Tag: Southeast Asia

Singapore – Changi Airport has refreshed its ‘Changi Millionaire Experiences’ campaign to offer its shoppers a chance to win luxury travel experiences.

The campaign, which quarterly draws winners, provides the chance for participants to visit a destination with a companion, allowing them to choose from five locations.

Besides the travel, the winners will also be treated to gourmet dining, cultural immersions, and other luxury activities. The winning packages include suite-class flights, accommodations, private tours, and personal concierge services.

Participants can choose to travel to the beach in the Bahamas, safari in South Africa, experience the snow in Finland, embark on a couture tour in Paris, or take a retreat in Kyoto.

Additionally, eligible participants will also enter the grand draw at the end of the year, gaining the chance to win a Porche Taycan. This applies to shoppers with a minimum spend of $50 on a single receipt. Shoppers who use iShopChangi or Changi Pay can double their winning chances, while members of Monarch can get four times the chance to win the grand draw.

As part of the campaign, eligible participants can also purchase an item from Changi Editions, its new collectible series designed in collaboration with Triologie. The items are inspired by Changi and the act of travelling, reflecting Singaporean stories. 

Additional items in the collection are set to be released in March.

Chandra Mahtani, senior vice president for Airside Concessions at Changi Airport Group, said, “We are constantly exploring new ways to surprise and delight our customers, and this year’s revamped ‘Changi Millionaire Experiences’ campaign reflects Changi’s commitment to stay on top of the latest trends in retail-tainment. As consumers increasingly seek personalised experiences, we have infused the signature Changi touch into a curated selection of luxury travel packages. With five premium options tailored to diverse traveller profiles, shoppers can look forward to even more chances to create unforgettable memories, simply by shopping at Changi.”

Manila, Philippines – The Jollibee Group, a multinational company operating fast food restaurants, has opened the first Tiong Bahru Bakery in the Philippines, also the Singapore bakery’s first international branch.

The new Tiong Bahru Bakery branch is located at the Verve Residences Tower 2 in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, and is open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

The bakery is known for its handmade pastries which use French ingredients, specifically for its croissant, Pain Au Chocolat, and Kouign Amann among others. It also offers coffee, sustainably sourced from Common Man Coffee Roasters.

Besides using French ingredients, Tiong Bahru Bakery also honours traditional techniques in its creation of pastries.

Jollibee Group unveiled its plans to bring Tiong Bahru Bakery and Common Man Coffee Rosters in the Philippines last year through a joint venture with Food Collective, Pte. Ltd.

“Introducing Tiong Bahru Bakery to the Philippine market aligns with our commitment to providing Filipinos with exciting, world-class dining experiences,” Ernesto Tanmantiong, global president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Jollibee Group, said.

“This marks the first international branch of Tiong Bahru Bakery, and we are proud to open it here in the Philippines. We deeply appreciate the support of our exceptional partners—Titan Dining, Ayala Malls, and Bonifacio Global City—who have been instrumental in bringing this vision to life. We look forward to seeing this collaboration thrive, blending local and global culinary traditions, as we continue spreading the joy of eating,” Tanmantiong added.

“For years, the Tiong Bahru Bakery has been synonymous with serving the epitome of croissants and an array of delectably unique creations. Now, with its arrival in the Philippines, we want the location to be the people’s go-to spot where they can indulge in freshly baked products while soaking in the store’s inviting ambiance,” Joseph Tanbuntiong, CEO of Jollibee Group Philippines, commented.

“Our signature croissants take three whole days to perfect—a process that involves careful fermentation, layering, proofing, and baking to achieve that golden, flaky finish that we and our customers love. These techniques are a testament to the skill and dedication of our bakers and our belief that great food is worth the time and effort,” Matt McLauchlan, Tiong Bahru Bakery’s general manager, said.

Vietnam – The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is promoting its nutrition programs in Vietnam through the ‘Malnutrition Plates’ campaign.

The campaign, in collaboration with Dentsu Vietnam, highlights porcelain brand Minh Long’s collection of ceramic plates as part of the advocacy. ‘Malnutrition Plates’ aims to use everyday tableware as symbols to make the overlooked malnutrition issue visible.

With the objective of raising funds for UNICEF’s nutrition programs, the campaign engages audiences through impactful designs on tableware while unveiling relatable statistics about the issue.

Minh Long’s plates are available for purchase at its official website, e-commerce platforms, and some retail outlets in Vietnam. Proceeds from the sales will support UNICEF’s meal provision, healthcare worker trainings, and family assistance.

The campaign includes social media activations, influencer endorsements, events, and storytelling.

“With Malnutrition Plates, we wanted to ignite the power of artistic storytelling while combining the unique synergies between design, data, and purpose to transform a traditionally static product and abstract data into an impactful awareness tool that can create both a cultural and a social force for good in Vietnam. We are grateful to be able to take our innovation to drive tangible support for UNICEF’s nutrition program with this campaign, especially with malnutrition being widespread problem for so many children in Vietnam,” Livio Grossi, executive creative director of Dentsu Redder, commented.

