Tag Archives: asia

TWG Tea leads the way in tea luxury

TWG is a luxury tea brand like no other.  It is a luxury concept that incorporates an international distribution network to professionals, unique and original retail outlets, exquisite tea rooms and tealeaves of every name for you to take home and enjoy too. The TWG stands for The Wellness Group and anyone who has been to one of their amazing outlets certainly feels good afterwards.

They have recently opened up several new premium and expensive tea rooms at the luxury Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands (Singapore’s premium version of a Las Vegas integrated resort and much more successful). There is no stopping their march to place tea at the heart of all that wealthy Asian residents aspire to. Visitors and wealthy residents alike queue for hours just to experience afternoon tea at TWG.

TWG offers over 800 single estate fine harvest teas and exclusive blends, as well as tea patisseries and other tea infused delicacies. Ironically England, the home of tea, has a long way to go to match the TWG experience. Fortnam and Mason don’t even come close. They have one boutique at Harrods but it’s really a Singaporean experience.

You name it, TWG have a tea called it!

TWG Tea combines the best of Asian and European traditions of elegance and beauty on which it is based and have some of the most amazing names that could possibly be imagined for their products. Drinking tea called Weekend in Casablanca tea or Silver Moon Tea, Christmas Lights tea or  Immortal Moment tea, Geisha Blossom tea or Valentine Breafast tea, Miracluous Mandarin tea or Happy Birthday tea is just so much more refined and exotic than PG Tips or Lipton!

via TWG Tea leads the way in tea luxury | Chris Reed on Partnership Marketing | Brand Republic blogs.

Coffee and tea drinking habits in Asia: when culture matters.

Evening drinking habits differ from country to country, and this is very important when creating customer-centric food Retail concepts, as our DESITA and ECOFFEE projects are. In Singapore, for example it’s not unusual to see coffee shops packed at 11pm/12 midnight every night of the week including weekends. This experience is replicated across many countries in the region from India to Malaysia, Vietnam to Indonesia.

The culture of drinking in Asia is not about alcohol it’s about coffee and tea. It’s still about friends but it’s sober conversation as oppose to drunken ones. There are more coffee shops in Singapore than bars. Coffee shops are growing at a faster rate in India than any other form of F&B outlet. This appears to be down to more affluence, a desire to eat and drink out and a predominantly non-drinking culture. Of course there are a mass of bars in Singapore and across Asia but these tend to be filled with expats and Chinese and focused on certain areas and linked to Karaoke.

Religiously Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists – the main religions across the region – actively prescribe non-drinking of alcohol to their followers. Singaporean’s are just not brought up to get drunk in the way their English and American counterpart’s inparticular are. This in turn leads to a more civilized society, there are no drink related injuries for hospitals to deal with and society to pay for. There is not the violence that happens every weekend in most towns in the UK, no alcohol means that it just doesn’t happen, it’s just not accepted and not desired.

From a marketing point of view it means that if you want to target these people you have to think in a more sophisticated and creative way. Starbucks may be much maligned but they, Costa and other Western brands are growing in Asia at a rate of knots and along with the monster Asia coffee brands like Gloria Jean’s,Café Coffee Day and Coffee Bean are more effective at reaching many Asians than marketing through bars and alcohol. (Source: BrandRepublic; Picture: 4theloveoffood).

China retail luxury: a long-term insight

China: a market that is continuously growing, a very rich but still unknown to the many. What is clear is that China is set to become the most powerful economy in the world, and this will happen in a very short time. Many are the companies that have already sucessfully entered the Chinese market, luxury good brands being the pioneers.

A McKinsey survey over 1.500 Chinese luxury consumers during spring 2010, shows interesting trends which are basically telling to the world that the “consumer culture” is changing at a very high speed, following the changes in the society and urban landscape. For those who are interested, the whole report can be downloaded here, but three are main facts:

  • “Rapid increases in wealth, and shifting social mores that sanction the display of that wealth, are driving a growing infatuation for luxury goods among Chinese consumers.”
  • “Access to an explosion of information on the Internet, an increasing penchant for overseas travel, and first-hand experience purchasing and consuming luxury goods are contributing to a substantial rise in sophistication among luxury consumers in China. Contrary to popular belief, a growing number of Chinese luxury consumers are exhibiting a noticeable trend away from overt displays of wealth, and towards more understated forms of luxury consumption.”
  • “Rapid urbanization and growing wealth outside of China’s largest cities is driving the emergence of several new geographic markets with sizable pools of luxury goods consumers. Over the next 5 years, [McKinsey] expects that the number of such cities will double from 30 to 60.”

