Burger King AsiaPac has signed a master franchise agreement with Nexus Point Management to further develop the fast-food brand in Taiwan.
Terms of the transaction have not been disclosed.
Burger King president Jose Cil says Taiwan is one of the largest quick-service restaurant markets in Asia Pacific.
Nexus Point managing partner Kuo Chuan Kung says it will accelerate the expansion of Burger King restaurants in the market and make further investments in technology and infrastructure.
The burger chain also has outlets in China, India, South Korea and Vietnam. Founded in 1954, i has more than 16,000 locations in more than 100 countries. It is owned by Restaurant Brands International.
Nexus Point is an Asian private equity fund with a focus on greater China.
Global leaders in using data science and AI to solve real business problems and make a tangible difference to people, Rich Data Corporation (RDC) is now working with China-based Fortune 500 company Midea Smart Home to support its app development and drive more innovation around consumer data and artificial intelligence. This five-year partnership is set to positively impact the lives of millions through data and smart home technology.
The promise of the smart home is finally ready to be realised in 2018, with connected devices now capable of monitoring our appliances to anticipate malfunctions, detecting utility usage patterns to provide energy-saving recommendations, and making a range of everyday appliances more fun and convenient to use. Market-leading researchers Ovum have predicted that 2018 will represent an inflection point for smart home technology, with many businesses already primed to explore the retail impact of the smart home.
RDC is leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to bolster Midea Smart Home services; in order to enrich the lives of consumers who increasingly demand a tech-enabled, smart home experience to match the digital lives they lead outside the home. Consumers in APAC are some of the most digitally-forward in the world – expecting convenient payment, shopping, and communication services at their fingertips, and increasingly looking for the same conveniences within their home.
To preempt consumer needs and provide a holistic, tech-enabled lifestyle ecosystem, RDC has deployed an AI-based personalised recommendation engine within Midea Smart Home’s Meiju app. Now, consumers can enjoy compelling, proactive recommendations tailored to their dynamic smart home needs. This superior customer experience is made possible through advanced machine learning algorithms via RDC’s innovative platform.
“The Midea Smart Home team is changing the conversation with our customers and providing them with products and services that are highly relevant for their daily life via our Meiju app,” stated Mr Qiang Li, General Manager of Midea Smart Home. “RDC’s ability to add intelligence to our deep reserves of consumer data, and their rapid deployment of AI technology enables us to service and engage our customers in a more personalised and meaningful way.”
Ada Guan, CEO of Rich Data Corporation stated, “Our ultimate vision is to use our data skills to make a difference for people and business; helping enterprises unlock new opportunities while improving everyday life for consumers through data and AI smart home solutions. We are thrilled to be working with a prestigious, global brand like Midea Smart Home. This is the first step in an ongoing journey to leverage AI, consumer and household data in order to set smart living standards for millions of home globally.”
The RDC Recommendation Engine is currently live for all 3 million Meiju app users within China. The partnership also marks RDC’s entry into the Chinese market, furthering the company’s expansion into the Asia region.
Novotown, an integrated project with a mix of cultural and entertainment attractions currently under development in Hengqin Zhuhai by Lai Sun Group, today announced a slew of new strategic partners at a ceremony attended by Zengqing Luo, Deputy Director of the Administrative Committee of Hengqin New Area, and representatives of concept brands and media.
Novotown’s strategic partners include China Mobile Group Guangdong Co., Ltd. Zhuhai Branch, CITIC Bank, Trans-Island Limousine Service Ltd. and travel partners Guangdong Gongbei Port China Travel Service Ltd., Guang Zhilv (GZL) International Travel Service Ltd. and Century Holiday International Travel Group. These partners will work closely with Novotown to craft and build a quality community in the Greater Bay Area.
‘Novotown is Lai Sun Group’s flagship project in the Greater Bay Area which aligns ideally with China central government’s Greater Bay Area development plan.’ said John Tse, Chief Executive Officer of Novotown. ‘We’re delighted that so many quality partners are coming onboard to support our grand vision for one of the most immersive and participative tourism and entertainment destinations in China, fostering high technology, travel, culture and creativity to benefit economic development of the area.’
He added, ‘Novotown has great potential to become the landmark of Hengqin. Together with other lifestyle elements and infrastructure, I am confident that Novotown will become a quality living, leisure and creative destination for both domestic and international audiences.’
