Malaysia Retailer by MRCA Malaysia Retail Chain Association

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18 10

6 8

PUBLISHER’s Message

F&B: Beyond Good Taste & Prompt Service

Protecting Your Intellectual Property

22 Figuring Out Finance Funding Your Retail Aspirations

18 Feature

10 Feature

Editor’s Note

14 Law & Order

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Bagman Corporation: Design Awards in the Bag

26 Tech Matters

Sunlight Taxi Goes Techy

30 Lean & Mean

42 On the Cover

Kill Stress with a Healthy Lifestyle

34 Meet Our New Members

New Mall Rising: Up-andComing Attractions

50 Industry Intelligence

36 Events

54 Retail Property

6 Success Criteria for Commercial Property

58 Retail Aesthetics Emotional Appeal in ID

Market Research for the Intelligent Retailer

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Message from the MRCA President

An Eventful Year Ahead

ime flies, and it’s hard to believe that 22 years have passed since the MRCA was first established. With more than two decades under our belt, and with the invaluable contributions of the association’s past and present members, we have now entered a new and exciting era. I’m proud to say that the MRCA has grown by leaps and bounds since our inception and we now not only represent our members but also the retail industry as a whole. As such, we found it apt to effect a complete makeover to our official magazine to better reflect the vibrant dynamics of the industry. As you flip through the pages of this all-new issue of Malaysia Retailer, you’ll notice that the changes are not merely in the name and aesthetics but painstaking efforts have been made to revamp and upgrade the contents as well. The MRCA promotes networking and camaraderie among its members and retailers by organising various functions and events. Come 6th May 2015, our inaugural MRCA MALAYSIA SME Charity Golf 2015 will be held at the award-winning Kota Permai Golf & Country Club. This friendly tournament will combine workplace health management and corporate social responsibility by promoting networking among participants, while at the same time raise funds for full study scholarships at SEGi University for deserving students within our MRCA family. We expect about 36 flight participations for this tournament and aim to raise RM100,000 through the MRCA Branding Education Charity Fund. Meanwhile, the MRCA CEO Night, scheduled for June this year, is an annual event that serves as a collaborative avenue for members, business leaders and entrepreneurs. Its purpose is to provide a platform for members to gain experiences, exchange information and enrich their knowledge. The target audience comprises members’ and affiliates’ top management personnel including founders, chief executive officers, managing directors and other senior executives. While we are seizing the day, it is also imperative to plan ahead. Our children will be our future leaders, and to cater to the needs of our younger members, we launched MRCA Youth in January this year. This new spin-off of the MRCA endeavours to provide a platform for youths to network and also to nurture the future chieftains of the retail industry. As we welcome a calendar chock-full of events, I look forward to meeting you at one of our many functions. In particular, watch out for our upcoming Malaysia International Retail, Franchise & Licensing Fair (MIRF) 2016, which is the biggest and undoubtedly the most anticipated event in our line-up happening in March next year. We are expecting the participation of exhibitors from all around the world at over 250 booths, and more than 30,000 visitors. See you then! BRIDGING BUSINESSES FOR SUCCESS! KEEPING AN EYE ON THE FUTURE!

Dato’ C.L. Liaw, JP

President 2014-2016 Malaysia Retail Chain Association

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EDITOR’S NOTE

The World’s Biggest Shopping Malls

espite the nation’s diminutive size, Malaysia boasts of having many of the world’s largest shopping malls, with retail behemoths such as Berjaya Times Square, Sunway Pyramid and Mid Valley Megamall up there among the world’s biggest. Many of the country’s malls offer well over one million sqft of net lettable areas (NLA). With sheer size comes great variety, and you can be assured of the biggest and best selection of retail outlets here, covering both home-grown and international brands. The latter part of 2014 saw the emergence of new mall offerings such as IOI City Mall (another >1m sqft giant, pictured at left), Quill City Mall and D’Pulze, while in 2015 we’ll have the likes of Sunway Velocity entering the fray. Meanwhile, the older stalwart malls are not resting on their laurels and to stay competitive, have an expansion plan or two up their sleeves. As such, we found it timely to offer an update on Klang Valley’s mall scene in this issue’s cover story. There are no hard and fast rules in business and if you take a closer look at the entrepreneurial success stories, you’ll notice that their defining factors can be as different as night and day. Two cases in point are Sunlight Taxi and Bagman Corporation, both featured in this issue and both success stories in their own right. While Bagman Corporation thrives on creative designs to boost its bag business, Sunlight Taxi rides on the latest in technology to fuel its transport-based set-up. To each his own, I say. On a separate note, a big cloud is looming on the horizon for businesses. Yes, I’m talking about the impending implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) come 1st April. GST has unavoidably been the talk of the town lately and a cause of great anxiety for the man on the street. And even as I’m writing this, retailers are scrambling to ensure that their systems will be good to go, while many consumers are tightening their purse strings in anticipation of higher prices. I personally think the GST road bump will soon come to pass and everyone involved will become accustomed to it in the months to come, as seen in the 160 countries that implemented their GST/VAT before us. When everything normalises, it will be back to business as usual. After all, Malaysia is known as a shoppers’ haven for good reason. Enjoy the issue and happy shopping!

Tan Thiam Hock Editor

Business Writers Wanted

If you excel in writing and have an inclination for all things business, we want you! Write in to editor@inthink.com.my to get the ball rolling.

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M A R C H 3 rd- 6 th 2 0 1 6

Malaysiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s LARGEST & Most EXCITING

Retail, Franchise & Licensing Event of the Year 3rd

MAR

M A R C H 3 rd- 6 th 2 0 1 6

Exhibition Opens for Trade Visitors only

M i d Va l l e y E x h i b i t i o n C e n t r e ( M V E C ) K u a l a L u m p u r, M a l a y s i a

4th MAR

5th

MAR

Exhibition Opens for Public

6th

More than 250 booths from across the world aside from Malaysia - Taiwan, Korea, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines and many more with more than 30,000 visitors.

MAR

POH KONG

Organised by:

Malaysia Retail Chain Association

Contact Us: Malaysia Retail Chain Associ ation (MRCA) A -05-02,3,3A Block A, Level 5, Sky Park One City, Jalan USJ 25/1, 47650 S ubang J aya, Selangor Darul Ehsan. Tel: 03-5882 4333 F ax: 1700-810-950 mrca. secret ariat@gmail. com

and many more...

Feature

Beyond Good Taste and Prompt Service Malaysians are a discerning bunch when it comes to food and hence F&B operators are paying close attention to what they are dishing out. By SL Beh

rends come and go and that statement accurately applies to what we eat and drink today. Over the years, food and beverage (F&B) trends have swept across Malaysia with the likes of bubble teas, cupcakes, boat noodles and popcorn becoming a staple fare among local diners. As our culinary whims and fancies can be as fickle as our choice of attire, it can be a daunting task for restaurateurs to keep up with dinersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; fast-changing wants while sustaining a business. Globally, New Yorkbased restaurant consulting group Baum and Whiteman predicts that the top F&B trends for 2015 include technology-based restaurant service, changes in the tastes of basic flavours, and the introduction of new elements to â&#x20AC;&#x153;authenticâ&#x20AC;? dishes. On the tech front, more F&B players are expected to experiment with mobile devices which enables diners to

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Purple Cane@The Shore Shopping Gallery

order food and drinks from their tables, ask for a refill from the bar and then pay with their smartphones. The crux of introducing technology to the F&B scene is to reduce the responsibilities of the wait staff, thus allowing them to focus on getting meals faster from the kitchen to the table. That means, tables turn faster by eliminating downtime and customers get to enjoy their meals without having to go through the hassle of complaining about bad service to the managers. Moving from surroundings to taste, 2015 could see how F&B players push the boundaries of how we feel about familiar flavours we have become accustomed to. Having chuckled at the sight of nasi lemak gelato and cempedak curry puffs, do expect to see more bizarre sounding food and drinks coming your way. Restaurateurs may have their hands full by introducing new dishes to attract new customers while keeping their

regulars happy but many of them are fixed on improving the basics of running an F&B business before tackling fancy trends.

What Are Malaysians Eating?

When it comes to food, Malaysians like to have an abundance of variety on the menu. These choices extend beyond standard offerings and goes onto seeing more restaurants dishing out more than one cuisine. It is common to see burgers plated alongside curry noodles, served with a side of fries. PKPS Sdn Bhd managing director Peter Ng says although Pat Kin Pat Sun Cafe starting out as a casual Western cafe, the group has today evolved into a Hong Kong-styled cafe, serving up dim sum, chicken chops and rice dishes.

“We noticed that our customers are not too portion conscious but want more than just a main and drinks. If they are having fried rice, for example, they are likely to order an additional plate of vegetables or spare ribs to go along with it. That is why set meals do well as it provides many items for only one price,” adds Ng. That said, having too many items on the menu can be a strain on the kitchen as they would need to stock up on more items and require a bigger space for preparation. Having an idea of what sells and what doesn’t helps restaurateurs to identify likely winning dishes to introduce to their diners. On the higher end of the market, those who value quality over quantity are now willing to fork out more to savour the best. “Diners these days are trending towards food quality. They do not mind paying for good quality and have their expectations met,” explains Rotol Food-chain director Caleen Chua who runs Chakri Palace and also Rainforest Bistro. Quality dishes often mean the use of fresh ingredients, meticulous preparation and cooking styles, presentable plating, high level of service from wait staff and also a comfortable and cosy dining environment. Regulars to any restaurant tend to order their usual favourites and are unlikely to try new items on the menu. For Chakri Palace, the mieng kham; a traditional Thaistyle salad is a dish that is ordered by many of its patrons.

Peter Ng

“Our business direction is into the mass market and our target customers range from students, the business crowd, families and the elderly. Having a variety of cuisines and dishes allows them to converge under one roof and yet be able to enjoy their favourite food,” he explains. Though the cafe’s Chinese fare has a higher following compared to its Western dishes, variety in this sense also include having more than just the main course.

Caleen Chua

Social Status

However, diners can be fussy about dining in the same atmosphere over and over again.“In 2014, we decided to revamp our Suria KLCC outlet. While the outlet featured authentic Thai furnishing, the previous interior did not feel current,” explains Chua. Vo l 3 N o 1

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Feature

Chua’s sentiments are very well in tune with diners who want to enjoy a meal at a trendy place which they would be proud to feature on their social media accounts such as Instagram. Let us not forget that these days when a dish arrives on the table, it is very likely to be photographed from various angles even before the diners take their first bite. “We are now looking at revamping our menu to go along with our new interior. A revamped menu means improving on the quality and presentation of the food to fit the new look,” she adds.

Comfort Food

That said, dining out is a common practice among urbanites who generally do not have the time to prepare a home-cooked meal. As such a practice is no longer considered to be a luxury, F&B players are seen trying to replicate comfort food lovingly made by the family’s matriarch. “People these days are dining out more compared to many years ago. While they may enjoy lavish cuisines during the week, some would like to balance that out with a light meal,” explains Purple Cane Tea Restaurant F&B manager Koh Choon Hong. The tea restaurant is synonymous with the concept of tea cuisine where all their dishes from appetisers to desserts are infused with tea. Koh says tea-infused dishes enable diners to overcome the feeling of bloatedness after eating too much.

Koh Choon Hong

Items such as the lei cha, also known as thunder tea rice which is served with tofu, vegetables and a tea broth, is well received by its diners. Also, the restaurant’s herbal

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soups, which are infused with tea and served in teapots, have proved to be more than a novelty as Koh points out that almost every table at the restaurant is sure to order a serving. “We were initially afraid that the market was not able to accept such a simple palate. Malaysians are known to love their rich and strong flavours but we were pleasantly surprised by the encouraging response,” says Koh. In line with its easy and casual dining concept, Koh says all their meat dishes are served without bones as it allows diners to enjoy their meal fuss-free, without having a massive pile of bones in front of them at the end of the meal. “It is a common misconception that only the older generation favours what is deemed as bland flavours but our restaurant is seeing more young diners ranging from students to the office crowd,” observes Koh. Their tea-cuisine strategy did help the brand to promote its core business of selling tea as all of its eight restaurants feature an area to sell their products such as tea leaves and tea pots. “After a meal, diners will usually open up to the idea of not just drinking tea but also in the art of making tea. It is only normal for them to want to take home some tea products to replicate the experience they had in our restaurant,” he says.

A Quick Bite

On the other hand, good food these days can be found anywhere and in any portion. Those looking for something lighter opt to visit kiosks and food stalls to grab a quick bite. “When you are selling snacks from a kiosk, the scent of the product plays an important part in attracting buyers,” explains Koh, as to how they are able to sell over 100,000 herbal tea eggs a year at 25 of its retail outfits. According to Koh, shoppers looking for a light snack would often buy an egg or two when they walk pass the store. He attributes the scent of boiling eggs as a trigger for his customers’ impulsive purchase urges. This quick-fix scenario also extends to snacks such as gourmet popcorn which has seen growing interest among urban shoppers. Planetpop Marketing Sdn Bhd managing director Alvis Koh, who runs Planet Popcorn, believes Malaysians are ready to accept popcorn as a common snack as opposed to the previous notion that the snack is only good for cinemas.

space. “We are now looking to bottle the sauces from our popular restaurant dishes such as the fried garoupa in tiga rasa sauce and make them available at our kiosks,” she adds.

Trending into Sustainable Operations

Alvis Koh

“Overseas, especially in the US, popcorn is a common snack and we have seen the market becoming more receptive of our products over the years,” he says. The brand Planet Popcorn originates from Taiwan and has been around since 2011. Koh started the business during the time when an influx of Taiwanese F&B brands flooded the local market. While popcorn is usually associated with sweet flavours such as caramel, Koh adds that Oriental flavours such as kimchi, curry and seaweed are also picking up in terms of sales. “Our sales can easily increase by up to 30% during festive seasons or school holidays. That is why for a kiosk business to sustain, you need to be in a location with a high footfall,” he says. Though snacks are generally associated with empty calories and low quality, Koh is adamant that using high quality maize imported from the US, which are free from genetically modified organisms (GMO), does help change customers’ perception. “Common snacks such as potato chips and prawn crackers tend to be high in calorie content as they are deep-fried. Our signature cooking method of using high temperature allows us to pop our maize by using less oil. Snacks are never healthy but we try our best to make it less harmful to our customers,” he quips. Meanwhile, Chua of Rotol says her latest offering Hwan by Chakri Palace - a kiosk serving Thai favourites such as mango sticky rice, pandan chicken and coconut ice cream, is gaining momentum among passersby. “Consumers need time to understand our brand as we are not introducing a new product but are venturing into a new segment,” she explains.

