Tag: asia

  • Vietnam Airlines prepares for Czech launch

    Vietnam Airlines prepares for Czech launch

    Vietnam Airlines has appointed a new General Sales Agent (GSA) in Prague, ahead of the launch of its first ever flights to the Czech Republic.

    A ceremony was held on 14 December 2016 to mark the occasion, attended by Vietnam’s Ambassador to the Czech Republic, Truong Manh Son. While details of the national carrier’s planned Prague services have not been confirmed, they are likely to make use of Vietnam Airlines’ new fleet of long-haul aircraft, including the Airbus A350 and Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

    These modern jets have already been deployed on routes to several European cities, including London, Paris and Frankfurt.

    The new route, which would likely be served from Hanoi, would mark the first direct connection between the Czech Republic and Southeast Asia. The only other Asian carriers operating to Prague’s Václav Havel Airport at present are China Eastern Airlines, Hainan Airlines, Korean Air and Sichuan Airlines.

    Vietnam Airlines and Czech Airlines are partners in the SkyTeam alliance and the new flights could also open up codeshare opportunities.

  • Siam Discovery Launched Year-End Campaign to Spread the Love and Spirit of Sharing

    Siam Discovery Launched Year-End Campaign to Spread the Love and Spirit of Sharing

    Siam Piwat, the owner and operator of Siam Paragon, Siam Center and Siam Discovery, invested over 30 million baht in the greatest year-end marketing campaign, which integrates the customer-centric strategy. Interpreting the festive season as the time when people send their love and good wishes to others, the Company launched “Citizen of Love: It’s time to Give Good Love” campaign.

    The shoppers will not only find a wide array of gift items for themselves and loved ones, but also enjoy a big promotion that serves the government’s Shop for the Nation campaign. To add the sentimental value to the campaign, Siam Discovery hosts an art exhibition displaying the genius of the late King Bhumibol, including his great love and generosity for his citizen. In response to the royal wish on endless giving, Siam Discovery will organize “Gifts for Them” CSR activity that gives the gifts to 300 children in Community Children Foundation (CCF) under the Royal Patronage of HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn. During the festive season, the shopping center expected to welcome 80,000 – 100,000 Thai and foreign shoppers a day.

    Year-End Campaign: “Citizen of Love: It’s time to Give Good Love”

    Mr. Charnchai Cherdchoowongthanakorn, Senior Executive Vice President – Retail Business Development, Siam Piwat Co., Ltd., said, ” In each year, December is considered the high season with the greatest spending. However, the shopping sentiment this year differs from the past. Siam Discovery, considering itself as a friend of shoppers, understood their feelings and translated the season of joy into the joy of sharing. It therefore hosts the integrated campaign called “Citizen of Love: It’s time to Give Good Love”. Siam Discovery started from creating its ambience, in which encourages everyone to participate under the concept of ‘exploration, creation, and cultivation’. In addition, it holds an art exhibition to commemorate the talent of H.M. the late King, who worked tirelessly to improve the quality of life of his people. He did this out of love and wanted nothing in return. Moreover, Siam Discovery offers Thai people a space to express their love and give the moral support to one another. The shoppers can take photos and share their love in the Living Room of Love. It also displays the art installation that presents the Royal Rainmaking Initiative Project and Reforestation Initiative Project. The exhibitions are open for the public to help them feel connected.”

    Siam Discovery spent more than 30 million baht on “Citizen of Love: It’s time to Give Good Love” campaign, which includes the creation of shopping ambience, promotion and CSR activity. It expected to daily attract 80,000 – 100,000 Thai and foreign shoppers on average, with 50:50 ratio. The survey revealed that 80% of foreign tourists are Free Individual Traveler (FIT), which are considered high-quality tourists with high purchasing power.

    Launching a big promotion to boost the holiday shopping in response to Shopping for the Nation campaign

    Siam Piwat responds to the government’s economic stimulus policy that encourages the people to shop and use the tax invoice of December 2016 for the tax deduction. Expecting an influx of shoppers, Siam Piwat prepared the staff and equipment to facilitate the shoppers who request the formal tax invoice and to ensure the fast and convenient service.

