be of utmost importance, and 20.4 per cent consider food and product safety as the most important attributes.

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  • Zalora Regional Headquarters Relocating to Tanjong Pagar

    Zalora Regional Headquarters Relocating to Tanjong Pagar

    Online fashion retailer ZALORA is relocating its corporate headquarters in Singapore. The company has signed a three-year lease occupying over 30,000 square feet across two floors in Keppel Towers, located in Tanjong Pagar in the heart of Singapore’s business district.

    Parker Gundersen, ZALORA CEO, commented, “We’re very excited to be relocating to Keppel Towers. It’s a beautiful space that offers a more efficient layout with spectacular views of the city and waterfront. The larger space supports our continued expansion needs and offers a more collaborative environment for the team. Tanjong Pagar is also a very vibrant part of Singapore with great restaurants and amenities. It’s a great next step for ZALORA.”

    Mr Tan Swee Yiow, President (Singapore), Keppel Land, said, “As a provider of premium office space, Keppel Land constantly seeks to partner exciting growth businesses that will drive the future economy. Zalora is one such company and we are very pleased to welcome them to Keppel Towers, and look forward to partnering them in their expansion in Singapore and the region.”

    ZALORA’s new office address is 10 Hoe Chiang Road #18-01 Keppel Towers Singapore 089315.

  • Cebu Pacific and Philippines AirAsia seek rights to India

    Cebu Pacific and Philippines AirAsia seek rights to India

    Cebu Pacific and Philippines AirAsia have applied for rights to serve India. Cebu Pacific has called for the country’s Civil Aeronautics Board to re-allocate Philippine Airlines’ (PAL) entitlements to India.

    Philippines AirAsia, meanwhile, wants to be designated as an official Philippine carrier on services to India. It is seeking to launch daily services on the Manila-Bangkok Don Mueang-New Delhi route.

    PAL launched direct services between Manila and New Delhi in 2010, but stopped after a year of poor performance. It then served New Delhi from Bangkok, but this was also stopped due to poor demand.

    FlightMaps Analytics shows that there are currently no services between Philippines and India.

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  • JV aims to boost Muji brand in Philippines

    JV aims to boost Muji brand in Philippines

    Specialty retailer SSI Group has signed a JV agreement with Japan’s Ryohin Keikaku in a bid to boost the Muji household supplies brand in the Philippines.

    SSI Group’s board of directors has approved the JV between its wholly owned subsidiary Stores Specialists and RKJ, dubbed Muji Philippines. It is expected to launch on April 1 with the mandate to own and run Muji stores in the Philippines.

    SSI Group says the move will enable cost efficiencies.

    Stores Specialists owns and runs specialty retailing boutiques for a range of international brands covering luxury, casualwear, fast fashion, footwear, luggage and accessories as well as personal-care brands. RKJ is engaged in the planning, development, procurement, logistics and processing of goods under the brand name Muji, as well as running Muji retail stores and wholesaling Muji goods.

    The deal is pegged at P175 million (US$3.5 million), with Store Specialists holding a 51 per cent stake. Store Specialists is investing more than P89.2 million, while RKJ is injecting up to P85.7 million.

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  • SelluSeller makes multiple-market selling easier

    SelluSeller makes multiple-market selling easier

    eCommerce and logistics company Anchanto has launched a software platform, SelluSeller, to help merchants, brands and distributors sell products on a multitude of marketplaces.

    Revealed at a company event in Singapore, SelluSeller enables users to manage their inventory and simultaneously upload listings to several eCommerce websites including Flipkart, Lazada and Matahari. This saves them having to repeat the process for each individual site.

    SelluSeller also allows merchants to sell crossborder and connect to logistics and warehousing services from Anchanto’s network in Southeast Asia.

    “We wanted to connect brands and sellers to marketplaces,” says Anchanto co-founder/CEO Vaibhav Dabhade. “You can outsource your logistics, including crossborder, and manage your brand’s online presence with one click.”

    Anchanto targets both small sellers with fewer than 1000 sales a month as well as large brands and distributors. For the small sellers it charges a flat fee of US$21 a month, while the larger merchants pay seven cents a order.

    However, sellers who opt to use third-party logistics providers that are already Anchanto clients and part of its warehouse management and fulfillment management network, can use SelluSeller without charge.

    Lazada test

    Anchanto expects to have more than 5000 merchants and brands on SelluSeller in the next four to five months. It has been working with Lazada to develop and test the software. Other partners include luxury-product distribution firm Bluebell Group, lifestyle and apparel distributor JayGee Group, and global market expansion company DKSH. Altogether, the product pilot includes 55 brands and distributors.

    SelluSeller is an evolution of the company’s channel-management services and expands Anchanto’s products, which until now focussed mostly on global fulfillment, crossborder shipping, and warehouse management for clients like Groupon and Levis. The company has also helped businesses from Europe get their products on marketplaces like Flipkart, Lazada and Qoo10.

    Meanwhile, Anchanto acknowledges that regional eCommerce is significantly outpacing domestic eCommerce, despite price variables in terms of shipping, customs and tariffs, plus delays because of “large amounts of red tape”, he told the 2017 Asia eCommerce Dialogue in Singapore.

    He says that for regional players, local partnerships are necessary in each country, as exemplified by multinational companies.