There is a need for one to convert trends into culture in order to survive the changing tides of fads. Planet Popcorn’s Koh explains that Malaysians with spending power are typically from the Generations X, Y and Z. “They are always looking for something new, special or different to try. Without any trends, it would be difficult to popularise a product,” reveals Koh. In developing a food culture around a product, he stresses the importance of being in the right location while creating a sense of scarcity. Having too many locations in this instance could increase the risk of a trend dying a quick death by oversaturating the brand. “In order to create a culture, I sell my popcorns at shopping malls that have heavy retail footfall. These malls are usually those that are well known and have a pull factor that is able to create a need for shoppers or diners to patronise these malls. When shoppers see your brand at these locations, they will presume that your brand is relevant to the market and it then becomes the top-of-mind selection when they are keen to purchase,” explains Koh.

Marketing to the Right Target Audience is Key

It is clear that Malaysians can be as discerning or as casual when it comes to food choices. The abundance of choices in the local F&B scene only makes it harder for a particular cuisine to stand out and make a name for itself. That said, F&B trends are essential to keep the industry growing alongside the passing of time. The higher the competition, the harder a F&B brand works to satisfy the wants of its customers. Ultimately, good food sells but marketing them to the right target audience can help ensure the sustainability of the business. What’s a good product if nobody knows about it anyway?

According to Chua, running a kiosk is different from running a full-fledged restaurant and adjustments have to be made to maximise the resources within a limited

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Law & Order

Protecting Your Intellectual Property Safeguarding your valuable physical assets are a given, but are you leaving your priceless intellectual assets vulnerable to counterfeiters, copycats, pirates and the like? By Samuel Ngeow

wenty years ago, smartphones did not exist, modems were running at 56 kbit/s and Yahoo was the most popular search engine. Fast forward to today, everything has changed as we embrace the Internet Age. In this lightning fast digital world, innovation and creativity are vital for businesses to stay in the game and to move ahead of their competitors. Sadly, modernisation has made some

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parties more efficient and deceitful at the same time. Counterfeiting, imitation and piracy are becoming increasingly common and are threatening the growth of innovation and creativity. As a result, many businesses are finding it extremely difficult to survive and remain competitive. Therefore, it is of paramount importance for us to understand what Intellectual Property (IP) is all about so that we can safeguard

our assets and remain competitive in this dog-eat-dog business world.

What is Intellectual Property (IP)?

According to Lee Lin Li, an IP expert from the legal firm Tay & Partners, IP are creations of the human mind such as inventions, ideas, brands, business marks and original literary, artistic or musical

Lee Lin Li

works. “You’d want to protect them because you want to have monopoly over these rights. When you have monopoly over these rights, others cannot use your rights without your consent,” she says. Lee also stresses on the importance of safeguarding these exclusive rights because considerable amount of time, energy and capital have been invested into the IP. “If you have no control over your IP rights, the goodwill and reputation of your IP could also be tarnished or destroyed because other people may misuse them,” she continues.

is a registrable sign used to represent your products which possess qualities, reputation or other characteristics that are unique to a specific location. For example, Lee points out that any alcoholic product can only bear the name “Cognac” if it was made in the region. On the other hand, a copyright grants you the exclusive right to use, perform, publish or sell your literary, artistic or musical works. Copyrights do not need to be registered but automatically protects your original work.

Types of IP

As a savvy entrepreneur, you must be able to identify and differentiate the various types of IP. Generally, there are five types of IP that are you should be well aware of. They are patents, industrial designs, trademarks, geographical indications and copyrights. A patent is a registrable right that grants you the exclusive ownership and protects your inventions while an industrial design is a registrable right that safeguards the designs of your products or systems. A trademark, however, is a mark that consists of letters, words, numbers, symbols or a combination of those used to represent your products and services. With a registered trademark, you can protect your brand (or “mark”) by restricting others from using it. Similar to trademarks, a geographical indication

According to Tee Lin Yik, CEO of Tee Intellectual Property, of the various types of IP, your first task is to identify the specific type of industry that you are in. For example, if you are a furniture retailer, you may want to protect your furniture designs with an industrial design registration. However, if you are fashion retailer, you would probably need to copyright your clothing designs instead. Nevertheless, one common feature which every retailer or business owner will have is branding. Therefore, getting your trademark registered would be one of your main priorities because it is crucial to have a strong and easily identifiable brand in this competitive business environment.

IP Laws & Regulations

The Intellectual Property Corporation of Malaysia (MyIPO) is responsible for managing and monitoring issues or matters relating to IP. However, there are different legislations governing the IP laws in Malaysia and they can be found in the statute law. For example, trademarks are governed by the Trademark Act 1976 while patents are governed by the Patents Act 1983.

Common Law Rights

Tee Lin Yik

For those who have yet to register their IP, fear not as the common law rights in Malaysia offer an automatic layer of protection. Lee of Tay & Partners says, “You may be protected by common law rights by virtue of being the first person to acquire the goodwill and reputation of the goods and services, unlike the European common laws, where you need to be the first person to file for them.” Therefore, in Malaysia, even if you did not register your IP, you would still have the exclusive rights over your IP, provided that you can produce the relevant business documentation to support your claim. Vo l 3 N o 1

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Law & Order

Benefits of Trademark Registration

increases in value over time. When your brand becomes popular, you may consider monetising your trademark. One way to do so is by franchising, where you grant others the rights to use your brand, products and services in return for royalty payments. Additionally, your brand’s goodwill could be a tool for you to leverage your business, for example, to obtain loans and financing. In conclusion, your trademark not only protects your business, but it also enhances the value of your business.

stage is filing where the applicants must submit their particulars, their businesses details and the types of goods and services they want to protect. “There are up to 45 different classes of goods and services that can be protected through trademark registration. Ideally, you would want to have a clear plan in advance for which classes of goods and services you wish to protect because once the trademark is registered, it is very difficult to change or modify it,” says Lee.

She elaborates, “How long do you want to keep your business information? You do not know when someone else will use your mark and register your IP or start selling your goods and services bearing your mark. It could be 10 or 20 years from now. If you register your trademark, the proof of your mark is prima facie, meaning that it is legally yours, and you own the exclusive rights indefinitely, as long as you renew it in a timely manner.”

Trademark Application Process and Eligibility

Before submitting the applications, you are advised to make a search for any trademarks that are identical or similar to yours to avoid confusion. The search can be performed at the Public Search Room of Intellectual Property Corporation of Malaysia (MyIPO) at a fee of RM20 per hour.

Apart from protecting your rights, your trademark is also an intangible asset that

There are several stages involved in the trademark application process. The first

According to Lee, retailers would be more concerned with trademarks to protect their brand name. Since there are common laws protecting Malaysian business owners and retailers, would they still need to file for IP protection? The answer is a resounding “yes”, according to Lee. She strongly recommends that everyone register their IP. This is because, oftentimes, business owners do not keep good records.

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According to Lee, any resident or nonresident person or persons can apply for a trademark be it individuals, partnerships or companies as long as they fulfill the condition in which they are the bona fide proprietor, meaning they are the proprietor in good faith and they believe in good faith they are the owner of the IP by signing a statutory declaration.

For the next stage, there will be a formality examination (one month) and a substantive examination (4-6 months). During these examinations, the names and availability of the trademark will be examined thoroughly.

If there are no problems the registrar will issue an acceptance form to the applicant. Once the form is signed and returned to the registrar, the mark will be published in the government gazette and will be made available to the public at large. Within two months of the date of registration, anyone may choose to oppose the application of the trademark if they find it to be too similar to theirs. If there are no objections, the registrar will the issue a certificate in one to two months’ time. In conclusion, the entire trademark registration process will take around nine to 12 months.

Keeping Track of Your Trademark

Besides registering for protection, it is also crucial to constantly monitor your trademark. As your brand becomes increasingly well known, people tend to create marks as similar as yours. So, in order to protect the sovereignty of your brand, you must regularly conduct searches for any marks that resemble your trademark or which could cause confusion to your customers. Alternatively, there are organizations that provide such monitoring services for a fee. They are usually spin-off from an IP company as this is part and parcel of their legal services.

Problems of Not Having IP rights

Tee of Tee Intellectual Property warns of serious ramifications if you do not register your IP. One of the many problems you may encounter is theft. “It is unlawful to steal something that belongs to others for personal gain, but in the real world, people will take what is not theirs. Not only that, your reputation will also be tarnished or destroyed because you are somehow associated with the negative work of the imposter,” he adds. Tee also explains that if you come up with a unique line of products or services, it will not be long before others imitate your products and start reaping some or all of the profits. “If they can better market your creation, they will

undoubtedly become the leading source for the item and you will be the biggest loser,” he continues. In addition to that, he also points out that you will face devaluation of your brand or worse, the unimaginable task of proving that you are not the thief and rightfully own the IP assets.

Steps to Take When Your IP is Infringed

Lee advises that in general, the first step is to obtain the contact details of the infringer. Upon the identification of that person or party, you may issue a cease and desist letter to them as an instruction

“ Getting your IP protected is vital for the growth and prosperity of your business. ”

to stop infringing your rights. Next, you may request for an undertaking, which is a promise to immediately cease violating your IP and never to violate it again, to destroy or deliver all materials bearing your trademark to you and not to assist others in violating your IP. Additionally, you may also request for compensation for the damages inflicted on you. However, should the infringer choose to ignore your cease and desist letter, you may want to consider alternative dispute resolutions before going to court because it is very costly and the results may not be favourable to you.

that might be available depending on your specific circumstances. One of the legal actions you can take is to file for an injunction whereby the infringer is ordered by the court to stop any activities that are found to be infringing on your IP rights. Then, you may seek damages, which is an order to compensate you financially for the loss that you have suffered as a result of the infringement.

IP Advice for New Retailers

So how should a newbie retailer incorporate IP into their business? Lee has this to offer, “Firstly, I would strongly advice that you identify all the IP that your business has or may have in the future. And have a business plan which includes the identification of your intellectual property. Secondly, you determine the location of your intended business, whether is it going to be in Malaysia or another country. Your IP should enter the country before your business. IP should be one of the main considerations when starting out a business, not just real estate or finances. Everything should be properly documented, such as your sketches or creative designs. You should also date your documents if possible.”

Walking on a Tightrope

Getting your IP protected is vital for the growth and prosperity of your business. Although, the Malaysian common law provides a layer of protection to your business, without safeguarding your IP, you will be walking on a thin line in a grey area. Thus, you may face difficulties when the time of proving your ownership arises. That being said, as a shrewd business person, you should never place your entire business assets at risk for the sake of saving a few ringgit. Remember that prevention is always better than cure.

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Feature

Liew Bin 18

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Design Awards in the Bag Bagman Corporation Sdn Bhd is much more than your regular bag maker and supplier. The award-winning company’s CEO, founder and designer extraordinaire Liew Bin shares his success story with Malaysia Retailer. By Lim Su Yee

f you ask Liew Bin, the CEO and founder of Bagman Corporation Sdn Bhd today, he would probably tell you that never in his wildest dreams had he thought of venturing into the bag business. A fitness aficionado, many do not know that this affable and well-spoken entrepreneur also does not consider himself a success story despite winning several international awards and gaining recognition for his Bagman line of tailor made bags throughout the years.

Functionality Comes First

Liew is a picture of humility as he says that there are many more individuals in the retail line who are more deserving than him for this “success” title. He names several high-profile movers and shakers in the industry. “These people whom I have mentioned are coincidentally, all past presidents of MRCA. I believe they have achieved much more than me,” he says modestly.

Each individual bag has a name and a special story, and is a masterpiece on its own. But more importantly each has a special purpose with unique form, functionality, design, price and aesthetics. Without hesitation, Liew pulls out and quickly demonstrates the functionality of a few of his stand-out bags to the Malaysia Retailer team. Among them is a bag that is specially created for the fairer sex, where the interior compartment lights up when it is opened. “It is made practical for ladies so that they do not have to fumble through the contents to retrieve a particular item in the dark. Another one which I would like to show you is a bag that not only acts as a travel luggage, but also doubles up as a clothes hanger hidden in the inside compartment. With this, one no longer needs to go through the hassle of removing and putting one’s clothes in the wardrobe,” Liew explains.

Passion for Bag Design

The Five Fs

But one thing is for sure. Liew is extremely passionate about his bags. The mere mention of Bagman can make his eyes sparkle and light up. Liew is so enthusiastic when talking about his bags that he could go on and on energetically for hours. At Bagman Corporation’s headquarters in Puchong, the company’s extensive range of bags are neatly displayed for the viewing and perusing pleasure of all those who have the privilege of walking into the office.

An eye opener for sure is a trolley luggage, also the brainchild of Liew, that moves by itself like a robot with just a click of the remote control. With such creativity and innovation, Bagman’s products are hard to match. But the most outstanding of the bags is Liew’s pride and joy – the award-winning Terminus brand. It meets all of Liew’s 5F requirements: function, form, feel, fashion and fun. “Take for example our bestselling Terminus new invisible urban roller. It is practical for those who are going for

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short trips overseas while the patented wheeled backpack is just nice as it is the ideal size to carry. However, the most interesting part of the bag is the uniquely designed auto roller wheels, which extendout when the telescopic handle is pulled, but also retract just as easily,” says an elated Liew.

String of Awards

Since the inception of Bagman Corporation in 1994, the company has won several prestigious awards in the industry. Among them is the 2008 Golden Bull Award for being one of Malaysia’s 100 Outstanding SMEs. But one of the achievements that Liew is obviously proud of is the Red Dot Awards. “The Red Dot Award is similar to the Academy Awards for film and movies that most of us are familiar to, but only that it is for design. So far, Bagman has already won five awards from Red Dot starting from the years 2011, 2013 and 2014. We are proud to say that we are the only Malaysians to nab this award,” recalls a beaming Liew.

From Umbrellas to Bags

Those who are familiar with Liew’s earlier years will recall that this entrepreneur started off his career with a Singapore-owned umbrella business in Johor Bahru. “I left the umbrella business to

venture out on my own as there is nothing much that one can do with umbrellas in comparison to making a bag. When you talk about umbrellas, it’s all about price, price, price and nothing else. Even though one can still be creative in the umbrella business, the creativity is limited. To people, umbrellas are often viewed as being extremely dull and uninteresting. With bags, the sky’s the limit. Anything is possible,” exclaims Liew.

It’s Bagman, not Batman!