China Mobile unveiled its plans to launch its first concept store in Hengqin at Novotown to elevate retail experience of its guests. In addition, the brand will also introduce a ‘smart mall’ concept to Novotown – by logging-in to the shopping mall’s Wifi system, customers can get access to comprehensive services, such as parking payment, restaurant and locker reservation, locating stores and receiving coupons, via app or website. The system also grants tenants access to certain customer data, which could allow them to better craft their marketing strategies.
Meanwhile, CITIC Bank intends to open a branch at Novotown, providing financial services for the residents, tenants and travellers in the area.
Trans-Island Limousine Service Ltd. will provide point-to-point shuttle bus services between Hong Kong and Novotown via the new Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge to encourage customer traffic, while Guangdong Gongbei Port China Travel Service, Guang Zhilv (GZL) International Travel Service and Century Holiday International Travel Group will also help to promote multiple travel products available at the destination to international, mainland China and Hong Kong tourists.
Wenqiang Hu, Director and General Manager of Guangdong Gongbei Port China Travel Service Ltd., said: ‘We are very excited to be the strategic partner of Novotown. As travellers are more sophisticated these days, Novotown’s partnerships with world-renowned brands create a diverse range of themed entertainment experiences, which together with their comprehensive infrastructure, are the key elements that help us attract these travellers in such keen competition. We are happy to work closely with Novotown and promote it as a vibrant and creative lifestyle community in the Greater Bay Area.’
In addition to strategic partners, a range of China’s popular concept brands was a part of the ceremony today. They included Super Species, Sports Infinite, and Hutaoli Music Restaurant & Bar.
Adjacent to Macau, Novotown is positioned as a cultural and creative incubator. Benefiting from China (Guangdong) Pilot Free Trade Zone and Special Economic Zone policies, Novotown has been actively developing a wide range of leisure facilities which helps elevate the quality of life in the Greater Bay Area. With the addition of other confirmed partners including Lionsgate, National Geographic, Taipei Wellness Clinic and Resort, Real Madrid Football Club, Porsche and a world-class institute, the Innovation Leadership Academy Hengqin managed by Harrow International (China), Novotown is gearing up to become a vibrant and creative lifestyle community in the Greater Bay Area.
On 24 November 2017, LANCÔME Travel Retail Asia Pacific, leading French luxury beauty brand, unveiled the brand’s latest 2020 retail concept at its newly revamped No.1 Point-of-sale (POS) at Haitang Bay, China. The latest in line to celebrate the brand’s ‘Declaring Happiness’ global campaign across Asia, the grand opening event was graced by international celebrity and Brand Friend, Wu Zun, who officiated the ribbon cutting ceremony and attended the opening of the interactive Declaring Happiness popup concept. Wu Zun was also joined by the likes of 17 top Chinese social media influencers such as LU ⼀丝 and ⼩猪姐姐 in spreading beauty and happiness with LANCÔME’s consumers. Having achieved an astounding digital outreach of 127 million via WeChat, Weibo and livestreaming, the event was a tremendous success in elevating the brand’s digital presence and generating genuine brand engagement with consumers. Further bolstering brand engagement and buzz on social media, the influencers also shared additional Weibo stories and WeChat moments in appreciation of LANCÔME’s hospitality at the event.
Currently the No.1 POS for the LANCÔME brand worldwide, the Haitang Bay store is the
largest travel retail store at 120sqm and the second store to unveil the brand’s latest 2020 retail
identity, opening after Lotte Hotel in Seoul, South Korea. Consistent with LANCÔME’s global
strategy to roll out a new retail design language that is fully consumer-centric, the new
Haitang Bay store is efficiently adapted towards the travel retail channel. “The introduction of
the 2020 retail identity to our No.1 POS and largest store in Haitang Bay marks a key milestone
in LANCÔME Travel Retail Asia Pacific’s plans to transform and optimise our stores for the
modern traveller. The design concept of the new 2020 store is set to provide an immersive brand
environment for consumers to fully experience the world of LANCÔME, while at the same time
offer time-pressed travellers a quality and smooth shopping experience through the store’s
thoughtful layout and features,” says Ms. Tao Zhang, General Manager of LANCÔME
Travel Retail Asia Pacific.
