Retail News CRM

Tag: Singapore

  • Singapore retail store rents ease in second quarter

    Singapore retail store rents ease in second quarter

    Central Singapore retail rents eased by 1.5 percent in the second quarter of this year, according to data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority.

    That followed a smaller quarter-on-quarter decline of 0.2 percent in the three months to March 31.

    At the end of the June quarter, there were 320,000sqm of space in the pipeline, down from 364,000sqm three months earlier.

    Singapore retail space occupied by tenants rose by 74,000sqm in the quarter, more than reversing a 14,000sqm decline in the prior period.

    That contributed to a fall in the vacancy rate across the city from 8.7 percent to 7.7 percent.

    Singapore retail rents ease in second quarter

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  • Little Damage Opens in Singapore

    Little Damage Opens in Singapore

    Los Angeles ice cream shop Little Damage has launched in Singapore with a second outlet already in planning.

    Decked out in black-and-white checkered prints, the first outlet at Wheelock Place mainly caters to takeaways. The walls are decorated with neon phrases seen in its LA outlet, such as “I Like Love You” and “Cute But Psycho, But Cute” for photo ops.

    A second outlet will be opened by the end of this year. Stores also sell goods including tumblers and bags, with plans to add apparel soon.

    Little Damage has been brought to Singapore by Caerus Holding, which also operates other F&B local franchises, including cake boutique Lady M.

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  • 108 Matcha Saro opens first store in Singapore

    108 Matcha Saro opens first store in Singapore

    Japanese cafe chain 108 Matcha Saro is opening its first Southeast Asian store, at Singapore’s Suntec City shopping center.

    Set to open tomorrow (July 26), the take-away concept store will be designed to resemble a traditional ancient Japanese teahouse, located in the basement of the shopping center.

    The 108 Matcha Saro stores in Japan feature four different live stations where passers-by can watch staff making Warabi-mochi or Obanyaki, whisking Matcha and assembling Parfaits and Soft Serves.

    Founded in 2014, 108 Matcha Saro has four stores in Japan, and another four in Taiwan.

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  • Singapore Investors Upbeat About Local Economy

    Singapore Investors Upbeat About Local Economy

    Asian investors (60 percent) are among the world’s most optimistic about the economic outlook, ranking behind only Latin America (77 percent). Despite ongoing concerns about a global trade war, six in 10 Singaporean high net worth investors remain optimistic about the outlook for the local market, while Asia ranks second globally (60 percent) in terms of economic optimism, according to the latest quarterly UBS Investor Sentiment survey, released today.

    A large majority (67 percent) of Asian respondents said a diversified approach to investing was how they expected to manage ongoing risks. According to the bank, Singapore respondents were particularly interested in opportunities in sustainable investing (53 percent), yield or income generation (56 percent) and thematic investing such as medtech, fintech (49 percent).

    Global sentiment improved in the last quarter, with the share of investors planning to invest more growing to 46 percent, up from 42 percent, while the share of investors optimistic about the global economy remaining unchanged at 51 percent.

    The survey, which polled more than 3,800 wealthy investors and entrepreneurs in 17 countries between June 3–July 6, shows Singapore investors cited the global trade war, cybersecurity and market volatility (all 53 percent) as their top concerns.

    Among Asian investors, the top concerns were the global trade war (47 percent), the country’s long term competitiveness (43 percent) and cybersecurity (43 percent).

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  • Batman pop-up store at The One marks 80th anniversary

    Batman pop-up store at The One marks 80th anniversary

    Comics label DC and Warner Bros Consumer Products are marking the 80th anniversary of Batman with an interactive exhibit at The One shopping complex in Tsim Sha Tsui.

    The Batman pop-up store offers a sneak peek into the Batman universe going all the way back to his first appearance. Selected Batman comic book covers are being reprinted through modern screen-printing technologies in restoring the comic book aesthetics of different eras.

    Sculptor Keo W. has created a series of 1:1 scale Batman figures based on the most iconic Batman looks in animations, movies and video games, some of which are being shown in Asia for the first time.

