Sun Hung Kai Real Estate plans $20m marketing splurge

Sun Hung Kai Real Estate is spending HK$20 million in what it says is its largest ever marketing promotion aimed at driving foot traffic into 12 malls over the summer holiday season.

The campaign launched yesterday (July 18) and will run until August 31. The budget is 10 per cent higher than last year’s and the company hopes to boost footfall by a similar proportion – to 62 million – driving combined mall sales to HK$2 billion.

A quarter of the budget will be dedicated to the Tai Po Mega Mall. The company has also created an app, which cost HK$15 million to develop, and provides “a more user-friendly service to customers, such as car searching, e-membership and reservations”.

“Online shopping is becoming popular but the percentage in Hong Kong is still relatively low, with 3 to 4 per cent,” Maureen SY Fung, director of SHKP told China Daily in an interview.

“And we are in a ‘problem solving industry’, we will face the trend positively and improve ourselves with technological aids, like the newly launched mobile phone app.”

At the core of the campaign is the promotional activity “Summer Cool Carnival” focusing on ice cream and swimming pool themes. Educational and entertainment workshops, like Dessert In Vogue Workshop, Little Master Chef Dessert Workshop and VR Torrent Adventure, for kids and parents will help draw people into centres, along with a fashionable selfie spot designed by Korea’s Kimkimlab. More than 100 pop-up stores will open during the period.

“The retailing industry is picking up, the atmosphere is good, so we believe a better performance of the 12 shopping malls on the coming half-year in terms of both passenger flow and turnover,” Fung said.