In 1994, Liew came out with Bagman Corporation and the rest is history. When asked why he named his company Bagman, Liew explained that it is a no brainer and easy to remember. “It is as simple as that. Basically I am a man and I am also selling bags at the same time. That’s how the name Bagman was created. But please do not associate me with the DC Comics fictional superhero, Batman. But I admit that both of the names can be quite a tongue twister,” Liew says with a chuckle. With this, Liew also reveals that his emphasis is more on his brand Terminus. “Bagman is actually a company. The one that I would like to talk more about is one of my bag labels, Terminus. The Terminus range of bags was born by being known as a combination of bag and travel. When you think of Terminus, you think of travelling around the world and you also think of bags. The name Terminus is also related to a terminal at the airport. Last but not least, it is also catchy and easy to remember like my company, Bagman,” he explains.

Embracing Challenges

Challenges in the business world is nothing new for most successful entrepreneurs. Even Liew has had his fair share of hardships when he first built his empire. He remembers a dark phase in his life when he hit rock bottom. “It was difficult during those days but due to my perseverance, I finally recovered,” he recalls with a tinge of sadness. To put the past aside, Liew shares that the current challenges that he is facing can be daunting too as he still considers his company a new bird in the industry. “The retail industry is like a chicken and egg. To succeed, we have to suit the culture around us. For example, challenges such as finding the right location to sell my products and also concerns on whether my product sales will be good or not,” he reveals. “Due to own retail space contraints, I’ve had to do consignment deals with the department stalls. There’s also limited capital for advertising,” he adds.

World-Class Aspirations

It is a fact that no credible entrepreneur will ever be satisfied with what he or she has achieved. The same goes for Liew, as he dreams of creating a world class brand in the retail industry. “For now, we are the new kid on the block but we hope that in another five years’ time, we will be able to establish ourselves successfully in Malaysia. Only then, can we penetrate other parts of the world. Currently, our strategy is to focus on the cheaper range of bags as they have received good response from the public and are also easy to sell,” he shares.

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“ The most important way for a product to succeed is to adapt to the trends and changes in the market. ”

Besides overseeing his business so that it runs smoothly, Liew takes good care of his health. “In the morning, I will head to the gym followed by breakfast, then to the office, meeting clients, fulfilling appointments and the list goes on. You see, I am a very busy man. The amount of work is tedious. But all work and no play makes jack a dull boy. To pamper myself, I tend to indulge occasionally in sinful indulgences such as bak kut teh. Food aside, I take good care of myself, especially my health. To maintain my figure and wellbeing, I go for gym workouts or hit the badminton courts once in a while,” he says.

What the Future Holds

Competing on Creative Design

The retail market is extremely competitive that brands around will do whatever it takes to stay on top. Bagman Corporation is aware of this situation and to stay ahead of the competition, the company fully utilises the power of design to attract potential customers. “Our competitors and rivals are basically anybody in the premium industry. When it comes to pricing, everybody can fight to offer the best value to customers. However, when it comes to design and creativity, no one is our match. With this, we have an added edge over the rest,” says Liew, who gains his design inspirations and ideas by observing the designs of other brands when travelling to countries such as those in Europe. Liew identifies his customers’ inconveniences and attempts to overcome those by producing better designed bags, hence turning a negative subject into something positive.

Health Matters

Being the CEO of a successful SME is no easy task. As Bagman’s founder and creator, Liew’s daily schedule is packed to the brim.

The future might be uncertain for some, but Bagman Corporation has already envisioned a bright one for itself in the coming five to 10 years. Liew’s biggest hope is to establish his brand locally by franchising, just liked world-renowned fast food chain McDonald’s. “Within five years, I will cross my fingers and hope that my brand will penetrate into the ASEAN countries. For your information, I have appointed an agent both in Japan and in Europe. However, they are still not very well established as our brand is still new. But what I can proudly say is that my company is one of the very few in the industry that has won the prestigious Red Dot Award. This proves that a Malaysian brand can still go international,” he opines. For aspiring retailers who are just stepping into the industry, the man himself has some words of wisdom. “Even though I do not think that I am the best example to emulate, just apply this triedand-tested formula and you will do fine. The most important way for a product to succeed is to adapt to the trends and changes in the market. It doesn’t matter if your creation is the most superb in the world. If nobody fancies it or if it does not meet the criteria of consumers, eventually the effort will be futile,” he warns. On a positive note, Liew says that for now, anything is possible for Bagman. “If you don’t believe me, one day I will even invent a bag that can fly like Superman. Mark my words,” he says with a steely determination in his eyes. Somehow, we believe that it might just come true!

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Figuring Out Finance

Funding Your Retail Aspirations Financing a retail business can be a tricky process but when done right could be the much needed impetus that drives a successful set-up. Malaysia Retailer unravels the intricacies of the subject matter. By SL Beh

ou may have a brilliant idea for a business and even a solid business plan in hand, but it takes hard cash to turn your entrepreneurial dream into reality. Sourcing for funding can be a tedious and nerve-wracking task for retailers, especially newer businesses that have yet to build up an adequate track record or experience in handling this matter. Apart from digging into your own savings or borrowing from family and friends, another viable option is to borrow from a bank. While business owners may have a general idea of how much they would like to borrow, there are times when the finer details of the process baffles the best of them. If you are a retailer seeking financing, you are in luck as far as statistics are concerned. According to Bank Negara Malaysia 2013-2014 figures, close to 66% of the total loans

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offered by banks were taken up by businesses from the retail industry. Moreover, 20% of such loans were offered to the SMEs in that industry. “Based on that, we can say banks are generally receptive when it comes to offering financing to retailers,” suggests

expansion, business protection and yield enhancements. “Working capital relates to whether they need money to run the business. For a retail business to grow, they would need to have more stocks and also possibly offer credit terms. Business expansion for a retailer could mean having to set up another warehouse to cater to growing market demands aside from increasing the number of stores,” he elaborates. Meanwhile, business protection is needed by retailers to safeguard themselves against external forces such as fluctuating foreign exchange, while yield enhancement helps retailers boost their earnings from sales by investing across low- or high-risk portfolios. Banks typically offer solutions to address these four basic banking needs by businesses. Thus, it is important to sit down with a bank officer to identify the suitable product required. Hu advises, “When you talk to a bank, I recommend you share with them about your business model. Do not perceive bankers as people who are out to take advantage of you, but focus on how they could help you grow your business.” Based on Bank Negara Malaysia reports, one of the biggest challenges faced by most businesses when applying for a loan is the lack of collateral. “This affects many new businesses that do not have any sort of security or assets to show when talking to a bank,” says Hu.

“From our experience, retailers are doing business on a cash basis. Should they take up a loan, typically it is for the purpose of Eddie Hu Meng Kui either renovating their existing outlets or to Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Bhd executive director stock up on inventory,” he explains. and head of commercial clients Eddie Hu Meng Kui.

Four Basic Financing Needs

Enhancing Your Loan Application Prospects

He suggests that business owners first identify how the funds will be utilised against the four basic banking needs of business which he describes as working capital, business

“Firstly, they are advised to understand the basic qualifying criteria of the bank’s products. Retailers are encouraged to open their accounts and ensure their business revenues are channelled to the bank to facilitate the bank’s assessment. From there, they are able to engage the bank officer to help prepare their financing requests based on the checklist provided by the bank,” says Hamirullah.

Before sending your secretary out to compare the best interest rates given on loans from different banks, you should have a clear idea of how to best utilise the financing. “There are times where a business would approach a bank for a loan but do not have a clear idea of what they need the money for. It rarely makes a difference to them whether we offer them an overdraft or a term loan, as long as they are able to obtain money to execute their plans,” explains Hu.

Though such an issue could prove to be a setback during the loan application process, Maybank head of community financial services Hamirullah Boorhan shares that a business owner can increase the chances of obtaining a bank loan through various measures.

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Figuring Out Finance

Hamirullah Boorhan

He adds that going the extra mile of preparing a simple business proposal which is then submitted to the lending officer can increase the chances of obtaining a loan. When a retailer approaches a bank for loans, bankers generally assess the business viability and location of the proposed new store in order to ensure sustainability of revenue. Hamirullah explains that the total financing obtained must then be within the ability of the business to generate cash flow. For Maybank, the basic criteria for loans are that a company must have been in operation for at least three years. However, those with a shorter track record can still be considered on a case-to-case basis. Also, they need to meet the bank’s requirement of debt service ratios in terms of loan payment. “A term of five years should be adequate for working capital and up to 20 years for business premise financing,” he says. Tradelines and overdrafts are generally offered to achieve short-term goals such as increasing stock inventories, while those looking to purchase fixed assets are recommended to go for longer-term loans.

Longest Tenure, Lowest Rate

The traditional approach to bank financing by retailers is to obtain a loan with the longest term coupled with the lowest interest rates. Naturally, this is the preferred choice of smaller retailers as they worry about not having sufficient cash flow to run the business and also to service the loan at the same time. 24

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Moreover, those who are new to obtaining bank loans generally start with a small amount of about RM100,000 and upping the number as they gain more experience in running a business. Though the initial amount may seem small, it is always important to get off on the right footing from the beginning to avoid unnecessary pitfalls in future dealings. Additionally, Hu explains that keeping good accounting records is important as it demonstrates to the bank a business’s ability of being transparent through audited accounts. Good corporate governance is often related to a strong management team. On top of that, Hu also points out that the personality of the entrepreneur or business owner is equally as important. “You have to maintain your integrity and credibility in the community as people will talk. Bankers are keen to lend to people whom they trust and believe in,” he says.

Leveraging on Loans

It is rather presumptuous to assume that when a business reaches out to a bank for a loan, the company is knee deep in financial woes. There are times when a business has adequate cash flow and working capital to expand but a little extra can go a long way. “If you have been in business for a long time and are able to survive without bank borrowing, why would you want to start now? Bankers will questions you on this and that

One of their more popular products is the Malaysian Kitchen Financing Facility (MKFF) that assists Malaysian entrepreneurs in obtaining financing facilities to set up or expand their existing Malaysian restaurants overseas.

is why you must be able to articulate your needs,” says Standard Chartered’s Hu. He adds that retailers who have enough capital but choose to apply for loans are doing what he refers to as leveraging. “If you have RM1 million in capital and RM500,000 is what you need to set up a new branch, you are then only able to set up two new branches. But if you leverage on bank loans and apply for RM1 million worth of funding, you can then go on to set up four new branches at the same time. Doing business is a numbers game. How well you manage your business determines how much profit you can generate,” he explains.

Venturing Beyond Local Shores

Choosing the right bank also plays an important part when reaching out for financing. Retailers whose businesses are predominantly limited to the domestic market are able to make do with local banks that have wide coverage across Malaysia. On the other hand, retailers who have a regional presence or are exporting their brands are encouraged to work with foreign banks with branches across major markets as this would facilitate cross-border transactions. That said, funding obtained from banks need not only be utilised for local expansion. Financial institutions such as Export-Import Bank of Malaysia Berhad (EXIM Bank) offer not only funding, but also the know-how to take your business abroad.

Dato’ Adissadikin Ali

EXIM Bank CEO Dato’ Adissadikin Ali states that the bank’s margin of financing is up to 90% of the project cost, which is inclusive of three months’ working capital. “This makes the foray into another country for such eateries even easier than previously anticipated. The tenure of the facility is up to five years from the date of the first disbursement, which is inclusive of a grace period that can go up to twelve months from the date of the first disbursement. This consists of three months’ payment holiday, followed by six months of interest servicing,” he continues. In short, it is important for retailers to have an idea of how they would utilise the funds before approaching a bank for a loan. Once that step has been taken care of, identifying the right bank as a business partner is next. When in talks with a bank, it is best to be frank and open on your business dealings and find ways of maximising your transaction with the bank. This should pave the way for a better offer from the bank and set you on your way to retail success. Good luck! Vo l 3 N o 1

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Tech Matters

Sunlight Taxi Goes Techy

Calling a cab used to involve waving your hands frantically while calling out at the top of your voice. But now, thanks to Sunlight Taxi Sdn Bhd’s embracement of technology, you can do so by a simple phone call or a few clicks of a button. By Diana Othaman

etting a taxi back in the day meant standing on the curb while waving your hand and hoping the taxi will stop. Even if it does stop, there’s no guarantee that the driver would be willing to take you to your intended destination. And if he agrees, then comes the fare haggling part. Sometimes, a taxi driver would demand a flat marked up fee rather than charging the fee shown in the meter as the destination is not within his “comfort zone”. Sunlight Taxi Sdn Bhd seeks to overcome these inherent problems by applying new

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technology to a very traditional business. Dato’ Choi Wei Yee, Executive Director of Sunlight Taxi Group, says “Sunlight Taxi’s core business is renting out taxis, and the Group has more than 3,000 taxis and 4,000 taxi drivers. We also have other businesses like our call centre. Previously, we were using trunk radio and our call centre used to be very paper-based, and we were just using pen and paper without any computers. So, we upgraded and computerised everything and started using this technology to develop our apps and we also developed our Global Positioning System (GPS), where each taxi is fitted with terminal unit with a screen.

“We came up with the idea of upgrading our call centre because we wanted to increase our drivers’ earnings, that’s the first point. After increasing their earnings only can we expect them to provide a high level of service.” Dato’ Choi

Dato’ Choi Wei Yee

We have a black box so that we can track the drivers’ location and performance.” According to Dato’ Choi, ever since the company computerised its operations, its call centre operators no longer need to write down a repeat customer’s details as the system includes the customer database. However, if a new customer calls for the first time, the operators would still need to key in the details into the database but when the same customer calls again, the system will show the information. “This helps our operations a lot, because last time when we were using paper, when a customer called in, it sometimes took, especially during the peak hours, about 20 to 30 minutes for the cab to respond. Because we used to broadcast to all our taxi drivers and we would have to wait for them to respond and then we had to call back the customer, everything took about 20 to 30 minutes. Now, with this system in place, in addition to our GPS, we are also developing our app. With the app, our customers will no longer need to call in. They will just need to key in everything and the system will run automatically and detect the nearest available taxi. This really shortens the entire process, and if the taxi

is available nearby, it will take less than five minutes,” she explains.

New Technology

Unicablink Sdn Bhd was formed in 2013 to serve as the call centre and technology arm of the Sunlight Taxi Group. Its purpose is to transform the call centre into a technologically advanced one to increase efficiency and to better serve its customers. New methods of doing business had to be adapted to improve the service and in addition to its GPS-enabled taxis, the company has launched an integrated GPSenabled taxi-dispatching system via an app (available on Android and Apple devices) which enables taxi-booking through a smartphone. It is a strategic and innovative system to replace the taxi-booking process of the old days. Sunlight Taxi also has many corporate clients who prefer to book online and the company offers them a system to do that. The company now has the technology and is able to offer the entire call centre “engine” to other taxi operators.