    Nearly 100 Batman collectibles are included to present a curated experience to the public. A range of creative merchandise includes some items that are launching in Hong Kong for the first time, such as Batman luminous basketballs and chess games.

    The Batman pop-up store is part of a year-long global celebration showcasing the “World’s Greatest Detective” that includes live events, fan celebrations and exclusive branded products.

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  • Zalora Philippines targets 50-per-cent annual sales growth

    Zalora Philippines targets 50-per-cent annual sales growth

    Fashion e-tailer Zalora Philippines is targeting 50 percent annual growth in sales over the next five-year period.

    The firm’s confidence in its target is based on the number of Filipinos embracing online shopping.

    “We will end the year with more than 50 percent growth year on year,” said Zalora Group CEO Gunjan Soni, “and we expect that trajectory to continue”.

    “We actually see that trend continuing in terms of very high double-digit growth for at least the next five years,” said ZPH president and CEO Paolo L. Campos III. “We don’t see growth tapering, we see it sustaining at the very high double-digit level.”

    Zalora also operates in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

  • Singapore startup Tuzo wants to help retailers hyper-personalise stores

    Singapore startup Tuzo wants to help retailers hyper-personalise stores

    Singaporean tech startup Tuzo is using AI to help retailers hyper personalize stores.

    The firm is focused on harnessing artificial intelligence and machine learning to help retailers tailor shopping experiences to their shoppers’ preferences, using real-time web browsing and shopping data. The hyper-personalized experiences are designed not only to help increase revenues for retailers, but also to generate data and shopper insights to help plan demand.

    “We have seen conversions go up by up to 50 percent, and basket size up by up to 40 percent in a large department store while the customer satisfaction with our BraFit solution was as high as 90 percent,” said Tuzo CEO Mohit Agrawal.

    Tuzo has solutions for apparel, lingerie, beauty, bags, footwear and jewelry – and is targeting department stores, offline fashion retailers and online stores. Tuzo also helps retailers digitize their inventory by tagging the products automatically for catalog creation using computer visuals. It also offers a visual search product, which allows shoppers to search for an item just by taking or uploading a picture, and a style advisor that engages with shoppers at a personal level by advising a complete look based on shopper preferences, retailer inventory and fashion trends.

    “Tuzo leverages algorithms developed using AI and machine learning to bring together the shopper preference, fit and global/regional fashion trends,” said company co-founder Sudhir Jha. “Tuzo solutions drive the omnichannel efforts of retailers. Tuzo will continue to invest in the development of cutting-edge technologies for the retail industry.”

    In its next phase of growth, Tuzo is planning to help hyper personalize stores in other Southeast Asian countries.

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  • Anello opens at Changi, Singapore

    Anello opens at Changi, Singapore

    Japanese backpack and accessories brand Anello has opened its first Singapore store, at Jewel Changi.

    Targeting Singapore residents and visitors alike, the 625sqft store offers a wide selection of designs as well as exclusive and limited-edition collections specifically for the Singapore market.

    From July 23 to 29, to mark its opening, Anello Jewel Changi will be offering a 50-per-cent discount for any second item purchased

    Founded in 2015, Anello – which means “ring” in Italian – is known for its minimalist, chic designs.

    The brand now has stores in China, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam.

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  • Skechers in Singapore opens Southeast Asia’s largest store yet

    Skechers in Singapore opens Southeast Asia’s largest store yet

    Skechers in Singapore has opened the brand’s largest experience store in Southeast Asia, at  Jewel Changi airport.

    The 5000sqft duplex store’s interior has been designed with an overall modern and sleek look, achieved through the use of bright lighting and cement panels.

    On opening day, more than 2500 shoppers and 250 invited guests were at the store to participate in activities including a fashion and dance showcase.

    “For the past 10 years, Skechers has been evolving and improving ourselves in terms of retail shopping,” said Vincent Leung, president of Skechers Southeast Asia.

    “Our clear direction is to create a wonderful customer shopping experience, with Brand Experience Stores in China, Hong Kong, and now our very first in Southeast Asia right here at Jewel Changi Airport.”

    A staircase between Levels 1 and 2 features a colourful wall mural designed by Diplomat, a group of young budding Singapore artists, adding energetic hip-hop and street-cred elements to the space.