(L-R): Ms. Cao Xiaodan, Deputy General Manager of Sanya International Duty Free Shopping Complex, Mr. Luke Chang, Director of Cosmetics & Confectionary Department, CDFG, Ms. Liu Jing, General Manager of Sanya International Duty Free Shopping Complex, Mr. Wu Zun, International Celebrity and Brand Friend, Ms. Tao Zhang, General Manager of LANCÔME Travel Retail Asia Pacific, Mr. Don Huang, Area Manager of LANCÔME Travel Retail Asia Pacific, Ms. Anna-Maria Marini, Marketing Manager of LANCÔME Travel Retail Asia Pacific
Designed with a Parisian ‘apartment with a view’ concept, the new Haitang Bay store is an
inspirational place full of discovery with elegant touches of Parisian chic featured throughout the
store. The interior is warmly lit with soothing tones of greys, white and warm wood to create a
more intimate and welcoming feel for customers. Against a backdrop of virtual video walls
reminiscent of bay windows in a Parisian apartment overlooking the breathtaking panoramas of
Paris, customers will be taken through the beautiful four seasons with roses and petal rain or
Parisian night under starry firmament taking turn to decorate the walls. Other key elements to the store include sharing tables for skincare and makeup, as well as a Grab & Go counter.
Featuring the newest product launches, the sharing tables encourage customers to discover LANCÔME’s world of beauty, from experimenting with different makeup textures and colours to customising their skincare routine through one-on-one personal consultations with LANCÔME’s beauty experts. Latest launches and travel exclusives are also available at the Grab & Go counter for an easy and fuss-free experience.
In celebration of the Haitang Bay store reopening, LANCÔME Travel Retail Asia Pacific also
introduced an interactive pop-up concept that blends retail with entertainment at four
different online and offline touchpoints named after the brand’s key products – Génifique, Absolue, L’Absolu Rouge and Miracle Zones. The Virtual Mirror at the L’Absolue Rouge Zone, which is an augmented reality virtual makeover application that allows guests to experiment with different face and lip makeup looks, was an instant hit at the event. At the Génifique Zone, guests also had the opportunity to win a sample of Advanced Génifique Sensitive through a touch-screen interactive game vending machine. Complimentary engraving services were also available at the Absolue Zone, where guests can choose to personalise their very own LANCÔME mirrors. While experiencing the Miracle Blossom fragrance at the Miracle Zone, guests were also seen playing with the swing photo booth to recreate their fun Parisian moments against the beautiful backdrop of the Eiffel Tower.
In addition to the retail-tainment zones, the 17 Chinese social media influencers also participated
in a LANCÔME skincare and makeup workshop held within the store. Leveraging on livestreaming social sharing to expand the workshop’s audience reach beyond those who were
physically present, social media influencers brought LANCÔME workshop experience to their
followers, inviting them to join in the LANCÔME brand universe through organic, usergenerated
content and engagement via their personal brand journey at the event.
In December, the LANCÔME ‘Declaring Happiness’ campaign will make its final stop at Hong
Kong.
Marni China has reopened its renovated boutique in Shanghai’s Reel Department Store in the downtown district of Jing’An.
To celebrate the event, the Italian luxury fashion brand hosted its first-ever Marni Christmas Carnival.
This featured a limited-edition range of “Marni Visitors”, puppets the brand commissions from Colombian artisans for the festive season each year. A portion of proceeds from the sale of the puppets worldwide go to the Milan-based children’s charity Piccolo Principe.
In addition, five limited-edition trunk bags were also designed for the carnival.
The Shanghai store is one of 15 the brand has in China.
Founded in 1994, Marni has been undergoing a transformation since creative director Francesco Risso took over from founder/designer Consuelo Castiglioni last year. Risso was previously the designer of Prada womenswear.
Handsome, the fashion unit of South Korean retailer Hyundai Department Store Group, has signed a deal to help accelerate its move into the Chinese consumer market.
An agreement between its fashion label The Cashmere with Hong Kong’s retail/brand-management/distribution firm ImagineX Group involves supplying five coat styles to Club Monaco outlets in China.
ImagineX represents such brands as DKNY, Jo Malone and Salvatore Ferragamo, and has more than 250 points of sale throughout Asia including Singapore and Taiwan.
Handsome has previously taken its System and System Homme brands abroad. It has also clinched a deal with Artifacts, a boutique store in Taiwan that has six outlets in Taipei and Taichung. Earlier this year, the two clothing labels were picked up by department stores and shopping malls in China as well as the Galeries Lafayette department store in Paris.