Adapting to Changes

However, embracing new technology isn’t without its own set of challenges. Adapting from the old fashioned radio to better and more recent technologies is a big challenge

for taxi drivers, especially to the more elderly ones who have gotten accustomed to old technology and are less receptive of changes. Unicablink Sdn Bhd’s Executive Director Henry Lee says, “Embracing new technology is not something you can force the taxi drivers to do overnight. What you’re seeing here now has just stated to happen over the past two to three years. It took Singapore twenty years in order to fine-tune this process. Now, without a terminal, Singapore taxi drivers cannot do their jobs. But without a terminal, our drivers still can. They go to queue up at the shopping centres and use their own way to negotiate with their passengers. If they have been queuing up at the bus-stops and taxi stands for many years, you cannot change their mindset to use the GPS immediately.” According to Lee, the GPS has an effect of neutralising everyone’s ability. “If you’re a trunk radio driver, all the routes and short-cuts are in your head, but with the GPS, every driver would have the same knowledge on the shortest and fastest routes. It instantly neutralises everyone’s ability to earn a higher income, as the cake is still small. When you first start, everybody would be worse off. Only the smartest and the hardest working will Vo l 3 N o 1

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Tech Matters

survive. The technology does bring some positive impact but it also brings some destructive impact, especially to the older generation drivers. But actually those who are good are the older generation drivers who practice honest driving and serve the customers well,” he explains.

new system allocates the nearest taxi to the passenger, but if there are really no taxis nearby and the customer still needs one, then we’ll broadcast to all the taxis and see who wants to pick up the passenger, providing the customer is also willing to wait,” she continues.

Still a Drivers’ Market

Better Monitoring

There are many ways of hailing a cab. You can call in and say that you want a taxi, or you can use an app to book a taxi, be it online or through the phone but ultimately, it is whether the driver wants to pick you up or not. “At the moment, it is more of a drivers’ market. They may choose not to pick you up if they will likely be caught in a traffic jam and waste valuable time. Many taxi drivers use the peak traffic hours as their rest time, which is why you’ll find it hard to catch a cab during the peak hours. You may question why the taxi drivers do such things. We need time to finetune this entire operations. From a macro perspective, why the service is not actually up to expectations is the accumulated policy over many years. So, in order to force these drivers to pick passengers, number one, you have to ensure their income level which requires a certain technological platform and a certain structure that keeps feeding them with jobs,” says Lee. “We came up with the idea of upgrading our call centre because we wanted to increase our drivers’ earnings, that’s the first point. After increasing their earnings only can we expect them to provide a high level of service. And of course all this technology will help to improve the efficiency of our operations and allow us to offer better service to our customers,” adds Dato’ Choi. The company was already running its call centre since 1996 using trunk radio had about 1,000 subscribers then, but new drivers were reluctant to join as the seasoned ones were hogging all the jobs. Hence, the company came up with a system that allocated jobs more fairly. “Now, the 28

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The arrival of new technology means that not only the drivers but the passengers are monitored by the company too, for security reasons. Even the cabs are being

data and the distance from one place to another, as well as the correct amount that needs to be paid by the passengers in their computer. Unicablink now provides the taxi number and the driver’s ID, while the integrated GPS helps the driver to navigate better with extensive information on the best routes as well as traffic information. Apart from the taxi drivers’ extensive knowledge of routes, the GPS’s even larger database would mean that the drivers can pick up more customers in a day than they used to. Now, with the integration of GPS

Henry Lee

“Embracing new technology is not something you can force the taxi drivers to do overnight. What you’re seeing here now has just stated to happen over the past two to three years.” Henry Lee monitored for their physical condition, last service date and whether or not there are any mechanical issues. The information is securely recorded and are meticulously monitored to ensure that better service is provided. The company’s taxi coupon counters are also operating using technology where they have the location

and the adaptation of the new system, taxi drivers no longer need to drive around aimlessly to look for passengers but instead, the passengers will look for them. All they need to do is wait and go to the locations once called, and hence have the potential of increasing their income by as much as 50%.

About the App

Going back to the app, you can choose to key in the pick-up or drop-off location of your choice and let the app’s integrated map confirm the location or just let the app identify your current location as a pick-up point. Besides that, the app also shows the route to the destination, the distance in kilometres, how many taxis are available around your area, and your history of using the app. You can save the address for future use, so you won’t need to type in the address again. An Order ID is also generated for the customers through the app. Customers can also make bookings for other people and all you need to do is to type in the passenger’s name and location, and the passenger’s required destination. A booking status will also be provided in the app to ensure the booking has been confirmed. Cancellation can also take place with no charge. Tips may be added as well and the possible tips as listed in the app are: extra RM3 for extra incentives, RM5 for traffic jams or peak

hours and RM10 for remote locations. This is to ensure that the taxi driver will not ask for a tip directly from the passengers.

working on a taxi equipped with a 3-channel radio and successfully introduced a better taxi-based transport system.

As with anything new, customers are expected to take time to get accustomed to calling a cab via an app. “Even with the app already in place, most of the company’s customers still prefer to call in as they prefer the personalised service it entails. Our call centre receives about 3,000 calls per day. We are not aggressively promoting our app at the moment. We are a traditional operator and we have a duty to deliver to our drivers and customers. We are here for the long term,” stresses Lee.

Looking back now, a taxi with 3-channel radio isn’t much if applied in today’s world but the company has evolved from its humble beginnings to become one of the most advanced, with a GPS system integrated in each cab. Sunlight Taxi holds the Malaysia’s Book of Records for offering the first integrated online taxi booking service with GPS. With its measured progress, the company is heading in the direction of their vision which is “to be the premier and preferred land transportation and other related service provider while providing excellent services and recognised internationally as the leading service in land transportation in Malaysia”. With its willingness and capability to embrace and apply the latest technology, the future looks bright indeed for Sunlight Taxi.

Bright Future

Sunlight Taxi has definitely evolved for the better. Back in 1986, when Choi Teo Men founded this company, his only intention was to help his friends and himself to gain more income as a taxi driver but his blood, sweat and tears all paid off when he started

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Lean & Mean

Kill Stress with a Healthy Lifestyle Stress is a real killer, especially in our competitive highpressure world. If left unchecked, stress can strain your relationships and jeopardise your health. Choose to overcome stress by leading a healthy lifestyle! By Diana Othaman

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mountain of work. Looming deadlines. A tyrant boss screaming down your neck. A failing business. Angry creditors at your doorstep. A stock market crash. These are the overwhelming situations that stress out even the calmest among us. It is human nature to experience stress once in a while but sometimes it can be a tad too overwhelming. Stress can be relieved although not many know exactly how. It is only a manifestation which exists solely in the mind of a person and is usually a “push-back” reaction to the things that we cannot manage. Stress is a chain-reaction process and when it occurs, it tends to generate more and more negative feelings and emotions, building up to depression and anger, and the whole process will repeat itself in a vicious cycle. This cycle will go on a continuous loop and unless it is halted, it will ultimately affect your health and relationships.

A Vicious Cycle

Let’s put this into perspective. If stress is not dealt with at the onset, it will build up to generate depression, anger and anxiety. These three are the root causes of symptoms such as a worn-out facial expression, rapid ageing, migraine, loss of appetite and this might lead to an outbreak of fever due to the weakening state of the immune system. Stress is very much like a disease and a healthy lifestyle is the first step towards minimising this debilitating condition.

“ Stress is a chainreaction process and when it occurs, it tends to generate more and more negative feelings and emotions, building up to depression and anger, and the whole process will repeat itself in a vicious cycle.”

5-Minute Relaxation Techniques

Fortunately, it takes as little as five minutes a day to avoid all these from happening — you don’t even have to go to the spa or seek treatment from body massage therapists. Here are some instant relaxation techniques:

1. Visualisation

All you need to do is to picture yourself in a relaxed state amidst peaceful surroundings. Close your eyes and take your mind off all your current stress. To make this exercise even more realistic, make the image in your mind as real as possible using soothing colours, sounds, feelings and touch.

for a moment and then slowly exhale, allowing your your chest to move up and down naturally as you inhale and exhale. Focus on this breathing technique and you will feel your stress level decrease.

3. Soothing Music

For a relaxing evening at home, put on some relaxing classical or jazz music as you wind down for the day. This would help release endorphins in your body to put you in a happy and relaxed state of mind.

4. Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff 2. Deep Breathing

Something as simple as breathing deeply increases the supply of oxygen to the brain, which is a powerfully effective way to feel calm and refreshed. Sit up straight, relax, loosen your tense shoulder muscles and take a few deep breaths. Feel the air entering your nostrils and lungs. Hold your breath

Be positive and look at the bright side of things. Sometimes, it’s not what happens to you that matters but how you choose to react. Think of all the simple things in life that you are grateful for but normally take for granted, e.g. a roof over your head, food to eat, a good job, a supportive family, etc. Having an optimistic mindset will go a long way towards a calmer you.

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M A L AY S I A R E TA I L E R

Lean & Mean

Effective Time Management

Plan your day/week/month/year well to ensure that you have enough time to complete all your tasks. If you find yourself constantly failing to meet your deadlines despite working overtime, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time to evaluate your schedule to weed out the timesuckers. For example, cutting down the time you take for lunch and tea breaks frees up more time to complete your other tasks for the day, so that you can leave the office while the sun is still up. Keep some sticky notes handy to remind you of important tasks, and place them in a prominent spot such as the bottom of your computer monitor or on your desk calendar.

Spruce Up Your Workplace

De-stressing yourself would only take a few minutes with a little change at your office/ cubicle. Toss out the stress by rearranging your work station, replacing any negative elements with positive ones, hang some posters with inspirational words on the wall, place some photos of your loved ones by the desk, or if you are a food lover, place a jar of healthy munchies nearby so you can reward yourself after completing your work. At the end of the day, indulging in some small talk with colleagues and sharing some light-hearted jokes will eventually do the trick.

Eating Your Stress Away

Lastly, flush out your stress with fresh bites. Eating is something we do every day and so it is best to make the most out of it. Eating healthy will surely help your body to function better. An example of a super food that you can easily find in the market is asparagus; this vegetable has the ability to boost your mood as it contains folic acid that will leave you feeling great throughout the day. Munching on almonds will also work their magic. Did you know that eating 12 to 15 almonds could cure your headache? This nutty goodness is easily available in stores and contains vitamins B2 and E that help boost the immune system at times of stress. There is also great news for all you fish lovers because salmon is a rich source of omega-3 and if you consume about four ounces (roughly 113 grammes) of salmon, it will protect your heart from the stress hormones that flow through your blood vessels. Below are some other foods to indulge in and to avoid:

Break Down Your Tasks

Instead of staring dumbfounded at the humongous task you have at hand, break it down into smaller, more manageable chunks. Then, aim to complete these smaller tasks one by one and before you know it, you would have covered the entire task.

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Get Up & Moving

Walking is one of the most effective ways to release stress. Spending some time outdoors, especially among lush greenery, also helps to reduce stress. Alternatively, sweating it out at the gym not only burns calories but also melts your stress away.

INDULGE

AVOID

Papaya

Alcohol

Sunflower Seeds

Sugar

Red Bell Pepper

Beverages with caffeine

Clams

Fatty food

So, the next time you feel all stressed out, remember these useful tips to keep your stress at bay. Keep calm and stay happy!

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New memberS

Hap Seng Star Sdn Bhd Hap Seng Star first established its close working relationship with the Mercedes-Benz brand in Sabah way back in 1969, under Hap Seng Auto Sdn Bhd. Its association with Mercedes-Benz Malaysia has since expanded to Peninsular Malaysia, making it the third Mercedes-Benz authorised dealer in the Klang Valley and the 13th in Malaysia. Today, Hap Seng Star distributes a range of Mercedes-Benz vehicles that include passenger vehicles, logging trucks, general-purpose trucks, buses and spare parts in Malaysia. It now has a total of six Mercedes-Benz outlets, with four in the Klang Valley and two in major towns in East Malaysia, namely Kota Kinabalu and Kuching. In line with Hap Seng Star’s corporate philosophy of Passion for Excellence, the company’s commitment for service excellence has enabled it to consistently win numerous awards, and these include: • 2010 Mitsubishi Fuso High Achievers Award • 2008 & 2010 Mercedes-Benz Best Service Experience Awards • 2011, 2012 & 2013 Mercedes-Benz Service Excellence Awards • 2010, 2012 & 2014 Mercedes-Benz Malaysia Skills Competition With over 40 years of history with Mercedes-Benz, the name Hap Seng Star is now synonymous with the Mercedes-Benz brand throughout Malaysia.

Polyseed Footprint Solutions Sdn Bhd Polyseed Footprint Solutions Sdn Bhd is a Green Technology company that develops and manufactures green additives for the production of all types of degradable plastics. Our technologies are: • Oxium® – specifically for carry bags and others, Polypropylene (PP) and Polyethylene (PE) • TaniumTM – lamination structure for packaging materials and others, Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) and Nylon

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Our vision is to turn this world into a better living environment by providing the integrated sustainable solutions to all stakeholders for the benefit of our future generations. Originating from the United States, these technologies allow the plastics to degrade within the set time frame. This breakthrough has established the mission of generating sustainable environment that addresses the long-term answer to the problems of waste accumulation and pollution.

Supersave Multi Trading Sdn Bhd Supersave Group of Companies was established in Miri, Sarawak way back in 1994. We have blossomed into a household name not only within the boundaries of Sarawak but extending into Sabah, Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, China and Brunei. We currently operate more than 50 outlets worldwide and are looking to expand further in the coming year. In tune with our tagline â&#x20AC;&#x153;Everyday Save Everythingâ&#x20AC;?, we ensure that our products are affordable to shoppers.

Taste Better (M) Sdn Bhd Taste Better brings out the unique tastes of Malaysian tropical fruits and integrates them into delicious custard puffs and ice creams for the enjoyment of both locals and international tourists. The company has set up 22 fully-owned direct retail outlets so far, and the number is poised to increase further. Our signature product One-Bite Durian Puff is designed to be consumed in a single bite. We specially formulated our golden durian custard into the creamiest and smoothest fillings. Our best-recommended way to consume it is to place the whole puff into your mouth and to slowly savour the extraordinary taste that will linger in your taste buds for a memorable experience.

