MINISO pumps about RM1.5m into Malaysia flagship store

MINISO has launched its first flagship store in Selangor's Setia City Mall. Vincent Huang (pictured below), MINISO's VP of international business department, told A+M that its Malaysian master licensee's investment in the new flagship store was around RM1.5 million and expects to see a return on investment in two years.

The new store concept, referred to as MINISO 3.0, puts an emphasis on a family-friendly shopping experience and is targeted mainly at the younger audience who are tech-savvy. Hence, MINISO will focus on social media advertising and leverage the influence of KOLs to share stories about the new flagship store. An online to offline strategy is also paramount to attracting footfall. Aside from working Weber Shandwick, it also worked with Lendlease to promote the launch of MINISO 3.0.

According to Huang, the biggest difference between the flagship store and other MINISO stores is its brand-new toy section. It presents not only popular licensed products from world-renowned intellectual property owners, but also MINISO’s original MINI Family collection. 

The toy section occupies 20% of the retail space in the store and appeals to shoppers the most. This section also incorporates trendy and modern design in the decor and display, featuring a unique plushie wall, blind box wall, and a play area for building bricks.

In addition to toys, the Selangor flagship store has a fragrance feature wall showcasing a variety of MINISO's scented products, including perfumes and home fragrances. This addition was made after MINISO noticed many Southeast Asian consumers were more interested in shopping for fragrances or scented products. One study put that figure at around 72%. The feature walls also function as photo sports for consumers, and there are also dedicated walls to display kitchenware and fitness products. A lounge area with chairs and couches shaped like the winking face of MINISO's logo is also available. Meanwhile, the majority of products available in the store range from RM10 to RM20.

MINISO first entered Malaysia in 2016 and Huang describes it to be a "melting pot of ethnicities, religions, and cultures". "MINISO too is constantly taking inspirations from different cultures and reflecting them in our products and stores. It’s a perfect match for us," Huang said.

Although the uncertainties brought by COVID-19 are lingering, Huang said, accompanied by the inflation, Huang said MINISO is working very closely with its master licensee in Malaysia and has developed a total of 10 product categories for the new store, including cosmetics, home decor, accessories, toys, personal care, gadgets, beauty tools, textiles, fragrance and perfumes, as well as stationery and gift.

With Malaysia's borders reopened, MINISO looks forward to the return of tourists, which Huang said will help boost sales for all retailers including the company. "ECommerce still has great potential in Malaysia and we have seized the opportunity to build our eCommerce ecosystem across Shopee, Lazada, its website and the app," he added.

(Read also: Interview: Southeast Asia's fragmented markets open new opportunities for MINISO)

Meanwhile, Huang cited the rising power of social media in retail as one of the trends he is keeping an eye on. According to the Department of Statistics Malaysia, the number of individuals using the Internet increased from 84.2% in 2019 to 89.6% in 2020. Huang said that the high Internet penetration rate and increase in the number of active social media users in Malaysia bring about huge potential in social commerce and the rise of local influencers in the country. "MINISO is an omnichannel retailer and is also present on popular social media platforms. We see the opportunities and would be keen to translate them into sales both online and offline," he said.

"The other thing is that Malaysian consumers have experienced muted inflationary pressures in the post-pandemic environment. Under this background, people are more conscious when it comes to spending," Huang said. He added that MINISO, it upholds its company's philosophy by introducing quality, easy-to-use, good-looking, fun, affordable and value-for-money products to meet consumer needs. "We plan to crossover with different industries to create more value for our consumers," he added.

Separately, Robin Liu, MINISO's VP, CMO and head of eCommerce, told A+M in an interview last year that Southeast Asia skews younger than the majority of MINISO’s other global markets, and this matches the brand’s target audience quite well. Moreover, both Japanese and Chinese cultures have a huge influence on the region, which are core design aesthetics MINISO embraces. These are reflected in its IP partnerships, as its most popular in the region are Hello Kitty, Sanrio and Budding Pop.

Like Huang, Liu sees eCommerce as a huge opportunity in Southeast Asia. He explained that MINISO's eCommerce sales surged 250% during the first quarter of last year compared to the same quarter in 2020, and online channel sales accounted for 13% of its total sales in Indonesia during that quarter.

MINISO currently adopts a 7-1-1 strategy, which means that every seven days, it will launch approximately 100 new products that have been carefully selected from a large library of 10,000 product ideas. The goal is that customers will never feel bored when exploring in its stores, as there will always be something new.

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