Handsome entered the Chinese market early this year by partnering with Hangzhou Zhiheng Industrial.
Founded in 1987, Handsome was bought by Hyundai Home Shopping Network in 2012. It owns a string of fashion labels including Mine, System and Time.
Chinese tech accessory brand Baseus has opened its first flagship store in the Philippines.
The Shenzhen company has partnered with Digits CEO Charles Paw for its outlets in the Philippines, and opened its first store in Trinoma, Quezon City.
Baseus makes cellphone accessories and gadgets such as car chargers, multi-use cables, car mounts, flash drives, wireless chargers and power bank cases. It has received such accolades as the IF Design Award, and plans to open 10 stores a year in the Philippines.
It is offering special deals to mark the store launch.
Seoul will have one of six Chanel flagship stores being launched next year, with the brand also about to open in Beijing’s China World mall.
“These will be either brand new stores or major re-openings, which will be very impactful,” says Chanel fashion and accessories divisions president Bruno Pavlovsky.
On December 1, Chanel opened a second Tokyo flagship in Ginza following a three-year renovation by architect Peter Marino.
Just before that, designer Karl Lagerfeld was in Chengdu, where Chanel reprised its Ancient Greek Goddess cruise collection, originally shown in Paris in May.
“We scored 698 million hits from that show on WeChat and Weibo and so on,” says Pavlovsky. “That impact allows us to create an accessible dream: a chance to see and touch and understand what the brand is all about. That has nothing to do with customers – we don’t have 500 million customers in our boutiques.”
He believes the key equation in luxury is balancing accessibility to the dream with exclusivity inside boutiques. This is why Chanel’s e-commerce is essentially limited to beauty and eyewear.
“Chanel is not a click,” says Pavlovsky. “But when you think of a $5000 jacket or a $10,000 dress, the customer experience has to be more than just a click.”
He says business in China has been boosted by the policy of global price harmonisation he started introducing in 2015. “We see more and more Chinese in China coming to our boutiques regularly.
They don’t need to travel to Paris, New York or London to buy Chanel, and this is very important.”
One vehicle to boost sales in China will be harnessing influencers, says Pavlovsky. “What is interesting about influencers in China is their point of view of the brand. Some are followed by 20 or 25 million people, which is quite impressive. And they are very clear that what their followers want from them is a point of view. We have to work with them not to dilute this kind of positioning.”
Ford Motor Company in China is in talks with Alibaba’s Tmall that could see itmay soon be selling cars through Tmall and an “Automotive Vending Machine” concept.
The “Automotive Vending Machine” is a multi-storey parking garage that partly resembles a giant vending machine which allows consumer to use their phones to browse through the cars and choose to either test drive or buy a vehicle.
Once they’ve made their choice, the vehicle is delivered to them on the ground floor.
According to the Detroit News, the US automaker has signed a three-year agreement signed with Alibaba Group to expand its footprint in China, following a visit to Alibaba headquarters by Ford CEO Jim Hackett and executive chairman Bill Ford Jr.
Just last month Ford inked a $756 million partnership with Anhui Zotye Automobile Co to build electric vehicles, and more recently Hackett and Ford announced plans to bring 50 new vehicles to market in China by 2025 – including five new models in China.
This plays well with Alibaba’s efforts to “redefine” the retail experience.
Their first priority is to come up with new ways for people to buy, maintain and own vehicles using the internet, computers or other technology.
Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding plans to invest about US$200 million in India’s online supermarket Bigbasket.
This leads a $280 million funding round and would give it a stake of about 25 per cent in the startup, insiders say. The deal is awaiting approval from the Competition Commission of India.
Based in Bangalore, the grocer has previously had investment discussions with Amazon.com, which was given government approval this year to invest $500 million into food retailing. Founder Jeff Bezos has said he will invest $5 billion in India.
Meanwhile, Alibaba has invested in One97 Communications, which runs digital payment and e-commerce businesses.
Owned by Innovative Retail Concepts, Bigbasket has TV commercials featuring Bollywood actor Shahrukh Khan. The company offers delivery in more than 25 cities and offers 18,000 products from 1000-plus brands.
Luxury brands have started embracing e-commerce in China, says the Luxury China report released by digital marketing company L2.