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EventS

January Meeting to Kick-start 2015

he MRCA conducted its first monthly meeting for 2015 at The Ballroom 2, The Place @ USJ Subang Jaya, which was well attended by 104 representatives from MRCA members. MRCA president Dato’ C.L. Liaw began the session by welcoming all present and thanked the members who witnessed the launch of the MRCA Youth earlier. He also took the opportunity to announce several upcoming events, namely the MRCA Chinese New Year Banquet 2015 and the Malaysia International Retail, Franchise & Licensing Fair 2016 (MIRF). Dato’ Liaw stressed that the MRCA Academy will continue to organise more training and will focus more on retail management. He announced that the academy had invited Dr. Asoka, an internationally renowned thought-leader in Human Potential Development, to present a talk entitled “How to Unleash Physical & Mental Power” the following day. Mr. Jason Teh had also been invited to conduct a seminar on “Are you M.B.A ready - Why you want to learn M.B.A. & basic online, offline & mobile marketing”. 36

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Dato’ Liaw then wished everyone a very Happy Chinese New Year and handed the session over to the Secretary-General for the next agenda. Subsequently, the Secretary-General’s report on past/upcoming events and membership update was presented. The meeting concluded with presentations by Dato’ Dr. Edmund Lee (Chief of MRCA Youth), introduction of Malaysia Retailer magazine by Aiveen Wong (CEO of In Think Publishing Sdn Bhd), and MIRF 2016 by Liew Bin.

Standing from Left: Mr. Alvis Koh, Ms. Ong Kim Hwa, Ms. Estee Leong, Master Jane Hor, Dato’ Dr Edmund Lee, Dato’ CL Liaw, Mr. Nicholas Chong, Mr. Jeff Kong, Mr. Edison Choon and Ms. Minlyi Chi Squatting from left: Mr. Jarvin Leow, Mr. Kwok Han Cheng, Mr. Kok Thong and Mr. Roys Tan

MRCA Youth Networking Evening

n line with the MRCA Youth Division’s aim of providing opportunities for its young members to interact and to learn together, its members were invited to a networking event at the E-City Hotel at Sky Park One City on 4th February 2015. Guest speaker Master Jane Hor, a rising talent in the Feng Shui industry, gave a presentation entitled “Is your retail business ready for the Year of the Goat 2015?” During the talk, Master Hor shared her Annual Feng Shui Forecast of 2015, Annual Astrology of 2015, face reading tips and also date selection tips.

From Left: Dato’ Dr Edmund Lee, Master Jane Hor and Ms. Valerie Choo

In the promotional flyer for the event, MRCA Youth even offered some useful tips when attending its networking event. These included being ready to engage with new friends and people, and bringing plenty of business cards. Another notable tip for the day was to “Smile. It’s a simple – but often overlooked – rule of engagement. By smiling, you’ll put your nervous self at ease, and you’ll also come across as warm and inviting to others. Remember to smile before you enter the room, or before you start your next conversation. And if you’re really dreading the event? Check the negative attitude at the door.” The attendees were treated to a light dinner and everyone had an enjoyable evening catching up with old friends and making new acquaintances.

MRCA Youth members at the function

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EventS

Festive Charity Visit

he MRCA Branding Education Charity Foundation, now in its fifth year, is one of MRCA’s main projects to give back to the community. This year, on 11th February, MRCA members including council members and the trustees of the foundation - Dato’ Tay Sim Kim, Datuk Seri Nelson Kwok, and Dato’ C.L. Liaw (who is also the President of MRCA), visited HY-Home (Hong Yuan Zhi Jia), Setapak and celebrated the Chinese New Year festival with the senior citizens from this home. In keeping with the spirit of giving and sharing during Chinese New Year, the foundation donated about RM10,000 worth of goods comprising daily necessities and groceries and provide repairing services to their home. Datuk Henry Yip from Dragon-i also sponsored “Lou Sang” for the enjoyment of the old folks there. With this visit, the MRCA hopes to raise awareness about the existence and plight of the less fortunate. We should all give back to the community from time to time to show our gratitude for the blessings we receive, and to play a role in the welfare and interests of the less fortunate.

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From Left: Dato’ Steve Day, Tan Sri Tang Yeam Soon, Datuk Albert Chiang, Tan Sri Datuk Danny Ooi, Ms. Shirley Tay, Dato’ Tay Sim Kim, Tan Sri Dato Sri Leong Hoy Kum, Dato’ Eddie Choon, Dato’ Mah Siew Keong, Dato’ Liaw Choon Liang, Dato’ Sri JK Low, Tan Sri Barry Goh, Datuk Seri Nelson Kwok, Dato’ Ngeow Voon Yean, Mr. Abraham Foss, Ms Valerie Choo and Mr. Lee Hwa Cheng

MRCA CNY Banquet 2015

Datin Sri Diana Lee

he Malaysia Retail Chain Association (MRCA) celebrated the Lunar New Year at its Chinese New Year Banquet 2015, which was graced by Y.B. Dato’ Mah Siew Keong, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, on 3rd of March, 2015 at Grand Ballroom, The Place @ One City. The banquet was attended by about 550 members and guests from the creme de la creme of the retail-chain industry, who came together to welcome the Year of the Goat. The feature-packed function included a charity auction, singing performances and a fashion show to raise funds for the less fortunate in the community. Organising Chairlady and Secretary-General of the MRCA, Shirley Tay said, “This annual affair of the MRCA is a reunion of one big family which provides the opportunity for guests to take a break from their busy schedules and foster closer relationships with one another. It is a time to bring interaction and existing cordial ties with mutual confidence, respect and trust between the members and guests to a new level, embracing virtually all areas of human activities and endeavours.”

From Left: MRCA First President Dato’ Eddie Choon, MRCA President Dato’ Liaw Choon Liang, Guest of Honour Dato’ Mah Siew Keong and MRCA Secretary General & Organising Chairlady Ms. Shirley Tay

From Left: Datin Joyce Goh, Datin Elaine Lim, Datin Jennifer Hon, Datin Eva Ho, Ms. A-Lin Tan and Datin Seri Carol Ooi

Puan Sri Sulvian Leong

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COMPRISING MORE THAN 250 LEADING RETAIL BRANDS & COVERING MORE THAN 20,000 OUTLETS IN MALAYSIA

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New Mall Rising

Up-and-Coming Attractions

The Klang Valley is home to some of the largest shopping malls in the world and is a shopper’s haven. Malaysia Retailer takes a closer look at what some of the newly opened malls have to offer and also how the stalwart malls are coping with new competition. By Tan Thiam Hock & Samuel Ngeow

t has been said that shopping is Malaysians’ favourite pastime. Judging from the bustling crowds at the popular malls here and the sheer numbers and sizes of the malls in the country (some of the largest in the world), the phrase does bear some truth. From the most luxurious designer labels such as Louis Vuitton and Chanel to the more affordable local brands like Padini and F.O.S, there’s something for everyone when they are shopping here. With the impending entries of many new malls and the ongoing expansion of retail spaces for the existing ones, the locals are spoilt for choice when it comes to their preferred weekend activity.

OVERVIEW OF THE RETAIL INDUSTRY

Tan Sri Datuk Eddy Chen Lok Loi, President of Malaysia Shopping Malls Association (PPK Malaysia) says, “Generally, the mall industry is doing well, given the rising population and the larger consumer base. In fact, most of the malls, especially those welllocated ones, have seen an increase in footfall. Today, many existing malls are upgrading themselves to keep up with the changes in consumer tastes and preferences. So, the malls are very dynamic, they don’t just build the mall get the tenants in, full Tan Sri Datuk Eddy Chen stop. In fact, they are continuously rejuvenating and reinventing themselves. If you look at Sunway Pyramid for instance, they are continuingly looking for ways to upgrade and to improve their shoppers’ comfort and convenience.” According to Tan Sri Datuk Eddy, malls in good locations continue to achieve very high occupancy and many of them are even 100% tenanted, while some of them may well have a waiting list of people waiting to get in. “I’m quite optimistic regarding malls, but having said that, there are some challenges for a number of the smaller localised (neighbourhood) malls because they don’t have the sufficient size and mix to make them fully lifestyle malls to cater to a bigger crowd. So, the challenges are more for localised malls and some of them may well be facing financial issues,” he reveals. 42

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Newly Completed Retail Malls In 2014 NAME

LOCATION

Main Place USJ 21

USJ, Subang Jaya

COMPLETION 1Q 2014

NLA (sqft)

Encorp Strand Mall

Kota Damansara

1Q 2014

308,800

Jaya Shopping Centre

Sec 14, Petaling Jaya

1Q 2014

300,000

Nu Sentral

KL Sentral

2Q 2014

651,800

D’Pulze

Cyberjaya

3Q 2014

240,000

Quill City Mall

Jalan Sultan Ismail

4Q 2014

770,000

IOI City Mall

Putrajaya

4Q 2014

1,350,000

237,000

Source : WTW Research

Retail Developments Scheduled for Completion in 2015 NAME

NLA (sqft)

Sunway Putra Mall

620,000

Capsquare Mall (former PIKOM ICT Mall)

220,000

The Atria Shopping Mall

450,000

Sunway Velocity Lifestyle Mall

800,000

Sunway Pyramid Phase 3 Total

70,000 2,160,000

Source : WTW Research

Foo Gee Jen, Managing Director of property consultant CH Williams Talhar & Wong Sdn Bhd, states that there are great uncertainties on the country’s current economic outlook. Despite the decrease in petrol prices since December 2014, consumers are still concerned of rising living costs, with the upcoming implementation of GST in April 2015. Based on his statements, the retail sector will remain stable but the market is expected to see fewer activities in the 2015. Foo also points out that the retail malls located within Kuala Lumpur continued to outperform those located outside Kuala Lumpur in 2014, with the former recording a vacancy rate of 12.0% compared to the latter’s 24.5%. “The retail sector is expected to stay quiet but buoyant in 2015, with new retail mall owners likely to experience increased difficulties in maintaining occupancy rates, in view of the likely completion of more malls in 2015,” he says.

New Kids on the Block The total retail space in Klang Valley has been steadily increasing throughout the years. Thanks to the opening of IOI City Mall, Quill City Mall, D’Pulze Shopping Centre (all three in late 2014) and other new shopping malls, it has expanded more immensely. In order to tap into this bustling retail industry, developers are launching a flurry of new malls across the region. At least 10 new shopping malls are slated for completion in Klang Valley alone this year. So, the question is, how will the new malls fare and will they be able to penetrate the barriers of entries set by the existing malls? By Samuel Ngeow

IOI City Mall: Serving South Klang Valley It started off as a vision to build IOI Resort City, a resort-style development away from the city centre. Following the high demand for the holiday type of hotel stays due to the development of Cyberjaya and Putrajaya, Palm Garden Hotel and Marriott Hotel was built. With the huge commercial success of IOI Resort City, the planning and construction for IOI City Mall began in 2007. However, because of the subprime mortgage crisis in 2008, the project was delayed for several years before it was finally opened to the public on November 2014. Since then, it has attracted droves of visitors, especially from the southern catchment areas. From a nine-hole golf course to a 1.5 million sqft shopping mall, IOI City Mall has truly become the largest and most exciting lifestyle hub in Southern Klang Valley.

Shopping in a Resort Setting

IOI City Mall is a modern contemporary shopping centre in a resort setting, offering prominent fashion brands, mouthwatering dining choices and exciting indoor activities. It aims to appeal to the surrounding population catchments, and, at the same time, hopes to provide an alternative shopping experience to those living in the city centre and beyond. According to Chris Chong, General Manager of IOI City Mall Sdn Bhd, many of

the mall’s designs are based on a palm tree. “If you were to observe carefully, you will notice that the roof, ceiling and building features are shaped similarly to a palm tree leaf,” he points out.

Targeting the South

IOI City Mall is at the centre of several huge catchment areas. Starting from the south are Putrajaya and Cyberjaya which extend all the way to Seremban. “We noticed that there are quite a number of shoppers who come from as far as Nilai, Bangi and Seremban. Since our mall is easily accessible to them via the SKVE highway, they don’t mind the long journey,” says Chong. To the west is Puchong, a fairly large land area with more than a quarter million inhabitants. Currently, the population is being served only by a single shopping centre, namely IOI Mall Puchong, which is located to the north. In this regard, IOI City Mall aims to cater to the needs of the people of southern Puchong, beginning from Bandar Puteri Puchong, because the mall is nearer to them. The eastern catchment areas, commencing from Kajang to Balakong and Sungai Long, are huge untapped markets. “Previously, there were no major shopping complexes surrounding the areas and hence, the locals

had to travel to the city centre to satisfy their needs. Now, with just a 15 minutes’ drive away from their home using the SILK highway, they can choose to shop in IOI City Mall instead,” explains Chong. Likewise, IOI City Mall also aims to target shoppers from the northern catchment areas such as Seri Kembangan, Serdang, Bandar Kinrara and the fairly new township of Taman Equine. Vo l 3 N o 1

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Staying Relevant

Amidst intense competition, shopping malls must constantly evolve to remain relevant to their shoppers. Chong reveals that marketing is one of the most crucial elements for a mall to stay competitive. “We emphasise highly on advertisements and promotional activities, especially during the festive seasons, because for us shopping is all about the ambience and experience,” he elaborates. Chong also specifies that apart from marketing, having a good operational team is vital in maintaining and improving the quality of the mall’s facilities and services. To him, creating an unforgettable experience for the customers is essential but retaining it is equally as important.

Family-Oriented Attractions

IOI City Mall is a lifestyle-oriented shopping mall that is built to cater to a very wide range of consumers, from the middle to upper classes of society. Equipped with a variety of family-oriented attractions such as a major cinema chain, a bowling alley, an Olympic-sized ice skating rink, an indoor Active Leisure Park and two huge home living centres, IOI City Mall is the place to go for an exciting weekend outing. One of the mall’s main attractions is District 21, a 70,000-sqft family entertainment centre (FEC). It is a perfect place for thrillseeking adrenaline junkies who are looking for some intense indoor activities such as wall climbing, bungee jumping and roller gliding. While those dexterous activities may not be suitable for a casual family outing, those who are not so activelyinclined may consider visiting Home Pro and Index Living Mall instead. Just by browsing through the furniture, electrical appliances and home products, the hours would just whisk by in these two unique giant anchors. 44

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The mall also aims to please shoppers by offering many of the major fashion brands such as H&M, G2000 and Uniqlo while strategically and attractively presenting its F&B outlets in an alfresco dining setting to offer shoppers a wholesomely enjoyable meal experience.