Other key findings are social-demographics related. Not only traditional luxury brands consumers, but also 13 million upper-middle-class households (earning $15,000 to $30,000), which are stretching their budgets to buy luxury watches, jewelry, handbags, shoes and clothing. This segment represented 12% of Chinese luxury consumption in 2010, but is expected to reach 22% by 2015.

The survey also shows that approximately 73% of luxury consumers in China are under age 45, significantly younger than their counterparts in western nations or even nearby Japan. 

All these findings essentially reinforce the widespread idea that if this trend is going to be followed in 2011 too, China will become the biggest retal luxury market in the close future. (Source: McKinsey, Picture credits: TheChinaObserver)

Sustainable Apparel Coalition: what is it?

In the last days there has been a lot of buzz about the Sustainable Apparel coalition, officially launched on March 1st. But what is it?

The Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC), which includes* Nike, Gap Inc, H&M, Levi Strauss, Marks & Spencer, and Patagonia, will work to lead the apparel industry towards developing improved sustainability strategies and tools to measure and evaluate sustainability performance. 

The Coalition’s purpose at a higher level has two goals.  First, the member organizations will develop plans to soften the apparel industry’s impact on water and industry consumption, while making commitments to improved waste diversion and the reduction in the use of chemicals. To that end, the Coalition’s members will work with industry peers and supply chain partners to achieve the fullest possible life cycle transparency for clothing. Meanwhile, the SAC seeks to ensure that workplaces throughout the apparel industry adopt fair employment practices and a safe working environment, while eliminating any exposure to toxic chemicals.

Second, the Coalition will develop a metrics-based tool that will assist companies in the measurement of their environmental and social impacts.  For now described as the Version 1.0 Apparel Index, the tool works similarly to Nike’s Apparel Environmental Design Tool and the Outdoor Industry Association’s Eco Index.  Besides offering an assessment on companies’ usages of energy, water, and chemicals, the index will also evaluate products’ entire life cycles.  Companies will be able to measure their performance, compare them to their peers, and receive guidelines and resources for how they can improve their performance all such metrics.  The Apparel Index is slated to launch next month.(Source: Triplepundit Photo: Treehugger)
*Founding members of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition are based in North America, Asia, Europe and the U.K. They include Adidas, Arvind Mills, C&A, Duke University, Environmental Defense Fund, Esprit, Esquel, Gap Inc., H&M, HanesBrands, Intradeco, JC Penney, Kohl’s Department Stores, Lenzing, Levi Strauss & Co., LF USA, a division of Li & Fung Limited, Marks & Spencer, Mountain Equipment Coop, New Balance, Nike, Nordstrom, Otto Group, Outdoor Industry Association, Patagonia, Pentland Brands, REI, TAL Apparel, Target, Timberland, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Verité, VF Corp, and Walmart.

Asia future retail landscape

Once upon a time, the customer experience depended largely upon luck: the mood of a shop assistant, the time spent waiting at the checkout, being able to find the right product. All of these could make a difference between a boycott or a customer for life. But with consumers more selective than ever about where to spend their hard earned cash, improving the customer experience has become even more critical. According to Ivano Ortis, International Director of leading analyst and trend forecasting agency IDC Retail Insights, customer service is only the latter part of the customer experience. “There is an increasing focus on ‘immersive shopping’ which is the next generation of shopping experience for the customer,” says Ortis. “This is not only about providing an inspirational range of products and displays but also about the instant and accurate delivery of information from the retailer.” It’s an experience that “can, and indeed must, be generated across any retail platform, be that in-store, online or even on a mobile device”. That means a strong multi-channel presence is essential for retailers looking to maximise profitability in the coming decade and that customers have the best experience within those platforms, he adds. One of the key challenges for retailers is to use IT in precision retailing strategies which target the marketing down to individual one-on-one customer communication and interaction. “The point is for retailers to change from a mass-market type of operating company to a very targeted operation, by analysing the intricate characteristics of their customers in order to ensure the customer is seeing the right product, with the right price at the right time to ensure a sale. In other words, that the customer is having the best possible experience,” says Ortis. As with any targeted marketing strategy, it doesn’t matter which platform the retailer is operating from. “It really depends on the customer you’re talking to, what time of the day it is, where the consumer is. I think the underlying technology infrastructure that needs to be put in place should be working regardless of the channels.” Ultimately, though, the key to success is for retailers to utilise technology to gather feedback and use that to develop a positive customer experience. “An immersed and interactive experience for the customer can only mean improved revenues for the retailer. Those retailers who use different platforms to support and enhance the customer experience will truly reap the benefits,” concludes Ortis. (Source: GDS International)