    There is also a photo zone on Level 2, where visitors can take selfies with a fun photo-wall.

    Another highlight of the Skechers in Singapore store exclusive to Jewel is a customisation zone, where one can personalise selected Skechers shoes or apparel with embroidery or heat press.

    Guests of the opening were able to make their own customised pouch, choosing motifs to create a unique souvenir of the event.

  • Singapore’s CapitaLand Mall Trust boosts property revenue

    Singapore’s CapitaLand Mall Trust boosts property revenue

    CapitaLand Mall Trust (CMT), has achieved net property income (NPI) of S$273.3 million for the half year to June 30.

    That represents a 10-per-cent increase on the same period last year, boosted by the 100-per-cent contribution of Westgate, of which the trust acquired the balance 70 per cent interest during the fourth quarter of last financial year.

    Tony Tan, CEO of CapitaLand Mall Trust Management Limited (CMTML), which manages CMT, said the trust would receive a further boost from the second half of this year from the opening of the new Funan mall on June 28.

    “The contributions from Westgate and Funan are expected to anchor CMT’s steady financial performance while we embark on the rejuvenation of Lot One Shoppers’ Mall starting from the third quarter of 2019,” said Tan.

    “Proposed works include expanding the footprint of the public library to enhance the mall’s community focus and reformatting the cinema to house smaller screens that better serve moviegoers’ demands for variety.”

    Tan said that against a backdrop of a slowing Singapore economy, the trust remains cautious in its outlook.

    “Competition for the consumer wallet is expected to stay keen with the progressive opening of new malls, although the supply of new retail space is projected to taper off from 2020. As a proactive REIT manager, we will continue to review our portfolio for possibilities to create value through acquisition and development opportunities.”

    For the second quarter, CMT’s gross revenue and NPI rose 10.6 per cent and 10.2 per cent respectively year-on-year. The improvement in gross revenue was mainly due to the completion of the acquisition of the Westgate stake on November 1, which contributed $18.4 million to gross revenue. Funan’s reopening on 28 June 2019, after a three-year redevelopment, contributed $900,000 to the total gross revenue of the group. The increase was partially offset by lower gross revenue from Sembawang Shopping Centre, which was divested on June 18 last year.

    CMT owns and invests in 15 shopping malls, primarily in Singapore: Tampines Mall, Junction 8, Funan, IMM Building, Plaza Singapura, Bugis Junction, JCube, Raffles City Singapore (40-per-cent interest), Lot One Shoppers’ Mall, 90 out of 91 strata lots in Bukit Panjang Plaza, The Atrium@Orchard, Clarke Quay, Bugis+, Bedok Mall and Westgate. As at June 30, CMT owned 12.3 per cent of CapitaLand Retail China Trust.

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  • World AI Leaders from Dell Technologies, Rolls-Royce and Kryon, among others, discuss AI Strategies in Singapore

    World AI Leaders from Dell Technologies, Rolls-Royce and Kryon, among others, discuss AI Strategies in Singapore

    Given its infrastructure capacity, education system and investor-friendly laws, Singapore has all the right ingredients to nurture a robust AI ecosystem that could be the cornerstone for the small island’s economic upswing. According to a recent report by Accenture, AI could add up to US$215 billion in gross value across 11 industries in Singapore by 2035. With the Singapore government’s vehement efforts to foster initiatives in the AI space, the nation was the ideal location to host the 9th edition of the global World AI Show series that had hit the ground running for the second time in Singapore on 24 July 2019. The show was organised by international business events and consulting firm, Trescon.

    “Singapore is one of the top locations for AI and Robotics investments. Our mission was to fuel Singapore’s AI startup ecosystem by bringing in some of the world’s best AI innovators, solution providers, startups and investors to foster business opportunities for the Singapore government as well as regional and international companies”, said Mohammed Saleem, CEO of Trescon.

    300+ top industry leaders from the AI community came together to share their insights on how AI is transcending as a core enabling technology that can power multiple sectors.

