Many international retailers are bracing themselves for a difficult trading year ahead following the sub-prime crisis. In January 2008, the Guardian newspaper in the UK reported that the British Retail Consortium had revealed that the three-month growth rate tumbled from 1.8 percent in November to 0.8 percent in like-for-like sales and that total sales dipped from 3.8 percent to 2.8 percent.
In this tough economic climate, retailers are struggling to find new growth opportunities to maintain margins. However, the markets in Asia appear to remain buoyant, opening up new possibilities for growth. In March this year, Wang Qian, an economist for Greater China at JP Morgan Chase Bank stated that “growth of Hong Kong's economy will remain solid and consumer sentiment will remain largely upbeat as the territory continues to benefit from robust growth in China”. In the run-up to the Olympic Games, new malls are set to open across Beijing and the new supply is attracting international brands.
Singapore’s retail sales were 7.1 percent higher than last year and many international retailers are targeting Ho Chi Minh and Hanoi to capture rising consumer demand.
In response to the increasing interest in this region, Beacon Events is launching the first ever Retail Asia Congress, to be held from 15-17 July 2008 in Hong Kong. The congress will bring together top retailers and brand experts in Asia to talk about building brands and connecting with customers, dealing with rising rental prices and costs, identifying the next hot markets and growth strategies for their business.
Supported by an Advisory Board of the most famous names in retail, such as Marks & Spencer, DFS, Francis Gouten, The Store, HK Design Institute, Project Retail Consultancy and Taubman, Retail Asia Congress is a high-level conference designed for retailers, brand owners, property managers, marketing executives and advertising agencies. Speakers from major retailers such as Dymocks, Muji, agnès b., Swarowski, Ermengildo Zegna, I.T. The Swank, G.O.D., Starbucks and Dynasty Fine Wines will reveal how they have successfully launched brands here and how they are tackling intensifying competition and increasingly sophisticated customers.