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  • Pie Face expansion plan in Japan and Korea

    Pie Face expansion plan in Japan and Korea

    As it turns around and heads toward profitability again, Australian fast-food chain Pie Face has plans to expand into Japan and South Korea.

    Its receiver flags the hot-pie business will be sold soon, but it has left behind a trail of destruction: secured debt is AU$4 million (US$3 million) and unsecured debt is estimated to be nearly AU$5 million, with employees alone owed more than AU$1 million.

    Also, listed Retail Food Group has made an application to the Queensland Supreme Court to wind up Pie Face Australia over an unpaid debt. But many creditors are unlikely to receive payment out of the receivership, says Pie Face trading entities joint receiver Liam Bailey, a partner at insolvency firm O’Brien Palmer.

    “I can’t speak to what the liquidator may be able to recover and pay them as a dividend, but it’s unlikely a surplus will be generated on the sale of the business, allowing funds to flow to unsecured creditors.”

    The Pie Face company runs a commercial kitchen and wholesaling business, Pie Face Holdings, which owns the intellectual property as well as Pie Face Franchising, which oversees its franchised business in Australia.

    US market

    Bailey became involved after Pie Face went into receivership for the second time in two years late last year. Founded in 2003 by couple Wayne Homschek and Betty Fong, after spreading through Australia the company moved into the US market and planned to open stores in the Middle East, Japan, Korea and the Philippines.

    Investors including retail entrepreneur Brett Blundy, Fat Prophets founder Angus Geddes and Rothschild Australia chairman Trevor Rowe had poured more than $35 million into Pie Face since 2009 with hopes of a sharemarket listing, reports The Age.

    In 2014, Pie Face collapsed owing tens of millions of dollars, sparking store closures, job losses, lawsuits and board changes. Pie Face then struck a deal with financier TCA Global, which took over loans to major lender Macquarie bank.

    Under a deed-of-company arrangement, unsecured creditors such as food suppliers agreed to receive between 14¢ and 19¢ in the dollar over several years, and Pie Face changed its focus to wholesale and direct retail sales.

    When this turnaround bid came unstuck, TCA Global appointed O’Brien Palmer in late October. The business was then restructured for sale. A new CEO and CFO were appointed, 11 unprofitable stores were closed and three franchised stores were opened. Nearly 100 staff members lost their jobs.

    Pie Face now has 30 franchised stores, about 10 people in its head office and 60 to 70 kitchen workers – and plans to expand overseas, particularly in Japan and South Korea.

    Bailey says seven or eight companies are now conducting due diligence, with binding offers due in at the start of next month.

    “We were very much taken aback by the level of interest in the business notwithstanding the bad press it has received over the years,” he says. “There’s a lot of recognition of the growth potential, if properly managed.”

  • Nike opens 600 outlets inside JCPenney stores

    Nike opens 600 outlets inside JCPenney stores

    Nike has opened more than 600 brand shops environments inside JCPenney stores.

    The two brands say they have teamed up due to the rapid growth of the activewear sector. The new Nike shops boast “pumped-up visual elements” featuring world-class athletes and crisp signage to help shoppers find the best gear for basketball, training and running. The shops also feature an expanded assortment of apparel and accessories from one of the world’s leading activewear brands.

    “Nike is immensely popular across all categories and with the rapid rise of activewear and athletic shoes, we want to have the best expression of Nike in any department store,” said John Tighe, chief merchant for JCPenney. “JCPenney is an activewear destination, and by partnering with a perception-shifting national brand like Nike, we can deliver both the performance and athleisure products that customers want.

    Shoppers browsing our new Nike environments will be both inspired and motivated to take their athletic wardrobe to the next level.”

    Anchored by an impressive Nike swoosh sign suspended above the shop, JCPenney has dedicated 500 sqft. of space to the activewear giant in a prominent location within the men’s department. Motivating graphics of athletes adorn the shop walls and updated fixtures, combined with dedicated mannequins, present the merchandise in an inspiring light. The iconic Nike logo is emblazoned throughout the shop and popular activities, including basketball, training and running, are called out with new signage to help customers shop quickly and easily. The JCPenney and Nike teams worked closely together to test various visual elements at a JCPenney store in Portland, Oregon, to create the inspiring environment for the men’s department, now available in 600 locations across the country. Similar visual elements are available in select stores for women and kids.

    The Nike selection at JCPenney will be featured throughout JCPenney marketing, including weekly sales circulars, direct mail, email and social media. Nike complements a robust assortment of fitness and athleisure brands available at JCPenney, including the retailer’s private brand, Xersion and an exclusive brand, MSX by Michael Strahan.

  • Da Niang Dumplings chain sold to hotel group

    Da Niang Dumplings chain sold to hotel group

    One of China’s largest dumpling chains has been sold to a local hotel group.

    Da Niang Dumplings, previously owned by private equity company CVC Capital Partners, has been bought by Shanghai-based hotel group GreenTree Inns Hotel Management Group.

    Three years ago, when CVC took control, Da Niang Dumplings boasted more than 440 restaurants across China. It operates an integrated business model, manufacturing dumplings, then preparing and serving them at its restaurants, which target the budget end of the market. This is the first foray into food retailing for GreenTree, which manages and franchises more than 2500 hotels inside and outside China.

    CVC is believed to have exited the business in the second half of last year after a fractious relationship with founder Wu Guoqiang. Last February, Wu publicly accused CVC of poor management leading to revenue declines of 10 per cent in 2014 and again in 2015.