Image: A display in store at Singaporean store Naiise.
Returning home after two weeks in Malaysia and Singapore, I have to say the Australian shopping scene (or Sydney at least) feels a bit…boring. It’s not that the brands you can find abroad are that much better—in fact, as we reported the Australian market has plenty of international retailers—but that the shopping centres seem livelier.
Perhaps it’s the opening hours, with most malls in Singapore closing at around 10pm, or the sheer number of shoppers that come through the doors. Or maybe it’s the promotions and elaborate installations for special events like Chinese New Year and Valentine’s Day.
A Valentine’s Day installation at Singapore’s ION Orchard mall, where shoppers could create their own 180-degree GIF.
Along with all the mega malls, Singapore has its fair share of independent stores. Shops like Naiise, which champions home-grown design alongside international brands, and super cool bookstore Books Actually.
Australian retailers are also doing well in Singapore and Malaysia and, as this story from my colleague Marie Sansom reveals, the rest of the world. It was great seeing the Aussie presence first-hand with both Cotton On’s massive flagship in Singapore and Kikki.K stores full of shoppers.
In local news, the biggest story of the week is probably the changing of the guard happening at Wesfarmers later this year, with MD Richard Goyder stepping down. You can read that here.
Also close to home, a retailer has been caught underpaying an employee by more than $36,000. Read what the Fair Work Ombudsman has to say in this story.
And finally, we have a roundtable with four industry leaders in the on demand food delivery space. This was a really interesting talk with representatives from Menulog, Foodora, Jimmy Brings and Deliveroo about innovation and what others retailers can learn from their business models.
With consumers able to order everything from a burrito to a beer at the click of a button, and receive them less than an hour later, I think people will soon start demanding better delivery experiences from other retailers, too.
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