Thailand news & analysis

The Mall Group, which operates Gourmet Market in Thailand, is spending more than THB1bn (US$32.9m) to expand its business in Bangkok and the suburban areas. Stand-alone premium supermarkets focus The retailer will invest THB350-500m (US$11.5m - US$16.5m) annually to build new Gourmet Markets outside the Mall complexes. Another THB200m (US$6.6m) will be spent on upgrading two Home Fresh Mart...

Big C, operated by Berli Jucker, has set aside THB6.5bn (US$214m) to expand in Thailand and overseas. Confidence in domestic market The retailer will invest THB5.5bn (US$181.3m) in Thailand to open five to seven new Big C hypermarkets and 300 to 400 mini Big C stores in 2020. Another THB500m (US$16.5m) will be spent on IT facilities. It will also be studying the feasibility of opening “town...

Berli Jucker (BJC), operator of Big C in Thailand, reports a decline in total consolidated revenue of 0.1% for Q3 2019. Decline attributed to lower retail sales Its retail division, which consists of Big C grocery stores and Pure drugstores, recorded total sales of THB27.3bn (US$900m) for Q3 2019, a decrease of -1.4% over the same period last year. Same store sales slowed down to -4.9% year...

Tesco in Asia reports a 54.1% growth in profit to GBP171m. Positive sales in Asia Sales in Asia grew strongly, 8.4% year on year, to GBP2.56 bn, although the growth was registered as 1% on constant exchange rate. Like-for-like sales fell by 1.3% due to the reduced sales of general merchandise. Price investment in fresh food products and own brand expertise drove sales growth in Malaysia. In...

Tesco has announced H1 results, with group sales rising by 0.1%, or by 0.4% at constant exchange rates. Like-for-like (LFL) sales fell by 0.4% at a group level. As part of the announcement, Tesco also said that its group chief executive, Dave Lewis, was to step down and would leave the business in summer 2020. Headline results Group sales: +0.1% to £28.3 bn (+0.4% at constant exchange ra...

Tesco joins leading European retailers, including Marks & Spencer, Aldi and Carrefour, in selling only cage-free eggs in Asia. Taking the lead in Asia Since 2016, the retailer had already pledged to be cage-free by 2025 in the UK. This had been extended to Asia following investigations into Asian egg suppliers by animal protection organisation, Lever Foundation. Other food companies includi...

Central Food Retail appoints new CEO to move company into a new era of borderless retail and digital technology. Changes to senior management at Central Food Retail Central Group has announced the appointment of Stephane Coum as Chief Executive Office of Central Food Retail Group, alongside his position as President of Central Food Retail Company Limited. Prior to joining the organisation, ...

We visited Central Food Retail’s Farmers Market, called Jingjai Market, which is part of a Tops Market in Khon Kaen last week. Khon Kaen is a rural city in the northern region of Thailand. Source: IGD Research   Jingjai Market is a new social initiative by Central Group to build local communities and improve their quality of life. There are two parts to the market: a section with fres...

Tesco Lotus has partnered Shopee to launch its shop on the online platform in Thailand. Another channel to better serve customers Launched on 8 th August, Shopee users can now buy more than 10,000 items supplied by Tesco Lotus in Thailand. The online store covers more than 10 categories, including electrical appliances, fresh food, household, dry grocery, bakery and health and beauty pro...

Saha Group, which operates in consumer goods (Lawson convenience stores), fashion, textiles and services, will launch its first unmanned store in Thailand within three months. Technology-led store Saha’s first unmanned store under the banner “His & Her” is 100 sq m. It uses facial recognition, QR code reading and radio frequency identification technologies invested by the company. The store...