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Tag: Central Food Retail

  • Big year-end discounts on way

    Big year-end discounts on way

    The government seeks cooperation from retailers and wholesalers to cut product prices to help reduce consumers’ expenses and stimulate the economy in the final month of the year.

    The government is set to team up with wholesalers and retailers, which together have 13,500 branches nationwide, to cut product prices by 20%-80% to help reduce consumers’ expenses and stimulate the economy in the final month of the year.

    Commerce Minister Apiradi Tantraporn said the Internal Trade Department has been assigned to discuss with retailers and wholesalers, including hypermarket and supermarket operators, the possibility of holding special promotions to spur spending among Thais and tourists during December.

    “The ministry has cooperated with retailers and wholesalers to organise various activities to cut living costs since late 2015,” she said. “The campaign for this year-end promises special events with discounts as high as 80% for certain items.”

    Mrs Apiradi insisted the discounts will be given to brand-new products, not those currently on sale. Products that will feature in the campaign include food and beverages, consumer goods, electrical appliances, garments and accessories.

    The Business Development Department has also been instructed to talk with retail outlets under its supervision to participate in the year-end special discount programme, particularly for items like milled rice, instant noodles, vegetable oil, seasonings, detergent, dishwashing liquid, fabric softener, toothpaste and shampoo.

    She said the ministry has also asked for cooperation from department stores and retail outlets to hold special events or sales promotions to stimulate rice purchases to help local rice farmers.

    Retailers and wholesalers who are expected to participate in the scheme include the Thai Retailers Association, Siam Makro, the operator of Makro cash-and-carry store chain, Ek-chai Distribution System, the operator of Tesco Lotus hypermarkets, Big C Supercenter, Central Department Store, Robinson Department Store, Central Food Retail, the Mall Group, Tang Hua Seng, CP All, Foodland supermarket, Aeon (Thailand), Saha Lawson, Central FamilyMart, CPF Trading and TCC Logistics & Warehouse.

    In a separate development, the savings and credit cooperatives of employees of Thai Airways International Plc (THAI) will support direct sales of rice from farmers, said Mrs Apiradi.

    Flt Lt Kanok Thongpurk, vice-president of THAI, said farmers will be allowed to sell their products through all channels of THAI employees’ savings and credit cooperatives as well as THAI offices both in the provinces and Bangkok, including Don Mueang and Suvarnabhumi airports.

    Meanwhile, the Public Warehouse Organization and agricultural cooperatives have been instructed to open their spaces for farmers to sell their grain.

  • Tops Thailand parent plans aggressive

    Tops Thailand parent plans aggressive

    Tops Thailand parent Central Food Retail has committed Bt6.5 billion (US$183 million) to open new stores during the next five years.

    At a function marking the Central Group’s supermarket subsidiary’s 20th anniversary this week, president Alistair Taylor said the company plans to add about 70 new stores annually to reach 600 by the end of 2021. It currently has 205.

    “For this year alone, we plan to allocate between Bt1.2 billion and Bt1.3 billion of investment capital in two areas,” he said.

    “Between Bt200 million and Bt300 million will be spent on a system to support our growth. Another Bt600 million will be spent on new stores, and between Bt400 million and Bt500 million on renovations of our existing supermarkets.”

    Central Food Retail operates 85 Tops Market stores, 51 Tops Daily and seven Central Food Hall stores, among other formats.

    The focus of the expansion plan will be rolling out new Tops Daily and Tops Market stores.

    Taylor says the plan will help the company maintain average growth of 10-15 per cent.

    Central Food Retail is also considering opportunities outside Thailand.

    “There are also many opportunities we have seen in neighbouring countries. However, there is no fixed plan decided by the company at this moment.”

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  • Matsumotokiyoshi Thailand to launch in Bangkok

    Matsumotokiyoshi Thailand to launch in Bangkok

    Japan’s largest drugstore Matsumotokiyoshi has chosen Thailand for its first international foray.

    Matsumotokiyoshi Thailand is a joint venture between the Japanese company and Thai retail conglomerate Central Retail Food Corp who have formed Central & Matsumoto Kiyoshi Corp. Central owns 51 per cent.

    The first store will open in Bangkok at Central Plaza Ladprao this week and will be followed by a second before the end of the year.

    “We are confident to be successful here,” Junichi Tateno, CEO of the JV told a press briefing.

    Tateno says Thailand’s health and beauty market is worth 85 billion baht, or US$2.4 billion, annually and is continuing to grow. Thais, he says, have an interest in Japanese culture and products.

    Central has been test marketing some 200 Matsumotokiyoshi products in 23 Bangkok supermarkets for about a year to assess interest in Japanese beauty products. The results prompted the two companies to proceed with standalone stores, which will stock about 2000 SKUs from the Japanese company’s mainstream offer, together with products sourced from elsewhere.

    Matsumotokiyoshi, launched 85 years ago, has 1500 stores in Japan.

    The second Thai store will open at Central Plaza Pinklao and there are plans to open concessions in department stores from next year.