    In addition, Siam Piwat holds special promotion, to create the unique shopping experience at Siam Paragon shopping mall , Siam Center , and Siam Discovery from now – December 31, 2016. Spending at least 15,000 baht, the shoppers will receive Siam Gift Card worth 1,500 baht. VIZ cardholders and the members of Siam Discovery Mobile Application will enjoy more benefits

    “Gifts for Them” CSR activity for the disadvantaged

    Miss Chanisa Kaewruen, Senior  Deputy Managing Director of Siam Piwat Co., Ltd., revealed, “Besides the value-added promotion, Siam Discovery infuses the sentimental value into the customers’ mind because we believe that our customers care for the society and wish to share good things with the people around them. We therefore come up with “Gifts for Them” activity, inviting the customers to spread the joy to others by giving the gifts to 300 children in Community Children Foundation (CCF) under the Royal Patronage of HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn. The customers can buy gift items for the children on 50% discount and Siam Discovery will subsidize the other half. We will host an event where the donors can present the gifts to the children themselves.

    In preparing the product  to serve the customer demand, Siam Discovery, with the expertise in matching the right products for each lifestyle, has selected the perfect gift items for each target segment. It also displays the recommended gift items on each floor.   To increase the value to the gifts, it offers the personal gift wrapping as the customized service in addition to the regular gift wrapping service.

    In “Think Giving”, Siam Discovery offers a wide variety of products from the Royal Project Foundation, PatPat shop under Chaipattana Foundation, Phufa and Doi Kham as the special gifts for special people. The event will take place on the 5th floor from now until February 19, 2017.

    Customer-centric marketing focuses on capturing the customers’ interest. Siam Discovery therefore launched the marketing promotion activities that add the sentimental value to the shoppers. It expected that “Citizen of Love: It’s time to Give Good Love” campaign will not only increase the sales volume by 15 – 20%, but also make the holiday shopping more meaningful and bring the spirit of giving to this season of joy.

  • Indonesian property players welcome house price increases for foreign buyers

    Indonesian property players welcome house price increases for foreign buyers

    The government’s decision to increase house prices for foreign buyers has been met with positively by Indonesian real estate business players, who reason that it will help to protect the domestic property market.

    “If the government keeps the price low for foreign buyers, Indonesians will be forced to bear the high price jump. Therefore, I think this is a right decision,” Association of Housing Development in Indonesia (Apersi) chairman Eddy Ganefo said on Tuesday. He explained that the higher purchasing power of foreigners might hurt the domestic industry.

    The price increase is stipulated in a regulation issued by the Agrarian and Spatial Planning Ministry.

    The minimum house price set for foreigners in Yogyakarta and Bali now stands at Rp 5 billion (US$371,112) per unit, up from Rp 3 billion under a previous regulation.

    In West Nusa Tenggara and North Sumatra, the minimum price also jumped to Rp 3 billion from Rp 2 billion.

    Indonesian Real Estate Association (REI) chairman Eddy Hussy said he was optimistic that the changes in price would not affect demand from foreigners to purchase houses.

  • Philippine Airlines Partners With Translations.com to Localize Website

    Philippine Airlines Partners With Translations.com to Localize Website

    Translations.com, a division of TransPerfect, the world’s largest privately held provider of language and technology solutions for global business, today announced that Philippine Airlines has chosen its GlobalLink Connect technology to launch and maintain the company’s corporate site as well as its Mabuhay Miles loyalty site in four languages.

    Translations.com will support the launch and maintenance of www.philippineairlines.com and www.mabuhaymiles.com in four languages — Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Korean, and Japanese. GlobalLink’s Sitecore Experience Platform connector will provide Philippine Airlines with a powerful solution to initiate, automate, control, track, and complete all facets of the translation process within their existing Sitecore user interface.

    Because the Sitecore integration is pre-built, no additional IT requirements or development hours were required to enable the integration. With GlobalLink Connect, Philippine Airlines is able to automate translation workflows, simplify review processes, and release in-language content to their target audiences quickly and on-brand.

    “The launch of our corporate and loyalty sites in these four languages marks a significant breakthrough for us,” said Snooker Jaranilla, Assistant Vice President of Philippine Airlines. “With GlobalLink’s ability to integrate directly with our existing Sitecore platform, managing our multilingual content is easy, familiar, and cost-effective. GlobalLink has made a significant positive impact on our international strategy.”