It says 91 per cent of luxury brands in China had gone online by June last year, more than double the 43 per cent using e-commerce 12 months earlier.
This comes as Chinese millennials and generation Z are set to become the dominant driver of luxury consumption over the next decade, according to the 2017 Chinese Luxury E-Commerce Whitebook report from high-end e-commerce platform Secoo and data company Tencent.
The average age of the online shopper of luxury goods in China is now 25, 15 years younger than the average age of European luxury consumers, and 20 years younger than those in the US. These young consumers are stepping up their buying of minority brands – as opposed to high-profile labels – in a quest for more personalised and less mainstream experiences. For example, the streetwear trend has gradually become more mainstream, leading to more young people embracing such brands as Supreme and Vetements.
“Consumers are no longer too loyal to one specific brand, but want luxury brands that speak for themselves,” says a Deloitte global luxury consumption survey about millennium consumers. “They are more willing to pay attention to trendy brands with stories.”
Secoo has announced partnerships with niche brands including Corto Moltedo, Maison Kistune and Mr&Mrs Italy, which has been popularised by a South Korean TV series. Corto Moltedo is known for its entirely handmade bags.
Corto Moltedo and Mr&Mrs Italy have signed exclusive co-operation agreements with Secoo, and all their collections are sold simultaneously across the world at the same prices.
Tigers has transported 29 large bronze wildlife sculptures from Cape Town, South Africa to London, United Kingdom for conservationist-turned-artist Bruce Little’s largest exhibition to date, held at the Mall Galleries.
The sculptures ranged from a tiny Harvester Mouse, measuring just 10cm long, 10cm wide, and 10cm high, and weighing three kilograms, to a Leopard, measuring 450cm long, 160cm wide, and 120cm high, and weighing 250 kilograms.
“We loaded the sculptures under the watchful eye of the artist himself, Bruce Little, and re-palletised and delicately wrapped them to ensure a safe and secure movement to the gallery,” said Trevor Weeks, Branch Manager, London Heathrow Airport, Tigers.
“Twenty-nine large sculptures arrived in an ocean freight container at Tigers’ London Heathrow Airport facility, and were cleared as temporary import with a view to possible sale, providing the customer with the most cost-effective solution.
“A further 31 smaller sculptures were moved from an address in the UK, and were delivered together at the Mall Galleries, using a vehicle mounted forklift truck to assist the gallery team with offloading.”
Tigers collected the sculptures from the Mall Galleries after the exhibition had ended, and delivered them to another location in the UK for a private show.
“Hosting an exhibition, the scale of which we have just had in London, is no easy feat particularly when the source of work has come from thousands of kilometres away,” said Bruce Little.
“Fortunately, we have companies like Tigers at our disposal that have assisted seamlessly in delivering our bronzes where and when they are supposed to be.
“Last year they moved a monumental lion for me from Cape Town to Longleat, Wiltshire, UK, which weighed approximately five tonnes and this too went without a hitch.
“I am most grateful for Tigers and their associates that have made it possible for me to exhibit around the world.”
Tigers operates seven offices in the United Kingdom, including London Heathrow Airport, Gatwick Airport, Felixstowe, Cardiff, Banbury, and Leeds.
That would be the company’s new Shanghai Roastery, a 30,000 square-foot “coffee wonderland,” which opened Tuesday and is Starbucks’ largest store to date.
Located in the company’s fastest-growing country, the new Roastery is double the size of the original in Seattle that opened in 2014. It features three coffee bars offering multiple brewing methods; a 3D-printed tea bar; an Italian bakery, Princi; and a ceiling built with 10,000 handmade wooden hexagon-shaped tiles. There’s also a two-story, 40-ton copper cask with more than 1,000 hand-engraved Chinese stamps that tell the story of Starbucks and coffee.
Technology is weaved into the store, including Starbucks’ first-ever in-store augmented reality experience, built in partnership with Chinese tech giant Alibaba, which is also selling Roastery coffee and merchandise on its Tmall online marketplace. Yahoo noted that sales on Tmall reached $1 million in the 48 hours before the Roastery opened.
People gather in the new Starbucks Roastery in Shanghai, China. Photographed on Friday, December 1, 2017.
An augmented reality app is used in the new Starbucks Roastery in Shanghai, China. Photographed on Friday, December 1, 2017.
