nuance Watson
Keep calm &
Carry on Nuance-Watson’s determination to ride out a rough patch and keep raising its game are paying off by p. convery It’s been more than a year since Nuance-Watson (HK) suffered the heavy blow of losing its two core category concessions at Hong Kong International Airport – operations that were among the company’s most extensive, with 40 stores. But in the months that followed, the retailer mustered up plenty of determination to overcome the setback, and it’s now showing every sign of having ridden out a development that can only be described as a commercial earthquake. Nuance didn’t lose all its stores at the airport, and retains 17 licenses in categories including perfumes & cosmetics, technology/electronics, confectionery, watches, leather goods, readyto-wear, shoes, and destination merchandise/ souvenirs. And it’s from this base that the retailer is looking to make further inroads into an airport that Nuance-Watson (Asia) Regional Managing Director Alessandra Piovesana says it has grown and evolved with. “As always, we will continue to take a supportive approach to the airport’s new developments and strive to prolong our business at every opportunity, such as in the latest registration of interest for the luxury boutique tender,” says Piovesana. “Together with our brand partners and our dedicated employees, we remain positive, in spite of the changing nature and uncertainties of tendering at the airport.” She says that over the past year, Nuance has performed solidly, attaining record results across Asia-Pacific as a whole. p&c forms a core part of nuance’s business in asia-pacific, and it has 20 outlets at changi dedicated to the category
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ASiA duty Free & trAvel retAiling sePteMber 2013
nuance-Watson has renewed its lease for the atrium in Macau and is poised for expansion in the former portuguese enclave
Piovesana says: “On one hand, we strive to maximize the productivity of our existing licenses across locations with new launches supported by targeted and innovative marketing campaigns that cater for different nationalities of travelers, as well as joint promotions with airports, credit cards and airlines that have further lifted our performance. “On the other hand, we have been actively pursuing new business development opportunities to solidify our strong hold at strategic airports while expanding our footprint in Asian travel retail to broaden our customer knowledge, strengthen our operational experience and open up new revenue streams. “All in all, we’re keeping ourselves in a balanced position to sustain our healthy growth momentum.” In Macau, Nuance has renewed its lease for The Atrium, one of the largest department stores in the mall at casino-hotel complex The Venetian Macao, and is poised to expand the store’s floor area to around 2,500 square meters, enhancing visibility and choices. In Singapore, the opening of a Victoria’s Secret standalone specialty store in June and Emporio Armani boutiques in March has brought the number of Nuance-Watson retail outlets at Changi Airport to 27 – a presence of 20 perfume and cosmetics stores and seven fashion and accessories stores. And in the southern Chinese city of Zhuhai,
neighboring Macau, it opened a new 90 square meter travel accessories shop named Attitude in June. “We are actively preparing for the new confectionery shops at [Kuala Lumpur International Airport’s] KLIA2, which will be opening in 2014,” says Piovesana. “And we are also exploring the opportunities at other airports in China and selected airports in North Asia and Southeast Asia.” “There are many tender opportunities [at] Changi, including important P&C, liquor & tobacco licences,” she says. “At HKIA, some 35 luxury brand boutiques will be put up for tender, [and there is also] the new market of Malaysia.” Piovesana says Nuance is actively seeking business development opportunities in both the airport and non-airport channels, and overall, she says, the picture is a promising one. She says: “Asia’s economic growth remains robust as the strongly influential China market still maintains a relatively high GDP growth rate. Tourism and air travel are also growing, as a new generation of the middle class starts to develop, feeding more frequent traveling habits. “Driven by the growth in both passengers and spending, we are optimistic about the opportunities for both organic growth in our existing business and new business developments.” If anyone thought the loss of HKIA would deal Nuance-Watson a blow from which it would struggle to recover, it seems they had better think again. c