    “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Philippine Airlines,” said Phil Shawe, Co-CEO at Translations.com. “It’s fulfilling to know that our GlobalLink Connect technology is helping such a strong Asian brand provide a better online experience to their customers both at home and abroad.”

    Translations.com Co-CEO Liz Elting added, “As its country’s flagship carrier, we knew that it was important for Philippine Airlines to represent their country with a strong online presence. By launching their corporate and loyalty sites in four new languages, they are making a strong statement showing the care and value they place on customers across all languages.”

  • Lotte Mart opens 46th store in Indonesia

    Lotte Mart opens 46th store in Indonesia

    Lotte Mart, a discount store chain operated by retailer Lotte Group, said Wednesday it has opened its 46th store in Indonesia in line with its global growth strategy.

    With floor space of 5,572 square meters, the Pramuka shop opened on the underground floor of a commercial-residential building in Jakarta with some 7,000 households.

    Lotte Mart’s 16th retail outlet in Indonesia has a health and beauty section, as well as young children and fresh food corners, the company said.

    Lotte Mart also operates 26 wholesale stores and two supermarkets in the world’s fourth most populous nation.

    Currently, Lotte Mart runs a total of 290 stores in South Korea, China, Indonesia and Vietnam, and plans to raise the number of shops to over 300 next year.

  • Indonesia challenges Google to disclose financial reports

    Indonesia challenges Google to disclose financial reports

    The Directorate General of Taxation will intensify its investigation on the suspected unpaid taxes by tech behemoth Google, claiming that the company’s tax settlement offer was too small.

    The government said that it would continue investigating Google as it has gathered preliminary evidence indicating that the firm has allegedly committed a criminal act.

    “Next year, it is not going to be about a tax settlement anymore,” Muhammad Haniv, the head of the Taxation Directorate General’s Jakarta branch, who is also the main investigator in the case, said on Tuesday.

    “We have to accelerate the process. We want Google to disclose its financial reports and the tax office will calculate the tax owed,” he said.

    He said the consequence of the tax office’s findings would be that Google had to pay taxes owed plus a 150 percent penalty.

  • Aussie telco complaints on the decline: ACMA

    Aussie telco complaints on the decline: ACMA

    Australian operators are delivering better levels of customer service with the number of complaints moving lower and “bill shock” less prevalent, according to a major annual national study.

    The Australian Communication and Media Authority’s (ACMA) report “Reconnecting the Customer – Tracking Consumer Outcomes” reveals that the overall incidence of complaints has decreased from 36% in 2013 to 31% this year.

    A significantly lower number of complaints related to mobile phone services was a feature of the result.

    The study also showed that the incidence of consumers complaining about unexpectedly high bills was now at 19% for post-paid mobile services, down from 33% in 2013.

    Complaints for product bundles fell from 26% to 31% over the same period.

    The extra amount consumers are complaining about has fallen from an average AU$94 ($68) to AU$60 ($44).

    In more evidence that Australian consumers are more engaged with their telecom services, consumers are monitoring their expenditure with SMS alerts and apps.

    “In good news for consumers, fewer are experiencing unexpectedly high bills, and they are making better use of spend management tools to monitor and track their expenditure,’ said ACMA’s acting chairman, Richard Bean.

    “They have a clearer understanding about the cost of their communications services, and are better able to plan and budget accordingly.”

    A separate study looking at consumer migration to new technologies also had some positive results, showing that 82 percent of Australian consumers saying it was either easy or not difficult to connect to the new National Broadband Network (NBN).

  • New retail hub rises in Xiamen

    New retail hub rises in Xiamen

    YCH Group, a supply chain management, and logistics company in Asia-Pacific, has launched a retail hub in Xiamen, China, which is envisioned to support the Pilot Free Trade Zone project in the region.

    The project, which will be the first major mall in the region, will serve the needs of the population in the immediate vicinity and the rapidly growing city of Xiamen. It will be managed by YCH Group on behalf of XPD-YCH Logistics, a joint venture between YCH Group and Xiamen Port Development, a subsidiary of the Xiamen Port Group.

