Ningbo Wal-Mart and other observations - I'm back in Ningbo today surveying properties for an investment partner that is developing mid-sized neighborhood retail and hypermarkets. We're finalizing their location selection, and my team is here for a week doing micro analysis studies. The last time I....
Papa John's competing with Yum for the pizza market - Papa John's, the Louisville, KY pizza chain with over 3200 stores in 28 countries around the world, recently announced plans to open 500 stores in China over the next 5 years. This will make China it's most important international market.....
So what's really happening in Changsha? - Changsha, in Hunan Province, is the kind of place that doesn't get much attention until something big happens in the news - like the anti-Carrefour mob that gathered in neighboring Zhuzhou recently, to protest the French and their handling of....
Ghost Malls - I've spent the past week in Las Vegas at the annual RECON convention. It's the world's largest gathering of retail real estate professionals, and every year is a dizzying array of specialized retail services, sectors, and technology. People here are....
Mall Management 101: Don't confuse your customers! - I was in Taipei for a week and dropped by the Core Pacific City (京華城) Mall to watch a movie. Core Pacific, or the Living Mall, as it's also referred to - yes it can be complicated, better to just....
Gone Fishing - In my line of business I'm learning something new everyday - thanks to our group's clients. They always come up with interesting problems to wrangle with. Recently I was examining a large amount of China city data for an international....
Notes from Shaanxi - I've spent most of the week in Shaanxi province looking at retail development opportunities. My first stop was Hanzhong, a small working city in a pretty green basin surrounded by mountains. Small, meaning only about 4 million people. I asked....
What's Happening in China's Economy? - I've been asked by HQ to summarize in as few words as possible the implications of the current mess in the US on our business here in China. Believe me, I was thinking, Hmm, now let me get out my....
Attitude towards adversity - I thought this headline today said a lot about the past and the future...of the US. LA-Z-BOY TO CUT 850 JOBS, CLOSE UP TO 20 STORES "Furniture maker La-Z-Boy Inc. said Thursday it will cut jobs and close stores as....
Starbucks Coffee Thailand - A Case Study - Our sister company, getchee, has been very busy working with Starbucks in Thailand. They prepared an excellent overview of the process of using demographics and estimate sales potential in an area. (Download this case study) Problem With escalating capacity and....
Marks & Spencer - Marks & Spencer Chairman Sir Stuart Rose said in a recent (2/10/09) interview with the Financial Times that the retailer had made several "basic shopkeeping" mistakes when launching its first store on the Chinese mainland. "We had a screw up,"....
LA Times: In China, appetite slows for Western fast food - I was recently asked by the LA TImes to talk about retail and QSR in China. Here's their article below: February 12, 2009 By Don Lee Reporting from Shanghai — Down an alley from a KFC, McDonald's and Pizza Hut....
Five Rules for Retailing in a Recession - Here's a great article available for download (fee) on the Harvard Business Review site. The reason I say it's a great article is because it touches upon common themes faced by all retailers - from the US to China. In....
Creating Retail Trade Areas - We work all the time with retailers, and trade area is a basic assumption that is taken for granted in most analysis. We actually spend a lot of time to define this as it's the common denominator for most higher....
"Retail - new challenges and opportunities in China" seminar - Where: DLA PIPER 36/F, SHANGHAI WORLD FINANCIAL CENTER 100 CENTURY AVENUE PUDONG SHANGHAI 200120 CHINA The seminar will address the latest retail development trends in China and it will explore the new challenges and opportunities as retail/distribution companies adapt to....
Luxury Brands Gain Momentum in China Despite the Global Slowdown - This has been a very busy summer here in China. Someone turned the switch on in June and we've been running fast to keep up. Retailers are retailing again, developers are developing again, and analyst are analyzing again. With all....
Beijing loves IKEA -- but not for shopping - For anyone who has struggled through IKEA in Beijing on a weekend can relate to this article. It's a madhouse packed with thousands of people. People sauntering, sitting in chairs, taking photos, eating, sleeping under covers, each display - packed....