HONG KONG, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong's retail industry has suffered heavy losses due to social disturbances last year and the COVID-19 epidemic blow.
In the first quarter of 2020, Hong Kong's retail sales volume fell 36.9 percent compared with the same period of 2019, which was the largest quarter-on-quarter decline on record.
The provisional estimate of Hong Kong's retail sales in the first half of 2020 is 160.8 billion Hong Kong dollars, a drop of 33.3 percent compared with that in 2019. In face of adversity, Hong Kong local retailers begin to seek breakthroughs in transformation.
Photo shows the deserted shopping lobby of Hong Kong Times Square. (Xinhua/Wu Xiaochu)
-- Livelihoods hit by epidemic
The flow of people was far sparser than in the past, and shop owners were under pressure to post banners such as "Severe epidemic, close business" and "Half price for all goods" in business districts such as Causeway Bay, Tsim Sha Tsui and Mong Kok .
Well-known brands such as Chow Tai Fook, Haihuang Congee Shop, and Shijiazhuang have also announced the temporary closure of some branches, shortened business hours, or let employees take unpaid holidays.
According to data from the Hong Kong Tourism Board, due to the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic, Hong Kong had approximately 3.52 million tourists in the first half of 2020, a decrease of nearly 90 percent compared to 2019. The number of mainland visitors to Hong Kong was approximately 2.681 million, a decrease of more than 90 percent compared to 2019. The sharp drop in tourists visiting Hong Kong directly hit the livelihood of Hong Kong's retail industry.
-- Opportunities found in crisis
Facing the adversity, many local retailers have begun to look for opportunities in the crisis, and some have turned their attention to the livestreaming e-commerce model. In the live broadcast room named "Bonjour E-commerce Incubator," there were still dozens of employees introducing and promoting cosmetic with passion even though it was around 10pm.
Bonjour, a traditional Hong Kong retailer, has more than 30 offline stores in Hong Kong and Macao, bringing together multiple cosmetic brands from around the world. Affected by the epidemic, Bonjour has trained frontline sales staff to become online anchors and began to pilot livestreaming e-commerce since March this year.
"Being online sales and anchors makes people feel different every day. In the past, we could only contact 20 or 30 guests in the offline store every day. Now, in the live broadcast room, there are usually several thousand people online at the same time, and each time you have to answer one or two hundred people's questions. It's very challenging and interesting.," said a Bonjour employee who was doing live broadcast.
Chen Jianwen, chairman of Bonjour Holdings Limited, introduced that Hong Kong's retail industry is currently experiencing a cold winter. In order to find a new way forward, Bonjour began to seek digital transformation in March this year. Currently, livestreaming e-commerce is in full swing, and this business model also creates more job opportunities for employees.
"Hong Kong's retail industry has always enjoyed the benefits brought by the national reform and opening up and 'individual travel'. The current unprecedented predicament has forced us to learn and transform," Chen Jianwen said.
In the past six months, Chen Jianwen has established multiple e-commerce platforms in the mainland and overseas, built a traditional e-commerce multi-channel matrix structure, Hong Kong's first livestreaming e-commerce incubator, and established Bonjour New Retail Innovation Center.
Photo shows an employee of Bonjour is doing live broadcast. (Xinhua/Wu Xiaochu)
-- Unlimited potential ahead
The transformation of a company reflects the transformation of the entire industry in Hong Kong. Chen Jianwen has always emphasized that Hong Kong's retail industry must find its own advantages for better development. Hong Kong's retail industry is deeply wired in global supply chain, and Hong Kong hosts so many global mid-to-high brands and products.
The main advantage of Hong Kong's retail industry is on the product side: high quality, rich brands and products. In addition, Hong Kong has long-term experience in commerce, law and international standards. As a duty-free port, Hong Kong's products are free of tax except tobacco and alcohol, so the price is very competitive. These advantages give Hong Kong's retail industry great competitiveness and development potential in the e-commerce era.
Edward Lui, director and head of Consumer Research at BOCOM International, said that Hong Kong has high population density compared with small land area, convenient transportation yet not fully developed digital payment, which together cause Hong Kong's online shopping penetration rate lower than that of the Chinese mainland for many years. For many Hong Kong consumers, shopping in shopping malls and department stores is still the mainstream. In addition, many shopping malls in Hong Kong are large-scale integrated entertainment venues, which makes physical shopping even more appealing.
Regarding the future prospects of Hong Kong's retail industry, Lu Haojiang said that the development of the Greater Bay Area provides a good opportunity for Hong Kong's retail industry. Hong Kong retailers can use their retail management experience accumulated over the years to further bring international brands into the Greater Bay Area and expand their market scope.
Chen Jianwen believes that the establishment of an e-commerce platform in Hong Kong that serves the Belt and Road Initiative can better leverage Hong Kong's global trade advantages and inject new vitality into Hong Kong's tourism, logistics and other service industries. (Contributed by Li Binbin, edited by Niu Huizhe, niuhuizhe@xinhua.org)
A single purchase