    Spanning 55,000 square meters with a built-up space of 100,000 square meters, the facility was converted from XPD-YCH Logistics’ existing warehouse in Xiamen and will be fully operational this month.

    This comes at an opportune time as Xiamen, which is currently one of the fastest growing cities in China, is growing at 6.7 percent with a population of 4.4 million. Aside from local demand, the mall aims to cater to the burgeoning Chinese retail scene while playing a key role in strengthening Xiamen’s status as one of China’s most popular tourist destinations.

    According to the Xiamen Tourism Bureau, Xiamen receives 1.63 million tourists from home and abroad, and rakes in RBM1.853 billion ($258.9 million) in tourism revenue. Moreover, China has also overtaken the US to become the world’s largest retail market in 2016 with total sales of $4.886 trillion.

    Two of the most well-known brands in China – Sam’s Club and Red Star Macalline – will form the mall’s anchor tenants, occupying approximately 85 percent of the facility. This will be the first Sam’s Club Store opened in Xiamen by Wal-Mart, and will be the 15th Sam’s Club store across 13 cities in China.

    Sam’s Club is a division of Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer. It offers an extensive inventory with exceptional value on famous-brand merchandise at “member only” prices for both business and personal use.

    Red Star Macalline, on the other hand, is the largest national home improvement and furniture retail platform in China, with stores in most major cities in China. It targets the rapidly growing middle class in China through the operation of malls that offer home improvement and furniture materials, including flooring, bathroom and kitchen fixtures, with approximately 18,000 well-known brands.

    Strategically situated within the Pilot Free Trade Zone, the mall is located in a highly populated region in Xiamen and is in close proximity to both air and sea ports and numerous famous hotels, bringing numerous trade and business benefits for prospective clients.

    “With the dynamic and growing retail sector in the country, we want to equip retailers with game-changing capabilities that help them simplify processes and optimize costs. This will enable them to remain competitive while simultaneously boosting trade and facilities investment for China with the Pilot Free Trade Zone,” said Koh Yong Seng, Operations Director of North Asia, YCH Group.

  • Ericsson, Huawei, Nokia and Cisco join forces on NFV testing

    Ericsson, Huawei, Nokia and Cisco join forces on NFV testing

    Ericsson, Huawei, Nokia and Cisco have teamed up to launch a new initiative that aims to help telecoms operators address the challenges related to NFV deployment and cloud transformation within multi-vendor network environments.

    The four signed Tuesday a MoU to create the NFV Interoperability Testing Initiative (NFV-ITI), which will address NFV multi-vendor interoperability challenges for telcos, enabling them to optimize NFV deployment and integration costs, and reduce time-to-market for new services.

    While telecos are at different stages of implementing NFV into their networks, the deployment and integration of virtual network functions within today’s multi-vendor environments can introduce new interoperability challenges.

    To addresses these challenges, NFV-ITI members will cooperatively support the interoperability of NFV elements in specific customer situations to accelerate the commercial implementations, and to reduce the time-to-market for new applications and services.

    All existing NFV interoperability related testing activities are triggered by different industry needs, including the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) NFV Testing WG, OPNFV testing projects, Network Vendor Interoperability Testing (NVIOT) testing, and the New IP Agency (NIA) interoperability testing.

    NFV-ITI will complement all existing NFV interoperability testing activities in the industry and focus on testing interoperability configurations of commercial NFV solutions used in the telcos’ networks, the companies said.

    It will recommend generic principles, including interoperability test cases, test criteria, processes, methods, guidelines, templates and testing tools, and will also apply best practices from all existing interoperability testing activities in the industry, such as NVIOT forum efforts.

    In addition, NFV-ITI will be well-aligned with the ETSI NFV Industry Specification Group and the OPNFV project.

  • India’s internet population to reach 600m by 2020

    India’s internet population to reach 600m by 2020

    India’s rapidly expanding digital population is expected to double to approximately 600 million users by 2020 from 343 million users today, a new study reveals.

    The joint study, conducted The Associated Chambers of Commerce & Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) and Deloitte, also showed that of India’s over one billion mobile subscriptions, smartphone users account for approximately about a fourth or 240 million subscriptions. This is expected to grow to 520 million by 2020.

