Retail News CRM

Tag: Malaysia

  • Foodpanda Malaysia reaches 700

    Foodpanda Malaysia reaches 700

    In just three years, Foodpanda Malaysia has expanded its offer from 40 restaurants to more than 700.

    The online restaurant food delivery service this month markets its third birthday, with country manager of Foodpanda Malaysia, Sidney Ng, reflecting on how the business launched with just 40 restaurants operating in the Klang Valley, home to capital Kuala Lumpur..

    Now Ng says the network is larger than 700 and covers most major cities in the country, including Johor Bahru, Penang, Ipoh and Melaka.

    “Foodpanda Malaysia has come a long way,” said Ng.

    “From just taking orders via our website, progressing to a mobile friendly site and finally developing a mobile application.

    “We recognise modern consumers are moving towards mobile technology and we want to make ordering food as seamless as just a few taps on our app. We will also be launching a new version of our app very soon that will simplify the order process.”

    Foodpanda Malaysia has plans to expand its current delivery zones within the Klang Valley and to launch operations in Kota Kinabalu. It also plans to add more restaurants and to further develop its website, mobile application and overall operations.

    “We treasure our partnership with Foodpanda – they have definitely improved with leap and bounds in terms of both number of orders and operation efficiency since they started,” says Billie, the owner of Puzzini Pizza – one of Foodpanda’s early restaurants.

    Foodpanda Group is the leading global food delivery marketplace, active in 39 countries in five continents.

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  • Myer may be planning to close stores

    Myer may be planning to close stores

    Australian retail giant Myer could close seven stores to help reignite sales growth, analysts say.

    The department store chain has a number of underperforming stores that could be closed to simplify the business and improve its financial performance, Citigroup analysts said.

    Myer has 67 stores across Australia, mostly in capital cities, but also in regional centres including Bendigo, Ballarat, Dubbo, Orange, Wagga and Mackay. Sales could also be boosted by lifting staff numbers and spending more on marketing, the Citi analysts said.

  • Foodpanda Malaysia eats up rival

    Foodpanda Malaysia eats up rival

    Foodpanda Malaysia is now the largest food delivery service in the country after the US$110 million funding and acquisition of rival Food Runner Group.

    Sidney Ng, country manager of foodpanda Malaysia said the funding from investors underlined the confidence in the venture’s business model and the acquisition of Room Service brought significant synergies.

    Room Service has been in the food delivery industry since 2003 focusing mainly on high end restaurant food delivery in the Klang Valley.

    “With Room Service’s expertise in delivery system and Foodpanda’s strong online marketing, we believe that this synergy will bring in greater food variety and greater delivery efficiency to further delight our customers. This cements our commitment to bring the best restaurant experience directly to the doorsteps of Malaysia,” said Ng.

    Ralf Wenzel, co-founder and CEO of the Foodpanda Group said the investment and acquisition were further steps in the company becoming the leading online food delivery marketplace across the most promising and fastest growing emerging markets internationally.

    “The new funding allows us to fully focus on user experience and customer service with the aim of completely disrupting the way people order food by establishing a real alternative to pizza flyers and phone calls.”

    Foodpanda Group is active in 39 countries on five continents. The company enables restaurants to become visible in the online and mobile world and provides them with a constantly evolving online technology. For consumers, the group’s Foodpanda  and Hellofood brands offer the convenience of ordering food online and the widest gastronomic range, from which they can choose their favorite meal on the web or via an app.

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  • Spotlight Malaysia opens second store

    Spotlight Malaysia opens second store

    Australian fabric, craft, party and home and living superstore Spotlight has opened its second store in Malaysia.

    The new stores is in the IPC Shopping Centre, Mutiara Damansara in Petaling Jaya, near Kuala Lumpur. It follows one in Ampang Point, Kuala Lumpur, which opened last July.

    Spotlight Malaysia 7-315.

    The store offers 2000sqm of retail space, and stocks 70,000 products in six categories: home furnishings and decor, bedding, dress and fashion fabrics, crafts, hobby and party essentials.

    Spotlight Malaysia 315

    Spotlight GM Juno Gelfand said the expansion to the IPC mall was part of Spotlight’s philosophy “to be able to offer more neighbourhoods the largest possible choice of fashionable and affordable products”.

    Spotlight Malaysia 6-315.