Singapore – Magnite has announced it has strengthened its partnership with Samsung Ads to power programmatic advertising on Samsung TV Plus inventory in Singapore, the Philippines and Thailand for the first time. 

Through this expanded partnership, advertisers now have programmatic access to premium video inventory on Samsung’s free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) service, Samsung TV Plus, which went live across the Southeast Asia region late last year.

Samsung TV Plus is currently available on millions of Samsung Smart TVs across Singapore, the Philippines, and Thailand. The built-in streaming service delivers free, instant access to a wide range of live TV channels spanning entertainment, news, movies and more. 

Fan-favourites including MythBusters, Survivor, Deal or No Deal and Red Bull TV are some of the first channels to arrive on the new platform, with more global and local channels launching in early 2025. Through this new partnership, advertisers will be able to programmatically access Samsung TV Plus’ premium, and growing, in-stream inventory for the first time.

Gavin Buxton, managing director for Asia at Magnite, said, “The powerful combination of Smart TV adoption and increased consumption of ad-supported streaming content in Southeast Asia represents a significant market opportunity. Samsung is uniquely positioned to capitalise upon this transformation, and we are excited to expand our relationship with them. We look forward to working with Samsung to drive results as they leverage our leading streaming technology to help streamline programmatic activation of premium inventory on Samsung TV Plus.”

Meanwhile, Alex Spurzem, managing director at Samsung Ads Southeast Asia and Oceania (SEAO), commented, “Launching our FAST service, as well as native and in-stream ads, in just 12 months reflects the huge opportunity we see in the region. Seven in ten TV viewers already watch ad-supported streaming content and our FAST service gives advertisers a new way to reach this audience. As we scale Samsung TV Plus, Magnite will play a pivotal role by making it programmatically available to brands and agencies across multiple Southeast Asia countries.”

Singapore – Communications agency Mutant has promoted Abraham Christopher as its new regional head of client success, formerly its head of public relations and social media.

In his new role, Christopher will lead efforts to deliver transformative communication solutions to its clients while driving agency growth across Southeast Asia. He will focus on helping Mutant’s clients meet their business and communication objectives amidst the dynamic economic landscape.

Christopher joined Mutant in 2021 and has since then helped in regional business development during its expansion in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand. In his former role, he secured high-profile clients while boosting the agency’s capabilities.

With over ten years of experience in the industry, Christopher showcases an expertise in public relations, social media strategy and crisis management.

Mutant’s client portfolio includes Sport Singapore, Epson, SEEK Asia, M1, Disney+, and Brown-Forman.

Singapore – Telecommunications company Singtel is offering its broadband, television, and mobile customers a free one-year subscription to Perplexity Pro. All customers are set to receive the activation code for the subscription via their My Singtel App.

The offering comes after Singtel observed an increase in broadband and mobile traffic to AI domains recently, showcasing a higher demand for AI tools.

The artificial intelligence (AI) search service, ‘Perplexity Pro,’ aims to simplify how customers find information while responding to the demand for AI-powered tools.

Perplexity Pro provides concise and conversational answers to queries by consolidating information from multiple sources in real time, supplemented with in-line citations. It also summarises the response while allowing advanced file analysis and AI-image generation.

Additionally, users of Perplexity Pro can choose from AI models such as OpenAI, Anthropic, and Grok to ensure their experience is tailored to their needs.

Perplexity Pro supports various languages, including English, Simplified Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Korean, and Spanish.

Ng Tian Chong, chief executive officer (CEO) of Singtel Singapore, said, “Consumers are increasingly using AI search platforms to help them with their everyday tasks, from looking up recipes and planning a travel itinerary to more academic uses like school research and business competitive analysis. We are offering this solution, created by leaders in AI, so our customers can get personalised assistance. This is in line with our commitment to bringing cutting-edge technologies into the hands of our customers, so more people can take advantage of what AI has to offer.”

Aravind Srinivas, CEO of Perplexity, said, “Telecoms make it possible for people to use Perplexity on their devices. As we expand to new markets, partnerships with leading telecommunications providers play a key role in our growth strategy. We appreciate Singtel’s commitment to innovation and utility and welcome the opportunity to make Perplexity Pro available to their subscribers for free for a year.”

Singapore – EDMUND TIE & Company, a commercial real estate advisory firm in Singapore, has refreshed its brand identity as ETC in line with its 30th anniversary.

The rebrand to ETC marks the company’s evolution as it traverses the dynamic real estate industry.

The tagline ‘local at heart, global in mind,’ shows ETC’s local expertise while maintaining its global perspective, positioned to provide innovative services to clients.

ETC’s new logo shows a stylised ‘T’ reminiscent of a tree, symbolising the company’s growth and connections. The logo also encapsulates ETC’s core values: enterprising spirit, trustworthiness, and collaborative ethos.

Since ETC’s founding 30 years ago, it has been delivering real estate solutions across Southeast Asia. It has also forged partnerships with businesses in Singapore, the Philippines, China, Australia, Vietnam, and the United Kingdom. 