    While India is the second largest mobile phone market globally, the study noted that over 55,000 villages remain deprived of mobile connectivity, largely because providing mobile connectivity in these locations is not commercially viable for service providers.

    Spectrum availability in Indian metros is also just about a tenth of the same in cities in developed countries, which is a major roadblock to providing high-speed data services.

    The study noted that public Wi-Fi penetration remains low, with only about 31,000 hotspots available. For India to achieve the global average of one Wi-Fi hotspot for every 150 citizens, the country needs over eight million hotspots.

    Rural adoption of data-enabled devices, however, is expected to increase with the BharatNet initiative under the Digital India program, which itself has been hampered by many challenges including a lack of technical skills and capabilities or competent organizations to support the program.

    Other factors include lack of awareness of internet services among Indian consumers and non-availability of most of these digital services in local languages. Moreover, with the proliferation of cloud-based services like DigiLocker, data security has also emerged as a major challenge.

    The recent data breach in August 2016, in which debit card data for more than 3.2 million subscribers was stolen, highlights the importance of implementing foolproof security systems.

    The study recommends that the government should make efforts to make additional spectrum available to telecom service providers for deployment of high-speed data networks and must effectively collaborate with the private sector to develop the digital infrastructure.

    Moreover, it noted that in rural and remote areas, private sector players should be incentivized to provide last mile connectivity. Satellite communication solutions could also be used to speed up broadband access in rural and remote areas. For instance, banks can use VSAT technology to connect remote ATMs, remote branches which need instant access to customer data.

    “In order for the benefits of the Digital India program to reach all sections of the population, improving digital literacy is imperative. A strong skill base is required to support the initiatives and services that are envisaged under the Digital India umbrella,” the study concluded.

  • AirAsia to deploy 84 more flights this CNY

    AirAsia to deploy 84 more flights this CNY

    There’s good news for travellers with more flights servicing selected domestic and international routes ahead of the Chinese New Year festive period.

    AirAsia Berhad will deploy an additional 84 flights from Jan 25 to Feb 1.

    “We would like to encourage travellers to book their flights early for the upcoming festive season,” said AirAsia’s head of commercial Spencer Lee in a statement.

    “These flights will have an added capacity of 15,000 seats to facilitate the high demand of air travel during that period.”

    Among the routes are from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore, Penang, Sibu and Tawau, as well as from Penang to Singapore and from Johor Baru to Miri and Sibu.

    “Whether it’s a family reunion or a quick getaway, we hope that these additional flights with everyday low fares will help everyone to have a memorable Chinese New Year celebration,” Lee added.

    Travellers are advised to book their flights early at airasia.com or through the airline’s mobile app on the iPhone and android devices.

  • Element Fresh plans Asian franchise roll-out

    Element Fresh plans Asian franchise roll-out

    Chinese international restaurant brand Element Fresh plans to grant development rights to franchisees across Asia, with an initial focus on Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand and Singapore.

    Founded in 2002, the group has nearly 40 restaurants in China, mainly in Beijing and Shanghai.

    It forecasts 80 outlets across China by 2020 while it moves to franchise in key countries across Asia.

    “We seek retail-focussed companies that view our cosmopolitan brand as complementing their existing portfolio and aligned with their business strategy,” says Element Fresh international franchising director Paul Barbone. “Our systems and operations have been fine-tuned and engineered to ease the start-up process through to multi-unit management.”

    Most of the brand’s dishes incorporate superfoods, with the seasonal menu innovation cycle giving diners the chance to try innovative ingredients.

    “We are passionate about fresh food, great taste and quality ingredients, making ‘eating right’ easy for our guests,” says CEO Frank Rasche. “People from dozens of countries come to us every day for our diverse menu and seasonal touches.”

    Recent examples include Salmon & Warm Buckwheat Salad, plus the Spicy BBQ Chicken Cobb salad that includes avocado chunks and chimichurri ranch dressing.

    Element Fresh has also just launched www.elementfresh.org, which details the advantages and benefits for franchise partners while showcasing its latest restaurant prototype.

    Barbone says the website offers information and videos for potential franchise partners. He plans to visit key markets in the coming months to meet with qualified groups, with the goal of having outlets open in select key cities by the second half of next year.