    “We know too well the inconvenience of searching far and wide, running from store to store just to find that one (or more) beautiful decor piece.

    Spotlight Malaysia 4- 315.

    “Here, with all-time popular home essentials and seasonal selections of products for every room of the house available under one roof, we are certain that sprucing up the home will be less stressful and hassle-free,” he said.

    Spotlight Malaysia 3- 315.

    Spotlight Malaysia 2- 315.

    “Think of it as a pit-stop whenever you are preparing for a party, breathing new life into your home interiors, or pursuing your hobbies.”

    Spotlight Malaysia 5- 315.Spotlight Malaysia 1 - 315.

    Spotlight is targeting home decorators, dressmakers, hobbyists and DIY enthusiasts as well as party organisers.

  • Lend Lease to partner in $2bn Malaysia project

    Lend Lease to partner in $2bn Malaysia project

    Australia’s Lend Lease has signed up to develop a new retail and residential development in Malaysia.

    Lend Lease will have a 60 per cent stake in The Lifestyle Quarter with local developer 1MDB Real Estate the balance.

    1MDB is the master developer for an upcoming international financial district called Tun Razak Exchange. The Lifestyle Quarter will be a retail‐led, mixed‐use development of over 17 acres comprising a new retail mall, several residential towers and a hotel connected to a multilayer central park and the largest MRT station in Kuala Lumpur. When completed it will have a Gross Development Value estimated at MYR 8 billion (US$2.156 billion).

    The two companies signed a Master Framework Agreement last October, and late last week signed a formal JV agreement in the presence of Malaysia’s Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak.

    Lend Lease Asia CEO Rod Leaver, said the two companies will transform TRX into “an iconic destination”.

    “With our global track record in large scale urban regeneration in partnership with national and city governments, coupled with  our over 35 year history in Malaysia, we are confident of making the TRX Lifestyle Quarter an outstanding success with our partner.”

    TRX aims to become a global hub for international finance and business.

    Lend Lease has a growing portfolio of property interests in Malaysia, the most recent being Setia City Mall.

    The company was selected from a pool of international and local bidders to partner with 1MDB RE in the Lifestyle Quarter development following an invitation to participate as a strategic development partner.

    The Lifestyle Quarter will form the social heart of the TRX precinct. It aims to offer a series of modern lifestyle experiences and set new benchmarks not only in terms of design, but for the types of retailers, dining establishments, outdoor spaces, leisure activities and entertainment options it provides.

    TRX will be one of the largest developments in Lend Lease’s current portfolio of global projects.

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  • FashionValet seals cash injection

    FashionValet seals cash injection

    A Malaysia online fashion destination started by a local married couple has attracted serious capital investment led by US private equity investor Elixir Capital.

    While the exact amount of the investment has not been disclosed by either party, the multimillion dollar injection will allow FashionValet to accelerate the expansion of its online reach through mobile e-commerce, big data strategies and original customer-centric content and to scale its operations into other Asian cities.

    Elixir Capital is a global private equity firm based in Silicon Valley, California.

    “The investment from Elixir Capital marks a significant step for FashionValet as we continue to really develop the brand beyond Malaysia and pave the way for retail e-commerce locally,” said the FashionValet’s co-Founder and CEO, Fadzarudin Anuar.

    “We’ve seen substantial e-commerce growth already, yet there’s room for much more in Malaysia, where there’s less than one percent penetration of sales online, as compared to 10 per cent in China, US and Western Europe, and we want to continue to foster this trend as one of the pioneering brands in the industry.”

    FashionValet tripled its revenue in 2014 on the way to becoming a leader in Malaysia’s online fashion sector. The company has managed to do this while keeping operations lean and reactive to community demand.

    “We were approached to be funded by several other companies, but Elixir Capital shared the same vision we had to grow FashionValet into a multi-million dollar company that champions local designers in Asia – which is what really convinced us to work with them,” added Vivy Yusof, co-Founder and chief creative officer of FashionValet.

    “FashionValet now forms the Southeast Asian centerpiece for Elixir’s multi-market investment platform in digital commerce, with accelerated enterprise growth and regional expansion serving as our investment thesis,” said Arshad Ahmed, MD of Elixir Capital.

    “FashionValet has the makings potentially of a homegrown Malaysian IPO in retail e-commerce.”

    FashionValet’s founders say they want to use the capital to better serve their customers and suppliers alike, and to improve the customer experience and product offering.