Away from the Competition

Chong views Mid Valley Megamall, One Utama and Sunway Pyramid as IOI City Mall’s biggest rivals. “Our mall is very similar to them, in a sense, that we are a lifestyle shopping destination. However, when we talk about competition, location is an influencing factor as well. We are mainly targeting shoppers from the Southern Klang Valley and Seremban area, and presently there are no major shopping centres with more than one million square feet around the area, besides us,” says Chong. He goes on to explain that IOI City Mall is operating in a niche location and the level of competition would not be as intense as the other shopping malls that are located in the central Klang Valley areas or Kuala Lumpur districts.

With that being said, a successful shopping mall must also possess a good mix of exclusive and popular retailers as their attractions. “We have unique tenants such as District 21, Home Pro, Index Living Mall and FitFlop, which are the first in Malaysia. At the same time, we also feature some of the more common and popular ones such as H&M, G2000 and Uniqlo so that we can compete with others.”

Future Expansion Underway

Currently, Phase 1 of IOI City Mall has a Gross Development Value (GDV) of RM1.5 billion with a Net Lettable Area (NLA) of 1.5 million sqft. According to Chong, the group is planning to expand the mall under the Phase 2 development project by an NLA of 600,000 to 800,000 sqft. “At the moment, planning for the project is still in the schematic stage and we foresee that it will take us at least five years to complete it. Demand for Phase 1’s retail space had been very encouraging, which was one of the reasons for the almost immediate commencement of the Phase 2 project. Chong reveals that the second phase is aimed at complementing the existing mall by targeting more of the upper classes of shoppers. “It will be more of a premium shopping centre, in a sense that, there will be a larger volume of high-end retailers,” he says.

Quill City Mall: Jewel in the City Formerly known as Bandar Wawasan (Vision City), the mall itself was partially completed and left abandoned for more than 17 years before Quill Group of Companies acquired the project six years ago and transformed it into a jewel of the city. “It was a huge challenge for us to refurbish and redesign the abandoned building because the designs and concepts were completely outdated. Thus, we overhauled the mall with an “out of the norm” design of a conventional mall,” says Dato’ Michael Ong, Group Executive Director of Quill Group of Companies. Now, with the newly improved modern and futuristic appearance, Quill City Mall is set to become Kuala Lumpur’s most unique lifestyle shopping destination.

State-of-the-Art LEDs

Located along the bustling road of Jalan Sultan Ismail, Kuala Lumpur, Quill City Mall is a world class shopping haven for fashion, dining and entertainment. With its comfortable yet spacious interior designs, the first and largest state-of-the-art LED media pod in Malaysia and six levels of alfresco dining areas illuminated by the prismatic-coloured rooftop LED panels, Quill City Mall looks set to charm the hearts of both locals and foreigners alike.

Complementing the Competition

Dato’ Michael explains that the mall complements the other malls around the area instead of directly competing with them. “Positioning of the mall plays a paramount role, especially in the city centre where we are surrounded by established and matured malls. Our mall is positioned to complement the surrounding malls, most of all, we are customer driven. We have positioned our retail mix differently, creating a niche for ourselves,” he says.

Staying Ahead of Customer Trends

Shopping malls must also constantly keep up with the latest trends and demands to stay relevant. “It’s all about staying ahead of consumer trends and knowing what they want and delivering this through the mall’s offerings,” comments Dato’ Michael. He also points out the fact that consumers are becoming more discerning as well, which is a fact that every shopping mall has to

acknowledge. Retailers, on the other hand, would also need to bear the responsibility of maintaining fair prices, in addition to heeding consumers’ needs.

Expansion Plans

are many popular and notable tenants such as Jaya Grocer, ACE Hardware, TGV Cinemas, Celebrity Fitness, U Bowl, MPH Bookstores and F.O.S, which aim to cater to the needs of the surrounding catchments.

According to Dato’ Michael, Quill City Mall is part of a greater project by the Quill Group of Companies which had been successfully launched. This integrated development project includes a 36-storey residential building and hotel with serviced apartments. “With these integrated components, the Quill City development is poised to become the ‘next big thing’ in the heart of Kuala Lumpur,” says Dato’ Michael, while adding that there are other future projects in the pipeline, but for now, the focus is on the development of the Quill City project.

A Neighbourhood Mall

D’Pulze Shopping Centre: A First for Cyberjaya

As mentioned earlier, Cyberjaya, with so many new investments coming in, is fast becoming a popular and higher density residential area. Envisioning the great potential of the city, D’Pulze has capitalised on the first-mover advantage. It is currently the only mall catering to the people living in the area, providing them with easily accessible shopping, dining and leisure experiences. Newly opened at the end of last year, D’Pulze plans to continuously improve and maintain the quality of the mall but has no further expansion plans at the moment.

Sitting on a 4.3-acre land comprising a mixed development of a 230-room 4-star international hotel managed by The Ascott Ltd, a 162-room Tune Hotel, 505 units of fully-sold apartments, as well as a retail mall spanning 400,000 sqft of gross floor area, D’Pulze Shopping Centre is the latest attraction in Cyberjaya. Over the next four years, the city will oversee an influx of developments worth RM14 billion, transforming it into a Global Technology Hub and a highly demanded residential area. With that being said, D’Pulze is poised to become the most exciting and pulsating lifestyle destination for those living in the area or elsewhere.

D’Pulze is a neighbourhood mall and is in a league of its own. It does not plan to compete with the more prominent ones, but instead, aims to satisfy the lifestyle and desire of the local inhabitants as there were previously no major shopping malls in Cyberjaya. It also hopes to complement the newer shopping malls such as IOI City Mall to attract more people to shop in the Southern Klang Valley area.

Riding on Cyberjaya’s Ascent

Cyberjaya’s Maiden Offering

Designed to be the heart and soul of Cyberjaya, D’Pulze is the first shopping mall in Malaysia’s Silicon Valley. There Vo l 3 N o 1

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On The Cover

The Stalwart Malls If shopping is your thing, there are several must-visit shopping malls in the Klang Valley, namely Mid Valley Megamall, Suria KLCC, Pavilion KL, One Utama, Sunway Pyramid and Berjaya Times Square. To compete with the new malls, some of these mainstays are undergoing massive expansions but will they be able to remain relevant and keep pace with the ever changing consumer trends? Malaysia Retailer catches up with four of these evergreen malls for the latest updates. By Samuel Ngeow

Sunway Pyramid: Ambitious Expansion Plans Sunway Pyramid opened its doors for business in 1997. The size of the mall was doubled in 2007 due to strong tenant demand. Inspired by Egyptian theme and architecture, it is an iconic landmark nestled in Sunway Resort City. Gaining in popularity, Sunway Pyramid attracts more and more people every year, winning it 38 local, regional and international accolades along the way. Today, Sunway Pyramid is listed as one of the top 10 largest shopping malls in the world and one of shoppers’ favourites in Malaysia.

Unique Lifestyle Hub

Sunway Pyramid is a unique lifestyle hub that offers unforgettable shopping, dining and leisure experiences. With great synergy between other components of Sunway Resort City such as Sunway Lagoon, it appeals largely to the middle to middleupper segment of the market comprising 46

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about 3 million local and international visitors a month.

Up There Among the Biggest

“In respect of size and offerings, Sunway Pyramid’s competitive grouping is with Mid Valley and One Utama. We view competition as being constant, thus, compete base on our strength, differentiation and uniqueness, albeit with more malls in the future,” says Kevin Tan Gar Peng, Chief Operating Officer of Sunway Shopping Malls.

Critical Success Factors

Tan also shares some critical success factors that have made Sunway Pyramid so popular and successful. “Firstly, we emphasise and possess four types of excellence product excellence, marketing excellence, operations excellence and customer-care excellence. Even though we have those in place, we also do not rest on laurels and adopt the Kaizen approach in continuously improving our mall. We believe that only with the ongoing development of our mall can we achieve everlasting success,” he says.

Tan also reveals that the mall had invested heavily on branding, customer service and talent capital because they are pivotal in ensuring Sunway Pyramid is one of the best, if not the best, shopping mall in Klang Valley and Malaysia.

Phase 3 Expansion

With the ongoing Phase 3 development project of RM340 million GDV, Sunway Pyramid is looking to add a 27-storey integrated four-star hotel and a retail complex with NLA of 70,000 sqft. It is expected to be completed in 2015 and will be connected to the existing shopping mall via the basement car park levels and LG1. The Phase 3 of the project will see an additional 500,000 sqft added to the gross floor area of the existing shopping mall, which currently has a total of 4.5 million sqft with NLA of 1.8 million sqft. Having said that, the mall is also planning the fourth phase of the mall development and when it is completed, Sunway Pyramid will be the largest shopping mall in Klang Valley and Malaysia.

as a world-class shopping mall that is on par with bigger names around the world,” he exclaims proudly.

Staying Relevant & Successful

“Our long term strategies have helped us endure the competition over the last 17 years. Currently, our annual traffic footfall is over 44 million, while our sales turnover for the last 12 months is over RM2.4 billion. To date, Suria KLCC has the most productive retail space in Malaysia,” says Brien. Brien also explains that they had to focus on the right tenant mix, invest in consumer research, provide memorable customer experiences and regularly refresh the mall to satisfy their customers’ lifestyle and demands. “At Suria KLCC, we regard our retailers as business partners. Their success is our success, and therefore, we spend a tremendous amount of effort to help them build and sustain their sales.” As a mall operator, Suria KLCC also helps their retailers through effective marketing campaigns, casual mall leasing space at high traffic area, notable CSR programmes and retailers training programmes.

Suria KLCC: Still Shining Bright Suria KLCC, established in November 1998, is the landmark shopping paradise of Malaysia, offering a strong mix of fashion, food and entertainment. It was founded from an inspiration to create an integrated mixed-use development of a city within the city and is part of a 100-acre project called the Kuala Lumpur City Centre, which is ranked among the largest real estate developments in the world. Presently, the six-level Suria KLCC covers an incredible gross area of 1.7 million sqft.

Leading the Pack

Andrew Brien, CEO and Executive Director of Suria KLCC Sdn Bhd says that Suria KLCC has been able to maintain its position as the leading shopping destination in Malaysia for the past 10 years. Their tagline “Always

Something New” continuously offers new varieties to customers and since 2004, more than 300 tenancies have changed hands within the shopping centre. With popular cinemas, major anchor tenants, various departmental stores and over 350 specialty stores such as TGV Cinemas, Isetan, Mark & Spencer, Chanel and Giorgio Armani, Suria KLCC appeals to everyone.

Competition & Rivalry

Competition in the retail sector in Malaysia is a relative term, according to Brien. “We have seen a significant growth in the number of suburban malls within Klang Valley’s trading areas. Each mall caters to the different needs of different individuals. We benchmarked ourselves against the world’s best and today, we regard ourselves

Besides the support provided by Suria KLCC, Brien also advises retailers to stay relevant and remain competitive by using some of the key strategies such as investing in customer research and providing excellent customer experiences. For example, having attractive and fresh window displays and fit outs would entice customers to come back for more.

Future Expansion Plans

Suria KLCC has recently undergone major redevelopment works which include the expansion of specialty outlets and refurbished department store. In the future, the mall is planning to develop Lot 185 which is a part of KLCC Holding’s master plan for KLCC, with a 3.5 million sqft mixed commercial hub. The development project, located in between Suria KLCC and the As-Syakirin mosque, is expected to add a hotel, 65-storey office tower and four levels of retail space housing 70-80 tenants. Slated to be completed in 2019, the retail podium will focus on leisure and F&B offerings which includes a flagship cinema, two food courts and many specialty stores. Vo l 3 N o 1

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On The Cover

Pavilion KL: Upmarket Lifestyle Authority Defining authority in fashion, dining and urban leisure, Pavilion KL was first opened to the public in September 2007. It is located in the heart of Bukit Bintang, Malaysia’s key shopping district and is part on an integrated development comprising Pavilion Residences, Pavilion Tower and the upcoming Royale Pavilion Hotel. The mall brought retail innovation and excellence to the forefront when it opened, showcasing Malaysia’s first luxury duplex retailing concept. With almost a quarter of new brands to Malaysia were in Pavilion KL, it boosts Kuala Lumpur’s image as a shopping paradise.

Soaring Popularity

The mall’s popularity has soared high over the years. It has an excellent tenant mix with over 550 stores within eight dedicated precincts. Each precinct is targeted to different market segments with product differentiation. One example is Tokyo Street at Level 6, a Japanese retail precinct that was awarded the ‘Innovative Design & Development of a New Retail Project’ by the International Council of Shopping Centres. Besides the good retail mix, the mall presents some of the city’s most exciting fashion launches and signature events. Truly the mall for international celebrity sightings and luxurious fashion shopping, Pavilion KL is now a must-visit place for all tourists and locals with its premier retailers and facilities.

World-Class Offering

Pavilion KL completes the total retail experience in Bukit Bintang with its world class offering of fashion, dining and urban leisure, making the district a main shopping hub for Malaysia. In the city centre, Pavilion KL and Suria KLCC are highly branded retail haven. “We are competitors yet at the same time, we complement each other in the total KL shopping experience,” says Joyce Yap, CEO of Retail, Pavilion Kuala Lumpur. “In fact both malls are interconnected with a 450m air-conditioned pedestrian walkway, all in the effort of the government to provide better connectivity for shopping tourism,” she adds. Internationally, Pavilion KL sets its benchmark against The Dubai Mall, Westfield London and The Landmark in Hong Kong. 48

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Hub for Highly-Experiential and Signature Events

Yap explains that it is the mall’s priority to maintain as a hub for highly-experiential and signature events. “We believe that when we heighten the shopping experience for our shoppers, we will drive desirability and even loyalty. For example, we often have shoppers write to us for updates on upcoming festivals or celebrations, so that they can be part of them,” she says. Besides that, Yap says that the group will continue to strengthen its partnerships with international brands, airlines, foreign banks and even global tour groups, to promote Pavilion KL as a destination that is beyond just a shopping mall. Moving on, she advises retailers to work closely with the mall to create larger scale innovative tie-ups because campaigns with bigger impacts tend to attract more attention and desire for the brand. They can also do their part by applying international trends locally. “Malaysians are a curious bunch, in a sense that, international trends that are tailored locally tend to work better and even give the brand an edge against the others.”

