CapitaLand unveils SG$10m marketing plan for retailers, Jewel cuts retail rentals

Real estate company CapitaLand has rolled out a SG$10 million marketing initiative to support retail partners through the challenges brought on by the coronavirus (COVID-19). There are more than 3,500 stores operated by retail partners across CapitaLand malls in Singapore.

According to CapitaLand, the marketing assistance programme will be used to support both retailer-driven promotions and mall-wide marketing initiatives. These include complimentary booking of atrium spaces for retailers and free parking for shoppers during lunch or dinner hours. A series of marketing initiatives under the campaign banner “CapitaLand + You” (“凯德为你加油” in Chinese) will also be lined up to boost spending in its malls. The company will also introduce cashback promotions and giveaways of STAR$ and eCapitaVoucher for CapitaStar loyalty members.

In addition, from 14 February 2020 until further notice, stores within CapitaLand malls may operate from no later than 11am, and close no earlier than 8pm. There will be however, no change to the malls’ standard operating hours of 10am to 10pm.

Jason Leow, president, Singapore and International, CapitaLand Group, said the company will be reaching out first to retailers as their businesses have been directly impacted. "The customised support we offer our Singapore retail partners will be based on their specific needs and trades. It will take into consideration the impact of the situation on the performance of their stores across the malls within CapitaLand’s network. This will allow us to leverage the strength of CapitaLand’s shopping mall network to offer holistic support,” he added.

CapitaLand recently also implemented precautionary measures in accordance with guidelines from the authorities and has placed hand sanitisers for tenants, shoppers and guests in the properties in Singapore.

Meanwhile, Jewel Changi Airport has reportedly offered to its tenants a 50% rental rebate for the months of February and March. The president of Restaurant Association of Singapore (RAS) Vincent Tan said in a ST article that the organisation too is looking to provide tenants of CapitaLand, Frasers and Mapletree a 50% rental rebate, as the COVID-19 outbreak is impacting businesses.

According to RAS, retail tenants revealed in a poll that they expect a decline in revenue of over 50% over the next three months. The ST article further added that about 60% of the members said they were not "prepared or equipped" to manage such a situation. President Tan revealed that the F&B sector has faced a 50 to 80% plunge in business as shoppers are staying away from crowded places. Both RAS and Jewel Changi has yet to respond to Marketing's queries.

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