    FashionValet offers a wide selection of ready-to-wear garments, including Muslimah attire, with customers throughout Malaysia, Brunei, and Singapore. It stocks homegrown brands and designer products, serving as an outlet for up-and-coming designers across Asia.

  • 7-Eleven Malaysia thrives on store growth

    7-Eleven Malaysia thrives on store growth

    7-Eleven Malaysia says its quarterly profit soared 70 per cent on the back of an aggressive store expansion program.

    The listed company operated 1774 stores at the end of the December quarter – 200 more than at the end of 2013. It posted a profit of RM17.9 million (US$4.94 million) for the quarter compared with RM10.5 million ($2.9 million) a year earlier. Revenue rose 14 per cent to RM481.1 million ($132.7 million).

    Full year net profit was up 44 per cent to RM63.7 million ($17.6 million) fuelled by growing sales and gross profit margin and store network expansion.

    Sales rose 12 per cent year on year to RM1.9 billion ($524.2 million).

    7-Eleven Malaysia said in a profit statement it is positive about the year ahead, despite a softening in consumer sentiment (in part driven by wariness of the introduction of GST on April 1).

    “The continuing roll-out of new stores to increase the existing network as well as the on-going store refurbishment programme will have a positive impact. In addition to this, increased promotional and merchandising activities along with the expansion of in-store services and a further expansion of the group’s food and beverage offerings at store level will help drive revenue and profit growth,” the company said.

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  • Aldo expands to East Malaysia

    Aldo expands to East Malaysia

    Canadian fashion footwear retailer Aldo will open its first store in East Malaysia.

    The company has leased space in The Spring shopping mall where its store is under fitout in preparation for a January 30 opening.

    The Spring’s marketing and leasing director Andy Song said signing Aldo was part of a plan to bring more international brands to the mall.

    “We are always looking to bring in new and exciting brands into Kuching. Like the up and coming Canadian brand, Aldo, which has a worldwide presence for on-trend fashion footwear and accessories. Their products will be available at reasonable prices,” he told The Borneo Post newspaper.

    Aldo has 11 stores in Malaysia, all currently in Peninsular Malaysia. It 1424 sqft The Spring store will be located on the ground floor between apparel chain Esprit and jeweller Pandora.

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  • Malaysia smartphones sales peak at 8.5m units in 2014

    Malaysia smartphones sales peak at 8.5m units in 2014

    Malaysian consumers just cannot get enough of smartphones; buying more of them each year to bring annual sales volume to yet another peak in 2014 at 8.5 million.

    GfK retail sales tracking showed consumers buying around USD2.66 billion worth of the popular gadget between January and December last year. Total consumer spend, however, was down by 4 percent against 2013 due to the falling prices of smartphones in the country.

    “There was an influx of strong new players in the smartphones and phablets market in the past year, presenting an even wider array of more affordable options for consumers,” saidSelinna Chin, Managing Director for GfK in Malaysia. “Demand peaked in December when sales volume in that month alone reached nearly 769,000 units—over 106,000 more than the slowest sales month in the same year.”

    All regions across the country exhibited stable growth in 2014, with the Central region contributing to nearly half (46 percent) of the entire market share volume.

    The biggest spike in sales was contributed by the USD150 to USD200 segment of smartphones. Its volume share grew from 10 percent of the total market in 2013 to 16 percent in 2014; making it now the biggest segment within the local market.

    “Smartphones below USD200 will continue to be in demand moving into 2015, driven by the multitude of brands, improved technical specifications, aggressive marketing and price erosion — key factors which will further encourage consumers to replace their smartphones,” said Chin. “In a separate GfK consumer survey conducted nationwide, nearly half of all respondents indicated that price is the most important deciding factor when choosing which phone to buy.”

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  • Malaysian cable TV enters retail JV

    Malaysian cable TV enters retail JV

    Malaysian cable TV operator Astro has entered a joint venture with South Korean multimedia retailer GS Home Shopping.

    And Astro is projecting sales of RM500 million (US$143 million) annually by 2019 after the service has gained critical mass.

    Astro will own 60 per cent of the joint venture, Go Shop, which will operate 24-seven on TV and online. The service was soft launched in a trial last November.