    Top speakers for the event included Dr Terence Hung, Chief of Future Intelligence Technologies, Rolls-Royce Singapore Pte Ltd; Sutowo Wong, Director, Analytics & Information Management Division, Data Analytics Group, Ministry of Health; Dragana Beara, Portfolio Messaging Director, Asia Pacific and Japan, Dell Technologies; Prof Nadia Magnenat Thalmann, Director (IMI), NTU, Singapore and Founder & Director, Miralab of University of Geneva, Switzerland and Guido Jouret, Chief Digital Officer of ABB among other top speakers.

    In her keynote speech, Dragana Beara quoted, “Most of the AI development right now is done to create collaborative AI to augment us and give us an ability to leverage our humanity. Everything tedious, difficult or that we are not good at, like computing or getting insights from huge data sets is something we are going to outsource to the AI system.”

    The show also featured a workshop session from Warren Ledingham from Kryon who took the audience through a technical deep-dive session on ‘How to Save 80% of Your Automation Implementation Time’, and an almost human-like Robot interaction between Professor Nadia Magnenat Thalmann and her female humanoid social robot Nadine, that can remember past conversations.

    The global pitch competition for startups in the future-tech space, Startup Grand Slam, was the highlight of the show. Opu Labs, Inc, a digital solutions provider for skin health analysis won the Startup Grand Slam pitch competition and Trsts as runner-up.

    World AI Show – Singapore 2019 was sponsored by Lead Partner, Dell Technologies Platinum Partner, Kanerika; Workshop Partner, Kryon; Gold Partner, Darktrace, Silver Partner, DDN Storage; Badge Partner, QualityKiosk Technologies, Premier Bronze Partner, ADVANCE.AI

     

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  • Positive outlook for Singapore retail leasing sector

    Positive outlook for Singapore retail leasing sector

    Ongoing investment-sale activity for malls suggests a positive outlook for the Singapore retail leasing sector, reports Edmund Tie & Company – especially for properties well connected to public transport and offering experiential and activity-based retail options.

    In a report Q2 2019 Real Estate Times for the Singapore market, the property company projects islandwide rental growth will be mixed, ranging from a 2 per cent decline to a 2 per cent increase this year. The low supply pipeline from next year onwards is likely to provide some underlying support to occupancy rates and rental levels.

    Investment market 

    For the second consecutive quarter, investment transaction value (of properties valued above S$100 million) jumped more than 52 per cent quarter on quarter with two transactions totalling $961 million. The largest sale was Chinatown Point for $520 million to a foreign institutional investor.

    The net supply of space fell by about 78 per cent as fewer projects were completed. As such, islandwide occupancy declined slightly by 0.4 percentage points to 90.1 per cent in the first quarter, however, the opening of Funan mall with 325,000sqft net lettable area – with 95 per cent of space pre-leased – is not expected to significantly impact occupancy rates in the second quarter.

    Rental rates 

    Singapore retail leasing rates across the different market segments remained largely flat, as occupancy rates remained high for malls located in prime positions. Upper-storey retail in the Orchard Road/Scotts Road area likely fell slightly due to weakened tourist spending, while the prime malls in the suburban areas continue to attract major brand retailers and new-to-market brands.

    The net demand and supply for retail spaces in suburban areas slowed in the first quarter, with the occupancy rate down marginally.  Prime-located malls with easy transportation access and a diverse and well-managed tenant mix continued to perform relatively well.

    New openings included Cafe Amazon outlets at Jewel Changi and Jurong Point Shopping Centre, and Xing Fu Tang (a Taiwanese bubble tea chain) opened a permanent store at Century Square in the second quarter.

    New space supply pipeline 

    From the third quarter of this year through to 2022, some 1.1 million sqft of retail space is expected to come onstream, with the majority of that to be completed in the second half of this year. The largest will be the Paya Lebar Quarter mall of about 313,000sqft.

    The average annual pipeline of known projects from next year through to 2022 is less than 150,000sqft, which is substantially below the three- and five-year average.

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  • Lenovo Experience Store opens in Singapore

    Lenovo Experience Store opens in Singapore

    Lenovo has opened an Experience Store opens at Singapore’s Funan mall, offering an online-to-offline experience.

    The 4500sqft store has dedicated areas for product showcases, workshops and pop-up events.