Starbucks plans to open more Roastery locations next year in Milan and New York City; and in Chicago and Tokyo in 2019. Speaking at the GeekWire Summit in October, Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson explained that the Roastery stores act as “a center of innovation” for the company, which now has 27,000 stores in 75 countries and serves 90 million customers per week.
“You’ll see us invest in taking the innovation we get from the Roasteries and propagate it throughout all our Starbucks stores around the world,” Johnson said.
China represents Starbucks’ fastest-growing market with more than 3,000 stores across 136 cities, and 600 alone in Shanghai. The company posted same-store sales growth of 8 percent in the most recent quarter for China, compared to a 2 percent global average growth for stores worldwide. In July, Starbucks paid $1.3 billion to acquire the remaining shares in its East China business as it unified mainland China as a company-operated market.
At a press event in Shanghai this week, Johnson said that China will become Starbucks’ fastest-growing market within a decade, according to the South China Morning Post.
“If you look at the growing middle class in China and the opportunity for more and more people to frequent Starbucks, we can build stores in China for decades and still have runway to build more,” Johnson said at the GeekWire Summit.
Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson speaks at the 2017 GeekWire Summit.
China can also act as a testbed for the company’s new digital products and services, given that there are nearly 700 million smartphone users. In July, Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz hinted that Starbucks would partner with more Chinese tech companies “based on the fact that the consumer in China is well more advanced than the U.S. consumer in terms of being a digital native.” It previously partnered with another Chinese tech giant, Tencent, for social gifting integration on WeChat.
At the GeekWire Summit, Johnson noted that Starbucks is working to create a “unified commerce platform” that enables its rewards program to work seamlessly across international markets.
“The key factor is some software that our teams are writing that is rolling out country by country around the world, and it might take us another two years to touch every country,” he noted.
Asked how Starbucks creates a consistent customer experience at its stores around the world while staying true to local culture, Johnson said it’s about creating a welcoming store environment, providing top quality coffee, and most importantly, human connection — the “one thing that every single one of us on this planet has in common.”
“We’ve all experienced joy and sorrow; we’ve all experienced the struggle and the success,” Johnson explained. “So just anchoring on the fact that human beings, we are tribal people — we get energy from one another. If you create an environment where people are connecting with other people in our stores, it works everywhere.”
Johnson also talked about how Starbucks ties together a physical store experience with digital innovation.
“One, you must be focused on experiential retail that creates an experience in your store that becomes a destination for the customer,” Johnson explained when asked about what physical retailers must consider in 2017. “And number two, you have to extend that experience from brick-and-mortar to a digital-mobile relationship. So our approach to this is investing in elevating the experience we create in our stores, and investing in the digital-mobile connection we have with our customers.”
What is the quintessential New York experience in the eyes of Chinese luxury travelers? How does it differ between men and women, and for millennials?
To answer these questions, we spoke with independent tour operators who organize tours of the city for HNWI (high-net-worth individuals) from mainland China. These are the four things they’re looking for.
1. Fodder for their WeChat
Even affluent Chinese travelers like to get a bargain. But in New York City, shopping is often less of a priority because only American brands such as Kate Spade and Tory Burch are cheaper than they can find them elsewhere. Instead, what attracts them most is the experience of shopping in an exclusively NYC style that will impress their friends on WeChat. To accomplish this, they prefer to interact with local people as much as possible.
“VIP luxury shoppers are regularly invited to stores’ grand openings in China, [so] when they travel abroad, they expect a similar ‘rolling out the red carpet’ kind of experience,” said Serena Huang, founder of YOLO luxury travel, a New York-based boutique travel agency.
High-end retail stores such as Barneys and Bergdorf Goodman are considered must-visits.
2. Personal Shopping Assistants
In order to maximize their time in New York, they expect to shop with the help of a personal assistant and a mandarin-speaking translator.
A good personal shopper can intuit a client’s style immediately, and knows the equivalent sizing across different brands, making the experience seamlessly efficient. They are also knowledgeable about local fashion trends, and can offer an expert eye on some more sophisticated luxury goods that travelers won’t come across in China.
3. Chances for Career and Social Advancement
According to Huang, Chinese women usually shop for themselves and family, whereas men like to buy business gifts. This different shopping preference reflects the type of events they wish to attend in store.