Expansion Plans

Pavilion KL is an award-winning mall with 28 internationally-acclaimed and local awards to its credit. “With our new mall extension adding on another 300,000

sqft of NLA, we have a good list of new retailers that will be opening. From design to architecture, leasing to marketing, the mall have been recognised for its contribution in elevating the standards of shopping in the region,” she says. The mall continues to enjoy full occupancy rate for its promotional spaces and is a sought-after location for new product launches and partnership events.

Sensor Grand Musical Stairs’. Each record is tied to a creative marketing campaign and shoppers’ active involvements.

Expansion Plans

With new malls rising and existing malls expanding, this is a very exciting period for the retailers in the golden triangle areas. At the moment, Berjaya Times Square’s management is keeping mum about the details of its expansion plans as they are in midst of finalising the details and execution. With more attractions yet to come, it will only become an even more popular lifestyle destination in the heart of Kuala Lumpur.

Conclusion

Berjaya Times Square: Massive Integrated Development Berjaya Times Square opened its doors in September 2003 as the country’s largest mall ever built in a single phase. With a gross built-up area of 7.5 million sqft on a 10-acre piece of land, it is an international landmark that is popular among the middle to mass markets. Berjaya Times Square comprises a 12-level shopping mall, two 46-storey towers of service suites and hotel, and five levels of basement and 10 floors of annexed car parks. It has continuously strived to exceed shoppers’ expectations by being the forerunner of unique shopping experiences in the region.

Largest Indoor Theme Park

Easily accessible through the Imbi Monorail Station and within close proximity to Lowyat Plaza and Sungei Wang Plaza, it is strategically located in the heart of the city centre, providing visitors with unparalleled shopping, dining and entertainment experiences. The 12-level stratified shopping mall measures approximately 5 million sqft in area size with more than 4,500 parking bays, 1,000 strategically selected retailers and four different themed retail districts. Housing Malaysia’s largest indoor theme park, 3D digital hall and the country’s first motion sensor grand musical stairs, Berjaya Times Square is poised to cater to the local and international market by being a premier shopping haven suitable for a cross-spectrum audience.

Friendly Competition

The management team views the shopping malls around the Bukit Bintang area more as friends than foes. They prefer to think that current and future developments complement Berjaya Times Square and anticipate that, with the completion of Bukit Bintang City Centre (BBCC), visitors would have more variety to shop in this side of the Golden Triangle. However, with rivalry and competition quickly becoming more intense, even close allies could become immediate threats.

Marketing & Customer Satisfaction

Berjaya Times Square focuses on marketing and customer satisfaction to achieve and retain success. The mall has introduced many novel marketing campaigns that centred on providing unique experiences to its shoppers. For its 10th anniversary, Berjaya Times Square achieved significant publicity for building the world’s largest capsule vending machine as adjudicated by the Guinness Book of World Records. The device, according to the management team, was accessible to the public via redemption over a period of four months. Additionally, the mall has also presented the biggest Christmas tree and blossom tree replica to the public while other exemplary records include the ‘First Gamers’ Vault’, ‘First Ames Room’, and ‘First Motion

As more and more shopping malls are emerging and the competition intensifies, it is increasingly difficult for these players to become or remain successful. Successful malls, whether they are Mid Valley Megamall, 1Utama, Sunway Pyramid, Pavilion or Suria KLCC, all have one thing in common - a clear vision. These shopping malls are sizeable and have great clarity around their offerings and value propositions, and understand the emotional, social and functional needs of their shoppers. They are the shopping juggernauts because they have continuously evolved to stay relevant to the latest trends and consumer preferences. Hence, they have remained hugely popular until today. Coupled with excellent customer care and top class facilities, these megamalls are prime reasons why Malaysia is one of the world’s best shopping destinations.

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Industry Intelligence

Market Research for the Intelligent Retailer Starting a retail business is a leap of faith for most entrepreneurs. However, without the right knowledge and market information, you may be leaping blindfolded into unknown terrain. Enter the realm of market research... By Samuel Ngeow

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tarting a new business is a daunting task and a risky venture, even for a seasoned entrepreneur. With a whole lot of business-related challenges to grapple with, you will need all the help you can get. There is a way to increase your chances of success and it is called market research.

What is Market Research? It is the process acquiring information in a systematic and objective manner. According to Rozina Mat Rawi, Managing Director of Metrix Research Sdn Bhd, the process of gathering information is formalised with market research. “Market research firms can help you to design a market research to represent what and who you are looking for. Through the customised research findings, you will be able to make a more informed decision,” she says. Successful businesses and retailers conduct market research periodically to gather invaluable information about their customers and competitors. Whether you are starting up a new business or expanding an existing one, market research is essential for understanding the characteristics of your target markets and rivals so that your business can remain competitive and in tune with the ever changing market environments and consumer behaviours. For businesses, it is not just only a data gathering process, but also vital for you to improve your business operations and customer service. Market research provides you with a clearer picture of what is happening, the likelihood of a particular event happening and the various solutions to overcome it.

Information & Methods Market research can be very complex and time consuming. Ideally, you want be able to identify the different types of market research information and methods available. This is because the types of information you want to gather about your customers or competitors may require different kinds of strategies and techniques.

Rozina Mat Rawi

Mabel Wong, Manager at Metrix Research Sdn Bhd, explains that there are typically two types of market research methods primary research and secondary research. “Primary research is a method of gathering original information specifically for the purpose of your research. It is sub-divided into quantitative research and qualitative research,” says Wong. Quantitative research is all about collecting information systematically and objectively. The nature of the survey is descriptive and the data collected is in the form of numbers. Information is mainly gathered through e-mails, computeraided telephone interviews (CATI) and face-to-face surveys. On the other hand, qualitative research involves the understanding of the core values, beliefs and perceptions of individuals through non-directive interviewing. It addresses not only what they say but what they really mean. Focus group discussions, in-depth interviews and online discussions are some prime examples of qualitative research techniques.

Secondary research, however, is the acquisition of publicly available information through existing sources. The data is usually provided by various organisations such as industry bodies, government agencies, local councils and research houses. “Secondary data may not always be up to date and in-depth. Therefore, to acquire the latest and most detailed information, you may have to subscribe to the services of a research house such as Euromonitor,” she says.

Going Through the Stages Before you start gathering information, you must first set up clear plans and objectives for your market research activity. The planning stage, which is the first phase of market research process, identifies and determines the root causes of your business problems. Once you have found the origins of your business problems, you will need to design a blueprint or framework that defines the scope of the study and how the market research will be conducted. This is also known as the designing stage.

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Industry Intelligence

mall at specific times. From the surveys, we can determine who they are, where they come from, what they are patronising and how many of them visit the mall during a certain time,” explains Wong. Besides that, shopper surveys and trade maps are two research tools that are closely linked to each other. They are applied to gather information within your business trade area or catchment area (around five to 20 kilometres). “Why are the shoppers coming or not coming to my mall? How am I going to attract them to my mall and to entice them to spend money? Where else are they shopping besides my mall? So, with these tools, we are able to help the mall owners and retailers to discover their problems and provide solutions to them. For instance, a same person could watch a movie and dine at Cheras Leisure Mall while he might consider buying clothes at Pavilion Shopping Mall instead,” she says. Rozina Mat Rawi with Mabel Wong

Next comes the most crucial phase in the market research process - the data collection stage. Information in this stage is obtained either through primary research, secondary research or a combination of both. When you have acquired relevant and sufficient information, you will need to go through the data analysis stage where the collected data will be synthesised and interpreted to become meaningful data. The final stage is the analysis and reporting, which will then generate some valuable insights and results for you to act on.

Scope of Market Research As previously mentioned, different type of businesses may require different types of strategies to collect different types of data. The scope of market research can be extremely wide and hence, the market research activity must be carefully planned and designed to suit the needs of a particular person or organisation. To 52

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narrow down the scope, let us delve into the property development business.

Types of Research for Malls & Retailers According to Wong, if you are a property developer or a shopping mall owner who wish to engage the services of a market research firm to help you gather some information about your shoppers or retailers, there are several methods you may consider. A shopping mall exit survey is one of the market research tools that can help you discover your shoppers’ characteristics and perceptions towards your mall. It provides accurate and detailed information about their shopping experiences, shopping behaviours and feedbacks on improvements needed for the mall. “An exit survey is conducted by stationing our staff at the mall’s exit points to intercept the shoppers when they are leaving the

Shopping behaviour study, on the other hand, is a tool primarily used to investigate a specific group of shoppers or a target segment. It helps you to comprehend their attitudes towards your mall or your retail stores in a very in-depth manner. Wong asks, “Why do they prefer to buy luxurious brands such as Prada or Gucci instead of value-for-money brands such as Vincci? What are the factors that drive them to spend in my mall instead of other similar malls or stores nearby? Are they functional shoppers, emotional shoppers or social shoppers? Therefore, with shopping behaviour study, mall owners and retailers will have a better understanding of their shoppers’ behaviours and the motivations behind their shopping trips.” Mystery shopping is perhaps the most affordable and essential market research tool, and is used to gain insights into your customers’ shopping experiences. In mystery shopping, several unidentified people are sent into the retail outlets to investigate certain issues. For example, they could be employed to physically

examine and evaluate the condition of the mall’s facilities and the level of customer service at the retail outlets. Wong shares that mystery shopping seeks to answer questions such as, “Are the janitors doing their work properly? How are the conditions of the toilets and surau, especially during peak periods or festive seasons? Are the employees of the mall or retail outlets complying with their standard operating procedures (SOP)? Once the research firm has gathered all those data, it will provide a report to the client’s management so that they can identify the necessary training or improvement requirements.”

DIY or Professional Market Research? If you are on a very tight budget, it is possible to conduct your own market research but this is not a simple task. To begin with, you will have to source for the primary data yourself, which can be very difficult and time consuming. Following that, you might need to search for some secondary data to support your primary data. Again, the secondary data you gather might be outdated, obsolete or inaccurate. Even if collecting information does prove to be a challenge for you, then you will still need to analyse and interpret the data, which might be a stumbling block. However, Rozina questions the practicality of this do-it-yourself option. “Do you have the sufficient time, expertise and manpower to conduct your own market research? Take Starhill Gallery for instance. Imagine if they want to conduct a market research to gather some information about their high net worth shoppers. Can they do it by themselves? Logically speaking, it is possible but practically, it is not advisable because they would need to waste a lot of their valuable time and resources, which could be better spent elsewhere. Why don’t they opt for a market research firm to help them collect those data instead?” she asks. That being said, for a smaller sized business

or retailer, you may want to consider conducting your own market research. This is because it could be very costly to engage the services of a professional market research firm. If your business is small, the scope of market research is much narrower and thus, it is much easier to gather the primary and secondary data by yourself. There are several tools available at your disposals such as online forums, survey websites such as Survey Monkey and social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.

Setting Up a New Business Assuming that you are a property developer who is planning to set up a new mall. Ideally, you would want to have a draft market research plan beforehand. For starters, you need to identify and determine who your target market is. When you have clearly established your target customers, for example high net worth shoppers, then you must search for the places or locations where they reside. According to Rozina, the questions to ask include: “Is your mall going to be situated in a major metropolitan area or near the outskirts? Are there many high net worth people around the area or otherwise? “Is your mall in a close proximity to their homes or offices? How is the traffic around your area? Are there many parking spaces available?” “Accessibility to your mall is also one of the major issues of concern. These are some of the factors that should be included in your initial market research plan. Once you have drafted a market research plan, you might want to consider working together with a professional market research firm to provide you with more thorough analysis of your business locations, customers and competitors,” she advises.

involved or the “couldn’t care less” attitudes of the local business owners or retailers. For some of them, having an excellent brand name and a high level of customer service are not their main priorities. Instead, they are more concerned about the profit margins and cost savings of their businesses. Such a short-term view could have long-term detrimental effects on their businesses. Rather than focusing too much on short-term profitability, if they are willing to conduct market research regularly, they would gain a better understanding of their customers’ behaviours and perception towards their businesses. In this sense, their businesses would be in a better position to build a wider customer base and higher customer loyalty, which in turn, would help them to generate much more income in the future. “McDonald’s, for instance, have huge market research programmes and highly prioritises their branding and customer satisfaction levels. Before creating a new menu, they would first conduct focus group interviews and surveys to gather their customers’ feedbacks and opinions. They would also conduct mystery shopping on a periodical basis as well to ensure the level of their customer service is always satisfactory,” says Rozina.

Moving Forward With the rapid changing market trends and improvements in technology, market research is expected to play a more vital role in helping businesses to understand the nature of their customers and competitors, and the improvements needed for their business operations. Moving forward, it is expected that more and more businesses will incorporate market research into their strategic planning due to the increasing importance of being dynamic and innovative.

Importance & Awareness Most Malaysians are aware of the importance of market research but rarely conducts it. This could be due to the costs Vo l 3 N o 1

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RETAIL Property

Success Criteria for Commercial Property For retailers, the ability to identify superior properties to set up shop is crucial for their long-term business success. Malaysia Retailer talks to Dato’ Danny Goh, Managing Director of B&G Capital Resources Berhad, for his insights into the topic.

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hen it comes to evaluating a commercial property and its location, there’s no better person to talk to than Dato’ Danny Goh Meng Keong, Managing Director of B&G Capital Resources Berhad, who is an experienced developer himself and has, over the past six years, performed detailed research and analysis on numerous such commercial properties (particularly malls) in the Klang Valley. Dato’ Danny recommends a proprietary 6-step approach to evaluating a mall, namely 1) Location; 2) Integrated development; 3) Good design & layout; 4) Developer’s commitment; 5) Unique design & sizeable; and 6) Content, retailers’ branding & management.

