January Social Gathering

Speaker	:	Mr. Victor Ng Asst. Portfolio Manager Swire Properties Management Limited
Topic	:	Evolution of the 1st Outlet Mall in Hong Kong
Date	:	January 2, 2008

The January Social Gathering kicked off the CIM HK 2008 events calendar, with Mr. Victor Ng from Swire Properties as the guest speaker. Riding on the retail industry's Christmas and New Year golden period, Mr. Ng shared his first-hand experience in marketing the Citygate Outlets - Hong Kong's first outlet shopping mall. This event drew an enthusiastic crowd of nearly 40 members and guests.

• The 462,800-sq.ft. Citygate Outlets was originally set out to serve the Tung Chung vicinity, which was projected to house 200,000 people as per the government's original forecast
  
• The population of Tung Chung reached only 90,000 as per today's estimate, representing a significant shortfall of consumer base, leading to a lower-than-anticipated occupancy rate for the mall if it was to remain as a community shopping cente

Solution

• Focus group and interviews were conducted on Citygate's two target customer groups: consumers and retailers
• Hong Kong consumers were found to have a recognition of the outlet mall concept already
• Leading brands have been searching for a right channel to sell their overstock while not affecting their brand image, and to support a broader "catchment customers" not limited to their core customer groups in their regular shops
• The repositioning of Citygate from a community mall to become an outlet shopping mall was deemed feasible
• The repositioning began in April 2006 with a gradual approach. Three to four new outlet shops have been scheduled to open each month since the launch

Marketing Strategies

• The overall objective was to raise local awareness of outlet shopping for the past year
• To reinforce the Citygates brand, a plush figurine was created. "Ah Bo" is the "Happy Ambassador of Citygate Outlets" as well as a universal language to promote the center for all kinds of people
• The marketing strategies have a four-prong approach:
  (1) Promotions and Public Relations:
  > Placements of retailers' products in newspaper supplements, with price reduction of each merchandise shown
  > Interviews with senior Citygate Outlets management on local press, current affairs and lifestyle programmes via newspaper, radio and TV channels
  
  (2) Advertising
  > Lifestyle magazines
  > MTR carriages
  > Bus
  > Radio
  
  (3) Sales Promotion
  > Cross-promotions with third parties, for example, credit cards
  > Gift redemption upon a certain amount of purchase for a recycle bag with "Ah Bo" imprinted
  > Customer relations management (CRM), like the recruitment of Friend of Citygate Outlets campaign via the official website for future incentive programme. This targets repeat purchase and visits
  
  (4) Pricing
  > Retailers in the outlet mall offer 30% to 70% discounts from regular price throughout the year

Key Benefits

• Citygate Outlets has become a thriving outlet shopping mall with a strong flow of visitors
• Synergize the neighboring tourists facilities, such as AsiaWorld-Expo, Ngong Ping 360 and Disneyland with all of them being on the Lantau Island
• Significant boost in awareness of Citygate not only to the Hong Kong consumers, but also business and leisure tourists
• According to survey results, a major portion of traffic is attributed to in-bound tourists, of which Mainlanders have a relatively stronger growth

About the Speaker:
Mr. Victor Ng is the Assistant Portfolio Manager of Citygate Outlets, responsible for turning the concept of the 1st outlet mall in Hong Kong into reality. During his tenure, his team has changed the face of Citygate from a community mall to an internationally reputed destination. With over 7 years in Swire Properties, Mr. Ng has solid and extensive experience in leasing and managing shopping centres and office properties in the territory. A member of the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors (HKIS) and Institute of Shopping Center Management (ISCM), Mr. Ng obtained his Master of Science in Marketing from the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 2005.

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