    “The opening of our new flagship store, together with the launch of the four new devices, embodies our Intelligent Transformation strategy to bring a new experience to our customers in Singapore,” said Eddie Ang, Lenovo Singapore’s country GM.

    “We hope this Lenovo Experience Store will be a platform, where we can continue to build meaningful relationships with our customers and provide them with new and engaging ways to experience our brand.”

    Smart Retail is applied by using solutions to track footfall analytics and optimization. The data captured can map areas frequented by customers and calculate the average amount of time spent at each. This can help in planning the positioning of store employees to provide assistance.

    In-store cameras and product webcams that capture facial expressions will help in understanding customer preferences and their reactions to the various products. Analyzing the data can also showcase demographic trends among customers and assist stores to push targeted content that is relevant.

    Self-service kiosks will be available in-store to drive automation and free up employees to provide personalized services, where required.

    Products are also tagged with radio-frequency identification tags, supplying store employees with inventory information right at their fingertips through their hand-held tablets.

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  • Positive outlook for Singapore retail leasing sector

    Positive outlook for Singapore retail leasing sector

    Ongoing investment-sale activity for malls suggests a positive outlook for the Singapore retail leasing sector, reports Edmund Tie & Company – especially for properties well connected to public transport and offering experiential and activity-based retail options.

    In a report Q2 2019 Real Estate Times for the Singapore market, the property company projects islandwide rental growth will be mixed, ranging from a 2 per cent decline to a 2 per cent increase this year. The low supply pipeline from next year onwards is likely to provide some underlying support to occupancy rates and rental levels.

    Investment market 

    For the second consecutive quarter, investment transaction value (of properties valued above S$100 million) jumped more than 52 per cent quarter on quarter with two transactions totalling $961 million. The largest sale was Chinatown Point for $520 million to a foreign institutional investor.

    The net supply of space fell by about 78 per cent as fewer projects were completed. As such, islandwide occupancy declined slightly by 0.4 percentage points to 90.1 per cent in the first quarter, however, the opening of Funan mall with 325,000sqft net lettable area – with 95 per cent of space pre-leased – is not expected to significantly impact occupancy rates in the second quarter.

    Rental rates 

    Singapore retail leasing rates across the different market segments remained largely flat, as occupancy rates remained high for malls located in prime positions. Upper-storey retail in the Orchard Road/Scotts Road area likely fell slightly due to weakened tourist spending, while the prime malls in the suburban areas continue to attract major brand retailers and new-to-market brands.

    The net demand and supply for retail spaces in suburban areas slowed in the first quarter, with the occupancy rate down marginally.  Prime-located malls with easy transportation access and a diverse and well-managed tenant mix continued to perform relatively well.

    New openings included Cafe Amazon outlets at Jewel Changi and Jurong Point Shopping Centre, and Xing Fu Tang (a Taiwanese bubble tea chain) opened a permanent store at Century Square in the second quarter.

    New space supply pipeline 

    From the third quarter of this year through to 2022, some 1.1 million sqft of retail space is expected to come onstream, with the majority of that to be completed in the second half of this year. The largest will be the Paya Lebar Quarter mall of about 313,000sqft.

    The average annual pipeline of known projects from next year through to 2022 is less than 150,000sqft, which is substantially below the three- and five-year average.

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  • India’s Ferns N Petals launches in Singapore

    India’s Ferns N Petals launches in Singapore

    Indian flower-and-gift retailer Ferns N Petals has launched in Singapore, planning to offer gift deliveries for special occasions.

    The company hopes Singapore will provide it with an opportunity to grow awareness and increase its customer base across Southeast Asia.

    Customers can place orders from the website already, with a mobile app to be launched soon.

    “Expansion is the ultimate aim of a business and for us at Ferns N Petals. The vision is to expand across Southeast Asia and the Middle East,” said Pawan Gadia, CEO, retail & online at Ferns N Petals.

    “After making our venture profitable in the UAE, we are now eyeing the Southeast-Asian market, starting with Singapore.”

    With 25 years of experience, Ferns N Petal has more than 330 retail outlets across India and the UAE.