    Datuk Rozalila Abdul Rahman, CEO of the JV, said the key to the concept’s success will be its presence across multiple platforms – Go Shop’s competitive edge was that it was available on various platforms. On Astro’s service it is on Channel 118 and it is also accessible online and on smartphones.

    Astro CEO Datuk Rohana Rozhan said the company reaches 4.3 million homes in Malaysia, with a reach of 17 million consumers. By nature, these will be largely middle class families or individuals with relatively high disposable incomes.

    Since the soft launch, Go Shop has sold more than 110,000 products, the majority household items.

    While just 60 products are available currently, the offer will double within the year.

    “To-date, the new 24-hour shopping service has over 72,000 customers with 800 new customers daily,” Rohana told a media briefing.

    She predicts the Malaysian retail market will grow from RM110 billion now to more than 160 billion by 2020.

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  • Parkson in China food foray

    Malaysia’s Parkson has entered into a joint venture to develop a food retailing business in China as it transforms its department store portfolio into lifestyle centres.

    The company’s wholly-owned subsidiary Grand Parkson has teamed with fellow Malaysian company AUM Hospitality (AUMH) which it majority owns, to create Lion Food & Beverage Ventures Limited. Parkson will own 91 per cent of the business, AUMH the balance.

    In a stock exchange announcement, Parkson said the group is undergoing a business transformation in China from a traditional department store model into a lifestyle concept retail business.

    “Our aim is to enhance our customer experience by offering a quality shopping, catering and entertainment experience that encourages repeat customer patronage.

    “F&B is an important component to the shopping experience that the group is offering to its customers. Developing the F&B sector will provide synergies with the group’s existing retail business.”

    The partnership will allow Parkson to leverage AUMH’s expertise and brand resources in the F&B sector.

    “Introducing F&B services will be a major strategic move for the group.”

    AUMH operates restaurant chains in Malaysia under 12 self-owned and franchised brands, including Johnny Rockets, Quiznos and The Library Coffee Bar. It is 60 per cent owned by a subsidiary of Parkson.

    The company has 60 department stores in 36 cities in China.

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  • CapitaMalls snaps up Malaysian centre

    CapitaMalls snaps up Malaysian centre

    CapitaMalls Malaysia Trust will pay RM540 million (US$150 million) to buy the Tropicana City Mall and its office tower.

    The four level Tropicana City Mall opened in 2008 and has a net lettable area of 448,248 sqft and 1759 car park. It is attached to a 12-storey office building.

    As of January 15, the mall had an occupancy rate of 89.2 per cent and the office tower was fully leased. CapitaMalls had previously considered buying the mall in mid 2013, but the negotiations ended after both parties were unable to agree to purchase terms.

    “The proposed acquisition will further strengthen CMMT’s position as a sizeable, well geographically diversified shopping mall real estate investment trust in Malaysia,” CMMT said in a statement.

    “Following the completion of the proposed acquisition, CMMT’s property asset value will increase by 16.7 per cent from RM3.2 billion to about RM3.8 billion. This is expected to increase CMMT’s visibility among Malaysian and international investors to support its future growth.”
    CMMT will fund the purchase through debt and/or equity fundraising, issuing new units.

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  • GCH to open 4 more Giant hypermarkerts, supermarkets this year

    GCH to open 4 more Giant hypermarkerts, supermarkets this year

    GCH Retail (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, the owner of Giant, Cold Storage, Mercato, Jason’s and G-Express stores, is to open four new Giant hypermarkets and supermarkets in Malaysia this year to add to the 126 it already has.

    They will be in the Klang Valley, Sarawak, Perlis and Trengganu and will further strengthen its position as the country’s largest hypermarket group.

    Its G-Express, a convenience store subsidiary, is also embarking on a similar expansion plan and targets to open 500 nationwide within the next five years.

  • Consumers in Malaysia grappling with rising cost of living

    Consumers in Malaysia grappling with rising cost of living

    While most consumers grappled with the escalating cost of living, the Malaysian government’s subsidy rationalisation programme and the impending introduction of the goods and services tax (GST) also took centre stage.

    The government’s decision to reduce subsidies, effective 3 September 2013, was generally aimed at strengthening the nation’s economic position and ensuring that subsidies reached the target groups.

    In 2014, the government allocated about MYR40.5 billion (USD11.61b) for its various subsidy schemes. Out of that amount, MYR21 billion went towards subsidising RON95 petrol, diesel and cooking gas or liquefied petroleum gas.

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