Location

In property it is common to hear the old adage “Location, location, location” and this holds true, especially for a commercial one. How do you identify a commercial development with hotspot potential? According to Dato’ Danny, for location, you’ll need to consider the three factors below: i) Matured crowd. There are four types of crowds; namely business, living, university/college students and outsiders. “Downtown KL has a huge business crowd compared to its living crowd. Most people are in KL to work or to do business and not many people stay there. For example, at One City here in USJ (an integrated development by MCT Consortium Berhad, of which Dato’ Danny was an Executive

Director), the living crowd is more than the business crowd. The business and living crowds are the two most important types of crowds for a commercial property, while the student crowd comes in third,” he explains. The student population, as defined by Dato’ Danny, comprises only college and university students, and not secondary school students because of their limited spending power. “The student crowd only comes in third after the business and living crowds because no matter how, students are still being supported by their parents and hence, how much can they spend?” he rationalises. Two of the vibrant and popular student hotspots are Subang Jaya and Bandar Sunway due to the numerous colleges and universities within the vicinity. Vo l 3 N o 1

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RETAIL Property

Lastly, the outsider crowd, as its name suggests, is made up of people who are not from the locality. They are visitors/tourists who only come in if the development is a landmark or tourist attraction. ii) Easy accessibility via highways/main roads. Once you ascertain that the development has a matured crowd, the next thing you need to look for is accessibility. The location must be easily accessible via highways, main roads and public transport such as KTM, LRT and MRT. However, convenient access via highway and main roads is more important than via public transportation. Dato’ Danny points out that many people have this misconception that a development must be successful if it has MRT or LRT connection. “Because in Malaysia, 80% of us drive as it is more convenient, while our public transportation system is utilised by only the other 20%. Hence, if a location has good highway access but no LRT, it is still okay. But if it has both, then that’s even better,” he says. iii) Quality/type of crowd. The type of crowd can be segregated according to their income level and profession, i.e. lowmiddle/middle/middle-high income and blue/while collar. When it comes to offices, you must consider the potential tenants. “Most office tenants are MNCs (multi-national corporations) as the local SMEs prefer to buy their own offices. MNCs in our Greater KL are concentrated in only a handful of locations, namely KL city centre (which includes MidValley and Bangsar South), Cyberjaya (established by the government for 18 years), Petaling Jaya (e.g. One World has IBM and KPMG, while The Curve has Nestle),” he observes. According to Dato’ Danny, One City has also managed to attract many MNCs because the development is neighbouring Shah Alam which has a lot of big factories. “After 40-50 years in operation, these factories cannot accommodate their office workers anymore and need to relocate their admin and sales & marketing functions to corporate offices. Furthermore, the young generation does not want to work in a factory. Other than these four places, there are no major MNC office concentrations,” he says.

Integrated Development

The second criteria is integrated development. The best integrated development has an ideal mix of business and leisure outlets and offers a continuous stream of activities throughout the year. Dato’ Danny stresses on the importance an integrated 56

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development as a standalone shopping mall will normally have a lot of people only during weekends and public holidays. “You cannot be busy in only two days of the week. How about Monday to Friday? It is important to have a lot of offices in an integrated development to fill up the Monday-to-Friday crowd. Many people don’t know this and build a lot of serviced apartments instead, which are low density, where an 800sqft unit has a maximum of only two occupants. Families with children will not usually stay above shopping malls. They are usually young single people or couples who are away at work during office hours on weekdays. However, a 1,000-sqft office can accommodate 10 workers. Office not only have more people than serviced apartments but they also help to bring in external visitors such as suppliers, customers, etc. However, offices are Dato’ Danny Goh open only until 6pm. How about night time? Retailers can not only be busy during the daytime as they are open from 10am to 10pm. So, in addition to offices, an integrated development should also have other outlets such as cinemas, fitness centres, karaokes, seminar/exhibition/ ballroom/event space to attract people to stay back. This is called an integrated development,” he elaborates.

Good Design & Layout

Good quality design and layout is the third most important criteria for the success of a mall. Dato’ Danny segregates a building’s design into internal and external facades. In terms of external facade, first impressions count. A plain and boring-looking commercial centre will not be able to attract customers to go in. A building must look impressive but must also be accessible via major roads and highways. Once the building has managed to attract potential customers to enter the building, interior design is also very important. In terms of interior design, the quality of parking spaces is crucial. Dato’ Danny names The Curve and IKEA (in Mutiara Damansara) as having excellent parking spaces that serve as a benchmark. “Not only are their parking spaces good, they are also very bright. It is also easy to find the entrance of the mall from the car park. That

is called design quality. If you get it wrong the first time, you can’t change it anymore,” he warns.

The layout of a mall is also an important factor. Dato’ Danny favours a rectangular shape with a single corridor and high ceiling that allows you to see through the entire building. He gives the examples of Suria KLCC and Mid Valley Megamall as having very good layouts.

Lastly, point 6) is all about the retailers in a mall, the strength of their brand names and also the management of the mall. A developer needs to meticulously plan for a good tenant mix and mall theme/ content. The tenants/retailers must have their own loyal followers and must have a strong brand name to attract both new and repeat customers. A good mall management is needed to ensure great customer satisfaction.

Developer’s Commitment

Dato’ Danny stresses on the commitment of the developer as being a very important factor to the success of a commercial development. The commitment of a developer and the developer’s branding are two completely different stories. For example, a developer that retains most or all of its floor space to be rented out to retailers would be committed to the success of the development. As the developer has a big interest in the development, it would be more committed to manage and supervise the property for appreciation purposes. On the other hand, a developer that sells all the units in its commercial development will no longer have any motivation or commitment to ensure its future success, no matter how reputable the developer is.

Uniqueness of Design & Sizeable

For a mall to attract outsider crowd, it must have a unique design, something special that cannot be found elsewhere. The mall must also be sizeable as it will not create any impact if it is too small. A mall can already survive if it has criteria 1) to 4), but to attract outside visitors, it must have no. 5). Thinking out of the box is a must if you want to aim for uniqueness.

Content, Retailers’ Branding & Management

Intense Competition

Dato’ Danny opines that the retail industry in Malaysia is very mature or in other words very competitive. Furthermore, the percentage of goods bought online is increasing. Hence, retailers need to think of what people cannot do or buy online, such as F&B, fitness, leisure (movies, singing and other entertainment), MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions & Exhibitions), service line (hair, beauty, medicine, etc) and goods-related services (fashion alteration, electrical & electronics goods installation & repair, etc). For retailers who are looking to buy or rent a property for their outlets, Dato’ Danny stresses that they must understand that any investment or business is not 100% assured of success, there are risks involved, but risk can be minimised if they do their homework. “So, my advice to retailers, before looking to buy or rent a property for your outlets, spend a little time to study and learn. When buying or renting a property, don’t be emotional. You’ll need to make your decisions based on logical and professional thinking,” he concludes.

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Retail Aesthetics

Emotional Appeal in

“Emotional involvement is hitting the interior design scene right now,” says Jefferey Liew, Director of VSMS Sdn Bhd. Malaysia Retailer finds out more via an exclusive chat with Liew at his office in Seri Kembangan. By Lim Su Yee

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Retail Aesthetics

Jefferey Liew

hen it comes to interior design, VSMS is no stranger as it is one of the top players in the market with notable clients such as Sunway, Toshiba, KDU, Focus Point, Poh Kong and many others. Besides offering contemporary and futuristic designs to its clients for the past 10 years, the company also believes in caring for the environment by building responsibly. In this exclusive interview, Liew reveals more about the latest in interior design (ID) trends.

Emotional Involvement

According to Liew, the current trend for interior design is happening already where retailers rely heavily on the senses, in the form of hearing, sight and smell. “The trend now is in the form of emotional involvement. You may be wondering what that is. Basically, emotional involvement is drawn by the impulses. Let’s say, you are in a restaurant and you are attracted to the pleasant aroma, ambience and comfortable surroundings. Therefore, you are drawn by the impulses, making you immediately patronise that restaurant. In short, that is called emotional involvement,” he explains. 60

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A Stodgy Past

It was different in the past, as back in the old days, retailers were too formal and too conservative. There were also no proper spacing and display for their items. “Currently, interior design trends lean more towards the home trend thing. Retailers are making their designs feel more like home and welcoming to buyers as now, the younger generation is the target market since they have more buying power. You must be aware that young people today keep up with the trends and retailers try to use components such as the iPad and the latest technology to attract them,” he says.

Acting on Impulse

According to Liew, in terms of style, modern is not really fashionable right now. The Malaysian market tends to follow the Australian and British styles in comparison to others and basically, it is a blend between the old and new. “Now in 2015, it’s all about emotions. People tend to be impulsive at times. For example, when one is on a shopping spree and buying things that one do not need. The same goes for the trend in the interior

design scene right now. People have more knowledge on things surrounding them and they know what they want. Therefore, retailers have no choice but to give in to the demands of the clients to adapt to the current situation. Or else, they be out of business,” Liew adds, with a smile.

Space Planning

Just like fine wine that gets better with age, ID trends have evolved and changed throughout the years. Liew opines that for now, it is all about space planning. “Previously, the trend was to show everything but now, that doesn’t work as well as it used to. However, space planning has changed a lot. This concept used to be very hard sell. For example, shop owners used to feel that they needed to display all their products and profits were their main concern. But now, it is more of a lifestyle thing. Let’s say, you go to the coffee shop to buy coffee, you can expect to be shown the menu, but you do not expect the owner to display all 100 types of coffee beans to you. It is impossible. Retailers try to reduce the busyness of the eyes,” he elaborates.

The Role of Colours & Lighting

According to Liew, colours and lighting play a very important role too. For example, if you want to buy a diamond which is considered something secretive, you do not want the room to be too bright. If not, it will definitely overshadow the diamond. At the same time, you would also want to make the person feel confident when coming into your jewellery shop to purchase the diamond. Other notable examples are that, if you want to buy lingerie for your partner, you would want an intimate setting and not too much of unwanted attention. Therefore, the colours need to be right and suit the brand or type of product that the shop is selling.

Pride & Joy Projects

Throughout the years, VSMS has worked on a variety of retail ID projects that are all the pride and joy of the creative Liew and his team. However, the director of VSMS revealed that one of their most outstanding work is a commercial showroom for Sunway Property. Liew excitedly shows the Malaysia Retailer team various pictures of his masterpiece from different angles and reveals that the concept of this project is called Diamond Element.

“The reason why it is called Diamond Element as you can see, diamonds which are fine gemstones, can be very enticing. We intentionally used the diamond shape to trigger emotions so that people will keep on coming to look at it. It is like an art and sculpture form. By accentuating the diamonds, the posters were reduced to a secondary role as you can see from the picture. We also used a special lightning effect to create shining diamonds,” he recalls.

“ People have more knowledge on things surrounding them and they know what they want. Therefore, retailers have no choice but to give in to the demands of the clients to adapt to the current situation. Or else, they will be out of business ” Good Aesthetics Come with a Price

An attractive ID makeover does not come cheap. Liew points out that even a basic one can cost anything from RM150,000 to RM1.5 million. Although most retail businesses can benefit from superior interior design, not everyone is willing to pay the price for a good interior designer. Liew explains that this problem could be overcome as there are many things that retailers can do to improve their outlets’ ID if they want to attract more customers. “However, there is a slight challenge as retailers can change gradually, but not overnight. The crucial aspect is that they must learn to display only the critical parts and not everything. For example, the correct display, size, area and others be balanced. Other than that, retailers are advised not to put too many words in their posters as we want customers to use their minds and figure out for themselves the meaning behind them. Anyway, nobody will read if the posters are too wordy. The emotional aspect plays a very important part in a retail shop,” he says. Vo l 3 N o 1

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Retail Aesthetics

The VSMS Team

Scent of a Retailer

Liew also further shares that televisions (as shop displays) are also on the wane as they tend to be confusing. Therefore, posters are actually more important than TV. But, not many people know that. However, most businesses out there are aware of the effectiveness of a good retail ID concept in retaining and increasing customer traffic and sales. Liew opines that an outlet with good retail ID concept is the famed Big Ben’s at Publika in Jalan Dutamas 1. “Big Ben’s is totally different from others. There, you can not only smell the delightful aroma of delicious food, but also a blend of other pleasant smells that will tantalise your mood. The shop has that something extra to maintain its customers and attract more of them to patronise the shop,” he says. “The concept of Big Ben’s is similar with the popular Kentucky Fried Chicken chain of fast food restaurants back in the 80s and 90s. In the old days, KFC used to have their signature fried chicken scent to attract customers to come to their restaurant. Sadly, now if you go to KFC, you can’t even get that distinct scent anymore. Nowadays, it’s all about lifestyle. People go to a restaurant not just to dine but also to do other things too. For example, people go to a lifestyle cafe to take fun selfies or also bring their 62

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laptops to surf the internet. All in all, it’s about playing with emotions,” Liew remarks.

Design Benchmarks

Retail outlets with excellent ID concepts that have stood the test of time are aplenty and Liew names American coffee chain Starbucks as one of his inspirations. “I feel that they have a long lasting design from the past to the present. Nothing much has changed and the ID concept remains excellent. When you go into Starbucks, you can smell the aroma of coffee and admire the brick walls surrounding you. The entire experience gives you a very comfy and plushy home feel that makes you feel that you’re drinking a hot cup of coffee in your own house. Interior design does play a very important part as even though the Taiwanese global franchise teahouse chain Chatime and the American-oriented Starbucks are both F&B outlets, both have very different ID. For example, Chatime’s concept is “come-and-go” which means that people do not usually hang out there for a long time, unlike how they do in Starbucks,” he explains. Liew further reveals that he also admires the Michelin star-awarded Din Tai Fung chain of restaurants. “As fans of Din Tai Fung know, the restaurant is famous for its famed Xiao Long Bao. At Din Tai Fung, everything

BEFORE

AFTER

is exposed as you can see the chefs making by hand, kneading, folding and putting the final touches to the award-winning Xiao Long Bao. This concept not only attracts people to taste the food there but the novelty also immediately draws people into the shop. In Malaysia, I think that Madam Kwan’s restaurant ID is original. But basically, I feel that most Malaysian ID concepts lack originality, as the decorations do not symbolise Malaysia. Many people tend to overlook ID. They think that it is already sufficient if their food is good,” he laments. Liew warns that retailers have to select the right ID, and if they select the wrong one, it could do more harm than good. “The Old Town kopitiam chain is very popular with Malaysians even though there are many other local old school coffee shops around. As a consumer, why is one willing to go to Old Town when there are many other small coffee shops? It is because the owners of Old Town used the right ID for their business. Even though there have been other similar coffee chains mushrooming up in Malaysia, I will still go to the pioneer, that is Old Town. Retailers need to find ways to create an original concept for their shops so that they can stand out and compete with their competitors,” he elaborates.

ID Tips for New Retailers

For retailers who are just about to set up their outlets, Liew has some starting advice when it comes to ID. First of all, you will need to have a balance in the sense of budget. “For example, how much are you willing to spend? If you don’t have a proper budget, there is a possibility that you might overspend. Thus, it is very important to set your budget and once that is done, you can come up with lots of ideas and ways to suit your budget. For the second step, you’ll need to identify your targeted audience and age group to suit their tastes and preferences. The reason for it is because, if you fail to do the right analysis, you might create the wrong thing,” he says. Liew points out that in terms of ID, Malaysia is still playing catch-up with other ASEAN countries. “We have our own originality, but it’s just that we haven’t discovered it yet. Don’t you think so?” he asks, with a twinkle in his eyes. Vo l 3 N o 1

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