S'pore to lure back shoppers through sale event

S'pore to lure back shoppers through sale event

JAKARTA (JP): Singapore will launch what it bills as the
biggest-ever shopping event for one month starting in the middle
of next month to bolster its retail sector which has increasingly
been hurt by keener competition from other tourist destinations.

The Great Singapore Sale will open on July 14 with a vast
array of discounts, special promotions and exhibitions, Hassan
Kassim, a public relations officer of the Singapore Tourist
Promotion Board announced yesterday.

"During the sale, discounts are likely to be up to 80 percent
on goods ranging from international fashion name brands to local
products," Kassim said in a press release.

The sale promotion will be held only a few weeks after the
announcement of the finding of a survey which showed that foreign
visitors found shopping in Singapore more expensive than in their
home countries.

The survey conducted by the Singapore Press Holdings concluded
that 50 percent of the 610 tourists interviewed at the Changi
airport considered shopping in the island republic more expensive
than in their home countries. Only 30 percent of the respondents
said shopping in Singapore was cheaper while the other 20 percent
saw the prices as about the same as in their home countries.

Kassim acknowledged that the strong Singapore dollar and
rising labor costs have contributed to the perception of
Singapore being an expensive city.

"But shopping in Singapore is still very attractive for a
variety of reasons including the wide range of goods available,
the comforts and convenience for shoppers and world-class
facilities," he contended.

More than 30 department stores and shopping centers will offer
price discounts ranging from 30 to 80 percent even for major
brand-name products such as Christian Dior, Nina Ricci, Hermes,
Bally and Loewe, according to Kassim.

Kassim said shopping remains one of the most popular
activities for visitors, including those from Indonesia.

"But the attraction for our repeat visitors is that it is ever
changing and there is always something new to see and do," he
added, citing Fantasy Island, the new festivals of Singapore
Museum and a wide variety of other family attractions as some of
the new attractions.

He said last year's inaugural Great Singapore Sale had laid
the groundwork for an annual event to promote Singapore's
reputation as a shoppers' paradise with a vast range of stores
and boutiques, a variety of quality merchandise and service
standards to match the world's elite shopping cities.

Kassim said during the Great Sale period last year that
tourist arrivals from ASEAN countries, including Indonesia,
increased by 22.5 percent from the same months in 1993.

"Judging from last year's performance, I am optimistic that
the second Great Sale in July and August will get another
positive response from our ASEAN visitors," Kassim said.(vin)