ETC’s services spans the entire real estate asset’s lifecycle including advisory, investment, management, and divestment.

Desmond Sim, chief executive officer of ETC, said, “The new name ETC is not new to many; it has long been a familiar abbreviation for Edmund Tie & Company among clients and staff. More importantly, the decision to officially adopt ETC as our new name was driven by our people. We conducted rounds of focus group discussions and open conversations with different teams – underscoring the priority we place on our people’s insights, voices and ideas. It’s this spirit of collaboration that defines and propels us forward, as we embrace this next phase of growth.”

“Celebrating 30 years is more than just a tribute to our journey; it’s also a bold declaration of our future ambitions. Our refreshed identity reflects how far we’ve come as one united ETC and highlights our intent to shape the future of real estate, both locally and regionally,” Sim added.

Singapore – Himanshu Shekhar, most recently the chief executive officer for Southeast Asia at GroupM, has stepped down from his role this month, the company has confirmed to MARKETECH APAC when reached out to.

“After two and a half decades with GroupM, Himanshu Shekhar has decided to step down from his role managing our business in Southeast Asia this month. Himanshu has been a strong leader for us over the years. We’re grateful for his many contributions to our success in the region and wish him the best for the future,” a GroupM spokesperson told MARKETECH APAC.

Himanshu served as GroupM’s CEO for the region beginning in May 2023. Prior to this, he was the CEO of GroupM Indonesia and then expanded his role to also include the Thailand and Vietnam markets.

He also served as the managing director of Mindshare Indonesia in 2010 before being elevated to the position of CEO in 2012 and subsequently as its CEO for Southeast Asia in 2015.

The recent move also follows a recent shake-up in GroupM’s APAC leadership, which expanded the remits of Mindshare, Wavemaker, and EssenceMediacom’s regional agency leaders to include responsibility for critical GroupM-wide functions and capabilities.

Singapore – E-commerce platform Lazada has launched an activation in Singapore that turns everyday items into fashion statements in collaboration with BLKJ Havas.

Partnering with brands, Lazada’s activation saw influencers flaunting unique styles with Orchard Road as their runway.

The activation is part of Lazada’s ‘Always the Better Price’ campaign, highlighting its mission of offering competitive prices from daily necessities to fashion. 

While underscoring its commitment to ‘Lowest Price Guarantee’ for consumers, it also aims to enable customers to shop with pride in the deals they receive.

The launch of the activation in Singapore is part of a series of roll-outs planned across Southeast Asia.  Apart from Singapore, a localised version of the activation has been released in the Philippines and will be launched in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand this January.

“We’re thrilled to have brought this bold and fun campaign to life, showcasing how better prices can turn any purchase into a reason to celebrate and share. By working with Lazada to make the work ‘un-advertising,’ we’ve successfully captured attention in a truly unique way,” Rowena Bhagchandani, chief executive officer and co-founder of BLKJ Havas commented.

“Our customers already rely on us for their daily needs, but with Always the Better Price, we’re going a step further,” Marcus Chew, chief marketing officer of Lazada Group, said.

“This campaign reinforces our commitment to better prices through our Lowest Price Guarantee, while showing showcasing our diverse categories offerings. From everyday essentials to stylish fashion pieces, we’re giving shoppers more ways to look good, feel confident, and flaunt their smart choices without breaking the bank,” Chew added.

Singapore – The rise of experiential retail integrated with artificial intelligence (AI) in omnichannel setups is among the key trends shaping Southeast Asia (SEA), according to a report from online fashion retailer Zalora.

Zalora’s report draws insights from the 2024 shopping trends to guide brands’ decisions and strategies in SEA.

While global economic issues, inflation, and geopolitical concerns continue to influence consumer spending, the report sees resilience in SEA with a diversified economy, strong domestic consumption, and regional trade integration.

The role of AI remains a significant factor shaping the future of retail as it is integrated with experience. With more brands leveraging AI and social media in their strategies, consumers see more shoppable content that keeps them engaged.

Consumers in SEA are also becoming more immersed in hybrid shopping experiences, blending online and offline channels. Responding to this trend, retailers now offer shopping journeys that integrate technology while creating physical experiences.

According to the report, nearly 50% of retailers in the region are expecting a shift from online spending to physical shopping, with 42% seeing the foot traffic to return to its pre-pandemic levels.

Additionally, consumers are becoming more conscious of environmental issues, building a preference for sustainable choices.

The growing middle class is also contributing to current trends, with the rising demand for beauty and wellness products, luxury brands, and ‘buy now, pay later’ (BNPL) services.

The luxury retail sector in SEA remains resilient, with more consumers becoming inclined to spend on luxury items and more people embracing the market. 50% of luxury customers are Baby Boomers, while 30.8% are millennials.

Meanwhile, middle class consumers are also turning to flexible payment options, with BNPL increasingly being used in the luxury sector, democratising high-end products.

The report also underscores the democratisation of the sports industry, with smaller brands emerging to gain market share, competing against major players’ dominance.