Singapore Golden Week: A new plan to woo Chinese tourists

SINGAPORE — The Republic’s retail industry is taking a big step to court visitors from China — the world’s top source market for international tourists — with an islandwide lifestyle event dubbed the Singapore Golden Week (SGW), even as it comes to terms with weaker response to its flagship retail attraction Great Singapore Sale amid the downturn and slump in consumer demand.

Major retailers, including Isetan Scotts, Metro, Robinsons, as well as clothing labels Dockers, Dorothy Perkins, Karen Millen, Levi’s, T.M.Lewin and Topshop, have lined up promotions from Friday (Sept 30), as more than half a billion Chinese are expected to travel abroad during the country’s one-week National Day public holiday. 

Led by the Singapore Retailers Association (SRA), the sale is in partnership with Chinese payments firm UnionPay, and will be held over three weekends until Oct 16. 

The event, SRA said, is aimed at heightening the appeal of Singapore as a choice lifestyle destination for locals and tourists with the inaugural SGW 2016 featuring a suite of retail privileges, sure-win rewards and pampering experiences for consumers. 

“It is yet another event to look forward to and a new golden opportunity for the industry to leverage on. SGW aims to create new opportunities for retailers,” said Mr Anthony Gan, executive director of SRA.

According to a report by the China Tourism Academy, an estimated 589 million Chinese will travel overseas and domestically for leisure during the coming holiday period. Singapore was seventh on the list of the top destinations behind countries including Thailand, South Korea and Japan.

“We hope that this will light up the local retail scene … We also hope to be able to bring fresh experiences, more choices and excitement for shoppers,” said Mr Yang Wenhui, general manager of UnionPay International Southeast Asia.

Mainland China is Singapore’s largest single tourist source market. Singapore saw 1.47 million visitors from the mainland in the first half of this year, up 55.2 per cent from the same period last year, data from the Singapore Tourism Board shows. Chinese tourists, hence, accounted for nearly 18 per cent of the visitors to Singapore during the period. 

About 8.17 million tourists travelled to Singapore during the first six months of this year, up 12.5 per cent compared with the same period last year. However, tourists have been spending less on shopping on their visits to Singapore. A stronger Singapore currency compared to other regional tourist destinations in addition to high rentals and operating costs makes things in the Republic more expensive.

UnionPay also announced the launch of U Plan, which the company said, is a new cross-border marketing platform and the first of its kind in the world that brings together issuers, acquirers, travel agencies and merchants to market products and services across borders on a single platform.

With U Plan, travellers can  download electronic discount coupons via the UnionPay International app and various channels prior to travelling, and use these coupons at participating outlets located at their travel destinations to enjoy discounts, Mr Yang said.