by Rin Yeo
Victoria’s Secret recently announced that they would be opening their first store in Southeast Asia here in Singapore. Slated to be opened in the 4th quarter of this year, the store would occupy up to 2 storeys worth of floorspace, and with this opening, the brand would be one of the several global brands that recently set up shop in Singapore! Just what other brands are popping into Singapore, and why is this so?
Just last year, we saw the opening of French women’s wear label Maje in October at The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, as well as French-Italian winter gear brand Moncler setting up in ION Orchard. This year, opening this weekend, the French sporting goods store, Decathlon, have set up their first physical store here, and Apple is also set to arrive later in the year with it’s first flagship.
Based on a recent finding, Singapore came in second to Tokyo in terms of being a destination for international retail brands to set up in, drawing in up to 58 new retail brands in the year of 2014. Besides retail, another huge sector that Singapore seems to be drawing in would be food, given how many celebrity chefs – and brands – are flocking to Singapore to set up their restaurants.
So what’s the draw really? As a melting pot of cultures, along with a stable economy, Singapore is an excellent incubator for brands to start off with, especially if they need a tester for the market to build their awareness from. By setting up here, other than targeting the diverse cultures and nationalities that this nation has, brands would also be able to learn the various practises and hence, be able to build on the experiences learnt here onto other Southeast Asian markets. While all these are business talk and would only appeal to a true marketer, as consumers, well, let’s just say now we can enjoy more choices when we are shopping although…
First World Problems – too many choices!