In partnership with a third party, usually a financial institution like Morgan Stanley or Wells Fargo, tour operators often collaborate with luxury retailers to host networking events. They bring high-net-worth clients from China, mostly men interested in making career connections with New York-based professionals. In such settings, the store and the goods displayed function as an ice-breaker, and an opportunity to display their purchasing power. It’s a chance to shop their way to the top.
In contrast, a lot of female travelers’ main ambition is to arrange a meaningful and educational tour for their kids. They want luxury stores to create tailor-made programs to entertain the kids while they shop, such as etiquette classes for mingling with Western elites.
4. Secret Spots
For younger affluent Chinese travelers, itineraries are influenced by media and KOLs. They like to visit independent stores around Soho and art galleries in Chelsea during the day, and sip cocktails in a speakeasy in the East Village at night. Local, hidden gems excite them.
One tour operator told us, for example, that they will take clients to a secret lingerie museum inside the Victoria’s Secret’s store on Fifth Avenue, which opened in May this year. Its latest exhibit features a $3 million angels’ bra, Gigi Hadid’s bodysuit, and Stella Maxwell’s crystal-encrusted one-piece from last year’s Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in Paris. A lingerie expert will also introduce the fashion show’s history and host a pajama party, where she offers tips on wearing bras the correct way.
Other experiences on young travelers’ bucket list include Tiffany‘s newly opened Blue Box Cafe, which offers them a chance to channel their inner Audrey Hepburn.
Alipay, the world’s largest online, mobile payment and lifestyle platform operated by Ant Financial Services Group, today launched this year’s “Double 12” Global Shopping Festival in 15 countries spanning across four continents. In addition, Ant Financial’s strategic partners in Hong Kong, India, Thailand and the Philippines will introduce campaigns for their local e-wallet users for the first time. These partners include Paytm in India, TrueMoney in Thailand, and GCash in the Philippines. Together with CK Hutchison Holdings (“CK Hutchison), AlipayHK was launched in Hong Kong earlier this year to further develop local service offerings in the city.
In short, we call it ‘glocalization.’” Douglas Feagin, President of International Business, Ant Financial Services Group said at the launch ceremony. “This concept is about developing Alipay globally while also developing localized service offerings.”
“Working with our global merchants network, we also continue to focus on enhancing the Alipay mobile payment experience for Mainland Chinese tourists wherever they travel,” he added. “In particular, some of our most attractive Double 12 promotions are in the Greater Bay Area, where millions of Chinese travellers regularly visit.”
As part of this year’s Double 12 Shopping Festival, almost 10,000 merchants in Hong Kong and Macau will offer exclusive discounts throughout December to Alipay users from Mainland China. This year, a key feature of this year’s Double 12 offering is focused on Hong Kong delicacies to attract Mainland China users. In Hong Kong’s Mongkok district, a promotion of “Hong Kong snacks for 1 RMB” can be enjoyed by Alipay users. In the Guangdong province, Alipay users will receive a cashback for every payment made in over 2 million stores.
Venetia Lee, General Manager of Alipay Hong Kong, Taiwan & Macau said, “Our aim is to provide a seamless payment and travel experience to millions of Alipay users who constantly travel to the Greater Bay Area. We will plan to launch more integrated campaigns to further enhance our user experience and bring more value to our merchant network in the region.”
Jennifer Tan, CEO designate of the joint venture between CK Hutchison and Ant Financial that offers AlipayHK separately commented on plans for Hong Kong. “Building on Alipay’s success in mainland China, we are rolling out a creative, localized payment experience for our Hong Kong users. Participating in this year’s Double 12 Festival is a first step towards that, and we are very excited to be partnering with so many local merchants to bring this festival to life by providing exclusive offerings to AlipayHK users.”
CK Hutchison and Ant Financial first announced the strategic partnership in September 2017. The joint venture remains subject to regulatory approval, and is expected to complete in the first quarter of 2018.
AlipayHK has partnered with over 8,000 brick-and-mortar stores to offer exclusive gifts, discounts and rewards throughout December. In addition, vendors in the Po Tat Market will offer “1 Dollar Groceries” flash sale on December 12.
Alipay is also working with partners across Southeast Asia to launch localized versions of Double 12 shopping festival. In Thailand for example, more than 10,000 merchants will be participating in the 1212 D-day Deals for TrueMoney users while 3,000 merchants will offer exclusive discounts on 1212 GCash Day in the Philippines.
Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson speaks at the 2017 GeekWire Summit.