    Founded in Shanghai in 2002, Element Fresh is known for its gourmet salads and made-to-order fruit juices and smoothies, its diverse international menu including American-style breakfasts, and its casual dining ambience and service.

  • Nestle Japan strikes a musical note

    Nestle Japan strikes a musical note

    Nestle Japan has extended its offering from coffee to music as part of a promotional event for its Nescafe Gold Blend Barista instant coffee.

    It has launched a wooden musical instrument, the “Pythagorean”, which plays Christmas melodies. It is the only Rube Goldberg machine in the world to be installed in a coffee shop.

     

    nestle-japan-strikes-a-musical-note-1

    nestle-japan-strikes-a-musical-note-2

    nestle-japan-strikes-a-musical-note

    Designed like a coffee mug and about 3.5m high and 3m wide, the Pythagorean involves a wooden ball being released into a staircase-shaped maze. Christmas carols play as the ball rolls downward, striking tuned xylophone steps. The contraption comprises 180 xylophone keys and 1450 individual parts. It took about five months to build, using laser machining and other cutting-edge technologies.

    nestle-japan-strikes-a-musical-note-3

    nestle-japan-strikes-a-musical-note-4

    nestle-japan-strikes-a-musical-note-5

    By using an app, customers at the Nescafe Harajuku outlet can choose an emoticon that befits their mood. A bird character then appears on the screen, and while their coffee is being made, the ball is released to play one of three Christmas tunes.

  • Alfred Dunhill opens concept store

    Alfred Dunhill opens concept store

    One year after a “garage” pop-up store in Paragon Singapore, British men’s luxury brand Alfred Dunhill has opened its first-ever concept store.

    Its fourth outlet in Singapore brings to life the brand’s heritage of motoring, saddlery and gentlemanly inventions and adventures, says president Francois Carrere.

    “Inspired by the Alfred Dunhill home Bourdon House, the store’s decor features rich textures, contemporary and vintage furnishings, and traditional English architectural accents,” he writes on LinkedIn.

    Dunhill’s roots in Singapore date back to its first store opening in 1971.

    Specialising in ready-to-wear, custom and bespoke menswear, leather goods, and accessories, the brand was founded by English tobacconist and inventor Alfred Dunhill in 1907.

    Dunhill was just 21 years old when he took over his father’s saddlery business in 1893. With the automobile becoming popular, he transformed the saddlery into an automobile accessories store, offering such non-standard (at the time) accoutrements as horns, lamps and dashboard clocks. Dunhill also made leather overcoats, goggles and other accessories for drivers.

    In 1907, Dunhill opened a tobacco shop, followed in 1910 by his own pipe factory. Tobacco proved so successful the company expanded with shops in Paris and New York. Dunhill was the first company to develop a lighter that could be used with one hand.

    The brand is now owned by Switzerland-based luxury goods holding company Richemont.

  • Macau retailers and restaurants struggling

    Macau retailers and restaurants struggling

    Most Macau retailers and restaurants have had a difficult October, reporting depressed sales.

    More than half of the city’s dining establishments had strong revenue declines for the month, with just a quarter reporting a slight improvement.

    According to the latest industry climate survey by the Department of Statistics and Census Services (DSEC), the 26 per cent of respondents who had increased turnover say this was driven by an increase in visitors to the city during the one-week National Day holiday.

    Overall, the rise in revenue was 5 per cent compared to September. But for 49 per cent of the Chinese restaurants interviewed and 13 per cent of the Japanese and Korean restaurants, revenue was up by 20 and 6 per cent respectively.

    However, 51 per cent of the respondents reported a decrease in turnover of 12 per cent overall.

    Macau’s retail sector paints a similar picture. About 58 per cent of respondents (1 per cent more than in September) saw their turnover fall, while about 35 per cent (5 per cent more) reported increased sales.

    By sector, leather goods retailers had higher sales, as did 53 per cent of the watches, clocks and jewellery segment, half of adult clothing retailers, 44 per cent of supermarkets and 22 per cent of department stores.

    A 20 per cent or more drop in sales was reported by 78 per cent of department stores and 60 per cent of cosmetics and healthcare retailers.

    Survey respondents do not expect the situation to change soon.